Florida Title Insurance Explained for Miami Buyers and Sellers (2026)

Last updated: July 2026

Florida title insurance works differently than in most states, and the differences matter to your closing statement. The premium is not set by the market. Florida's Office of Insurance Regulation promulgates the rates by rule, so every underwriter charges the same base premium for the same coverage amount [1]. On an owner's policy, the schedule starts at $5.75 per $1,000 of coverage for the first $100,000, steps down to $5.00 per $1,000 up to $1 million, and continues stepping down on larger policies [1]. It is a one-time premium paid at closing, and the coverage lasts as long as you or your heirs hold the property [2].

Who pays is a county custom, not a law. In Miami-Dade and Broward, the buyer customarily pays for the owner's policy and selects the title agent. In most of the rest of Florida, the seller pays [3][4]. Everything is negotiable in the contract, but that is the default assumption agents and title companies in Miami work from. Here is how the policies, the rate schedule, reissue credits, and the title defects we actually see in South Florida fit together.

What an owner's policy and a lender's policy actually cover

Title insurance is backward-looking. Instead of insuring against future events the way property insurance does, it insures against defects that already exist in the chain of title at the moment you close.

An owner's policy protects you, the buyer, against loss from covered title defects such as a prior recorded mortgage that was never satisfied, a judgment lien, a tax lien, or another encumbrance that survived the closing [2]. If a covered claim surfaces, the insurer defends the title and covers the loss up to the policy amount, which is typically the purchase price.

A lender's policy protects only the mortgage lender, for the loan balance, until the loan is repaid [2]. If you are financing, your lender will require one. The key point buyers sometimes miss: the lender's policy does nothing for your equity. If a defect wipes out value, the lender's policy makes the bank whole, not you. When both policies close in the same transaction, the second is typically issued for a small simultaneous-issue charge rather than a second full premium.

Florida's promulgated rate schedule

The rates come from Rule 69O-186.003 of the Florida Administrative Code, adopted by the Office of Insurance Regulation [1]. For an original owner's policy, the schedule is:

Coverage amount	Rate
Up to $100,000	$5.75 per $1,000
$100,000 to $1 million	add $5.00 per $1,000
$1 million to $5 million	add $2.50 per $1,000
$5 million to $10 million	add $2.25 per $1,000
Over $10 million	add $2.00 per $1,000

The minimum premium is $100 [1].

A worked example. On a $1.5 million condo purchase in Brickell, the owner's policy premium computes as $575 on the first $100,000, plus $4,500 on the next $900,000, plus $1,250 on the next $500,000, for a total of $6,325. Straight arithmetic off the promulgated schedule, and it will be the same base premium at any Florida underwriter.

What is not fixed: closing fees, settlement fees, title search and municipal lien search charges, and endorsement pricing. Those vary by title company, and on a luxury transaction they are worth comparing even though the premium itself is not shoppable. The party paying the premium customarily gets first choice of the closing agent, subject to lender approval [2].

Who pays in Miami-Dade versus Broward

Florida has no statute assigning the title premium to either side. It runs on county convention, written into the contract at offer time.

In Miami-Dade and Broward, the custom is buyer pays and buyer selects the title company [3][4]. In most other Florida counties, including Palm Beach, the custom flips: seller pays and seller selects [4]. Even within the buyer-pays counties, the seller usually covers the title and municipal lien search costs [3].

Two underwriting implications for Miami deals:

If you are buying in Miami-Dade, budget the owner's premium into your cash to close. On a seven-figure purchase it is a four- to five-figure line item that out-of-state buyers, especially those used to seller-pays markets, sometimes miss.
If you are selling in Miami-Dade, your side of the ledger is lighter on title than it would be in Orlando or Tampa, but you are still customarily covering the searches, documentary stamps on the deed, and any cure work needed to deliver marketable title.

The contract controls. In a slow negotiation, who pays title is a legitimate concession lever in either direction. Just price it accurately when you trade it.

Reissue credits: the discount most buyers never ask about

The promulgated schedule includes a reduced reissue rate when a prior owner's policy on the same property can be produced. The reissue schedule runs $3.30 per $1,000 on the first $100,000 and $3.00 per $1,000 up to $1 million, a meaningful cut from the original rates [1][2].

Qualifying situations under the rule include a prior policy dated within the past three years, a refinance of previously insured property, and unimproved land scenarios [1]. In practice, the highest-frequency case in Miami is the refinance: if you refinance a property you bought with an owner's policy, ask the title agent to apply the reissue or substitution rate rather than quoting the full original premium.

For purchases, the three-year window matters. Miami has a real population of properties that trade quickly, including pre-construction condos resold shortly after delivery and flipped renovations. If the seller bought within the last three years, ask the seller's side to produce the prior owner's policy. The savings flow to whoever pays the premium, which in Miami-Dade is usually the buyer, and nobody applies the credit automatically.

Common title defects in South Florida

The premium is fixed, but the risk profile is local. These are the defect categories that show up repeatedly in Miami-Dade files.

Open and expired permits

Renovation work that was permitted but never received final inspection leaves an open permit on the municipal record. Open and expired permits generally do not appear in a standard title search of county records because they live in city building department systems, not the recorded chain of title [5]. They surface in the municipal lien search, and they matter: an open permit from a prior owner's kitchen remodel can stall your closing or become your problem after it. In older housing stock, unpermitted or never-closed work is common enough that the permit search is not optional diligence.

Municipal liens and code enforcement

Unpaid utility balances, code enforcement fines, special assessments, and stormwater fees are often unrecorded municipal obligations that a standard title search will not catch [5]. Many Miami-Dade municipalities, including Miami Beach, Coral Gables, and Hialeah, maintain their own lien and violation records that must be searched separately at the city level. A running code enforcement fine can quietly compound into a large figure. This is exactly why the FAR/BAR contract framework contemplates a municipal lien search alongside the title search, and why in Miami-Dade the seller customarily pays for it [3].

Probate gaps and heirship issues

South Florida's ownership base skews toward long-hold owners, second homes, and estates. When an owner dies and the property passes without a completed probate, or a deed was signed by fewer than all the heirs, the chain of title has a gap. These files take time to cure, sometimes months, and they are a common reason a Miami closing date slips. If you are buying from an estate, order the title commitment early and read the requirements section closely. If you are selling inherited property, start the probate and title work before you list, not after you have a contract.

The owner's policy is what stands behind you if one of these defects is missed or surfaces later. That is the practical case for it, especially on all-cash purchases where no lender is forcing the issue.

How to run this on your own deal

Buyers: model the owner's premium off the promulgated schedule before you write the offer, confirm the municipal lien search covers the specific city, and ask about the prior policy if the seller bought within three years. If you want a second set of eyes on the full closing cost stack for a purchase, that is part of what we cover in a buyer consultation.

Sellers: order your own title check before listing if there is any renovation history, estate history, or old mortgage on the property. Curing defects on your own timeline is cheaper than curing them against a closing deadline. If you are working out your net sheet, the title line items are part of the picture we build when you prepare to sell your Miami home.

Frequently asked questions

Is title insurance required in Florida?

An owner's policy is not legally required. A lender's policy effectively is whenever there is a mortgage, because lenders require it as a condition of the loan. Cash buyers can technically skip the owner's policy, but they are also the buyers with the most equity exposed to a defect.

Can I shop around for a cheaper title insurance premium in Florida?

Not on the base premium. Florida promulgates the rates, so the premium for a given coverage amount is the same at every underwriter [1]. You can and should compare the non-premium items: closing and settlement fees, search costs, and endorsement charges, which vary by title company.

Who pays for title insurance in Miami-Dade County?

By custom, the buyer pays for the owner's policy and selects the title company in Miami-Dade and Broward, while the seller customarily pays for the title and lien searches [3][4]. In most other Florida counties the seller pays. The contract can allocate it either way.

What is a reissue credit and do I qualify?

It is a reduced promulgated rate that applies when a qualifying prior owner's policy on the property exists, including refinances of previously insured property and purchases where the prior policy is dated within roughly three years [1]. Produce the prior policy and ask the title agent to apply it. It is not applied automatically.

Does a title search catch open permits and code violations?

Usually not. Those obligations typically sit in municipal systems rather than the recorded county chain of title, which is why a separate municipal lien search is standard practice in South Florida [5].

Gabriel

Sources

Gabriel A. Moyers, PA. eXp Realty. Florida License #3407280. Equal Housing Opportunity. This article is general information as of July 2026 and is not legal, tax, or financial advice. Verify current figures against authoritative sources before acting.