You found a home you love in San Roque, but the preliminary title report just landed in your inbox and it feels dense. You are not alone. Older Santa Barbara parcels often come with a long paper trail, and the prelim is your roadmap. In this guide, you will learn how to read it, what to flag in San Roque, and how to protect your plans before you close. Let’s dive in.
Prelim basics
A preliminary title report is the title insurer’s snapshot of a property’s current title status. It shows who appears to own the property, the legal description, and recorded items that affect ownership or use. It also outlines what the insurer will not cover unless an issue is cleared or insured with an endorsement.
Most prelims are organized the same way:
- Schedule A: owner of record, legal description, vesting, and the policy type and amount.
- Schedule B-1: requirements to satisfy before the policy is issued, like lien payoffs or missing documents.
- Schedule B-2: exceptions the insurer will exclude from coverage, such as easements, covenants, taxes not yet due, and rights of parties in possession.
Local title officers prepare the prelim by searching public records. It is a disclosure document, not a guarantee. Many items can be resolved during escrow, and others may be insurable with the right endorsement.
Why San Roque needs extra care
San Roque is a mature Santa Barbara neighborhood with older plats, alleys, and irregular lots. That history creates unique title patterns you should expect to see. Common items include:
- Alleys or rear rights-of-way with shared access and unclear maintenance.
- Flag lots that rely on recorded access strips and shared driveway terms.
- Narrow or irregular parcels that trigger setback or building restriction notes.
- Longstanding fences, retaining walls, or garages that might cross lines or sit in easement areas.
- Historic utility and drainage easements that limit where you can build.
City and county records often explain these items. Look to the Santa Barbara County Recorder’s Office for recorded maps and instruments, the County Assessor and GIS for parcel and tax data, and the City Planning & Development Department for alley dedications, overlays, and permits.
Read the report step by step
Start with Schedule A
Confirm the owner of record, legal description, and the policy amount. Make sure the APN matches what you and your agent are evaluating. If the legal description references a subdivision or parcel map, note the map number so you can pull it for visual reference.
Review Schedule B-1
B-1 lists the requirements the insurer needs before issuing the policy. Common examples include lien payoffs, death certificates for a prior owner, or HOA documents. These items are usually resolvable through escrow once identified.
Decode Schedule B-2
B-2 is where you will spend time. Read each exception and pull the referenced document. Key things to scan in easement records:
- Who benefits and who is burdened (grantor and grantee).
- The purpose, such as ingress and egress, utilities, or drainage.
- Where it lies, often by map or metes-and-bounds callouts.
- The width, length, and whether use is exclusive or nonexclusive.
- Any maintenance or cost-sharing terms.
Ask yourself: does this provide legal access, is it wide enough for intended use, and does it limit where you can place additions or structures?
Spot local red flags
Alleys and access
Older San Roque blocks often show alleys. Determine if the alley is public, privately held, or dedicated with conditions. Look for recorded dedications, vacations, or shared maintenance agreements. If the property’s only access is by an unrecorded alley, that is a serious issue to escalate.
Flag lots and shared driveways
Flag-lot strips typically carry access easements. Confirm the easement is recorded, who benefits, and who pays to maintain it. Also check for parking or turning restrictions that affect daily use.
Utility and drainage easements
Historic utility or drainage corridors often run behind or across lots. They are normal, but you should not build within them without proper approvals. If a planned addition touches one, ask the title officer about coverage or seek professional review.
Encroachments in mature blocks
Longstanding fences, walls, and garages can drift over lines or into easements. If the prelim lists “rights of parties in possession,” or your site walk raises questions, order a survey to compare improvements to recorded lines.
Liens and assessments
Confirm property tax status and scan for judgments, mechanics’ liens, or HOA and assessment liens. Municipal or code enforcement liens may also appear. These items can often be cleared in escrow once identified.
Verify on the ground
Paper and pavement must match. After you pull the parcel and subdivision maps from the Recorder and Assessor, walk the site:
- Trace the driveway, alley, and any shared areas against the map.
- Look for clues like fence lines, retaining walls, and utility boxes where easements might run.
- Compare setbacks and building footprints to recorded restrictions.
If something does not line up, plan for a boundary or ALTA/NSPS survey early in escrow.
Endorsements to consider
Ask your title officer which endorsements their underwriter will offer in Santa Barbara County. Common requests include:
- Access endorsement to confirm recorded legal access to a public road.
- Survey or boundary endorsement to address encroachment risks.
- Mechanic’s lien endorsement when recent work was done.
- HOA endorsement if CC&Rs apply.
Endorsements help insure around known risks, but they depend on the facts. Your officer can advise what is available for your parcel.
When to escalate
Certain issues call for additional expertise:
- Title officer or escrow officer: clarify exceptions, pull instrument copies, and discuss typical cures or endorsements.
- Licensed land surveyor: confirm boundaries, easement locations, or potential encroachments, especially for flag lots and irregular parcels.
- California real estate attorney: interpret ambiguous easement language, resolve access gaps, negotiate maintenance agreements, or advise on encroachment disputes.
- Engineers: evaluate retaining walls, slopes, or drainage features within easement areas.
Helpful language when you reach out:
- To title: “Please send the recorded instruments in Schedule B-2 and advise whether an access or survey endorsement is available for these items.”
- To a surveyor: “I need an ALTA/NSPS survey to confirm boundaries, map recorded easements, and identify any encroachments during escrow.”
- To an attorney: “Please review the attached easements and advise if they provide sufficient legal access and whether they affect future improvements.”
Buyer checklist
Use this step-by-step process to stay ahead:
- Verify Schedule A details: owner name, legal description, APN, policy amount.
- Pull the county parcel map and recorded subdivision or parcel map.
- Read Schedule B-2 and list each easement, covenant, lien, or tax item.
- Obtain and read all referenced documents and map notes.
- Confirm legal access, including alley status and any recorded dedications or vacations.
- Review flag-lot strips, access rights, and maintenance language.
- Identify utility and drainage easements and note where they run.
- Walk the property and look for potential encroachments or unrecorded use.
- Ask title about access, survey, mechanic’s lien, or HOA endorsements.
- If anything is unclear, bring in a surveyor or attorney within contingencies.
Timing with escrow
Treat title review as a priority, not a final-day task. Order maps and instrument copies as soon as you receive the prelim. If a survey might be needed, schedule it early so you have time to react. Resolve exceptions or secure endorsements before removing contingencies, and coordinate with inspections to avoid surprises after closing.
A confident path in San Roque
A thorough prelim review gives you clarity on access, buildability, and long-term use. In San Roque’s older fabric of alleys, flag lots, and historic easements, that clarity protects your plans and your investment. If you want a calm, informed process from first read to clear-to-close, let’s talk. Reach out to Lindsay Semler for boutique, concierge-level guidance grounded in Santa Barbara expertise.
FAQs
What is a preliminary title report for a San Roque home?
- It is the title insurer’s report of current ownership, legal description, and recorded matters that affect the property, including items the insurer will exclude from coverage unless cleared or endorsed.
How do I confirm legal access if a San Roque property uses an alley?
- Pull the recorded map and easement or dedication documents, verify whether the alley is public or private, and ask the title officer about an access endorsement if access is properly recorded.
What does “rights of parties in possession” mean on my prelim?
- It flags possible unrecorded uses or occupants; pair your document review with a site walk and consider a survey to identify any encroachments or use conflicts.
Which title endorsements matter most in Santa Barbara County?
- Common requests include access and survey or boundary endorsements, plus mechanic’s lien and HOA endorsements when applicable; availability depends on your specific facts and the underwriter.
When should I hire a surveyor for a San Roque purchase?
- Hire one if boundaries are unclear, the lot is a flag lot, easement locations affect use or additions, or you see signs of encroachments during your site walk.
