Dear Associates:
Stewart Title Guaranty Company (STG) hereby issues this bulletin to coincide with the July 7, 2025, effective date of its amended Schedule of Charges and Forms for Title Insurance in the State of California (STGC Manual). Included in the amended STGC Manual are references to certain California Land Title Association (CLTA) Guarantee and Endorsement forms which were updated and filed by the CLTA with the California Department of Insurance (DOI), effective April 17, 2025.
CLTA GUARANTEE FORMS
The CLTA Guarantee forms had not been updated for more than a decade. In response to requests to provide conformity, comprehensive drafting instructions including intended use and purpose, and integration of changes consistent with the updated policy forms, the CLTA Forms and Practices Committee (F&P) reviewed and updated the existing Guarantee forms. In addition to revising the Guarantee forms, F&P created a couple of new Guarantee forms and archived a number of Guarantee forms. Also, the Guarantee Face Page and Exclusions & Conditions documents, both dated 02-06-25, were updated and incorporated into each Guarantee, rather than being separate documents that in the past needed to be attached separately to each Guarantee.
Revised Guarantee Forms:
- Guarantee 1 – Litigation Guarantee (02-06-25)
- Guarantee 2 – Date-Down Endorsement (02-06-25)
- Guarantee 6 – Chain of Title Guarantee (02-06-25)
- Guarantee 9 – Mechanics’ Lien Guarantee (02-06-25)
- Guarantee 10 – Judgment and Tax Lien Guarantee (02-06-25)
- Guarantee 12 – Lot Book Guarantee (02-06-25)
- Guarantee 14 – Subdivision Guarantee (02-06-25)
- Guarantee 16 – Combination Guarantee (Lot Book / Judgment and Tax Lien) (02-06-25)
- Guarantee 22 – Trustee’s Sale Guarantee (02-06-25)
- Guarantee 23 – Parcel Map Guarantee (02-06-25)
- Guarantee 24 – Preliminary Parcel Map Guarantee (02-06-25)
- Guarantee 25 – Property Owner’s Notice Guarantee (02-06-25)
- Guarantee 28 – Condition of Title Guarantee (02-06-25)
New Guarantee Forms:
- Guarantee 6.1 – Limited Chain of Title Guarantee (02-06-25)
- Guarantee 14.1 – Subdivision - Signature Omission Guarantee (02-06-25)
CLTA Archived Guarantee Forms:
- Litigation Guarantee Endorsement (06-05-14)
- Guarantee 11 – Personal Property Guarantee (06-05-14)
- Guarantee 13 – Property Search Guarantee (11-04-16)
- Guarantee 15 – Record Owner Guarantee (06-05-14)
- Guarantee 17 – Plant Information Guarantee (06-05-14)
- Guarantee 21 – Record Index Guarantee (06-05-14)
- Guarantee 22.1 – Trustee’s Sales Guarantee Endorsement (02-08-13)
NOTE: Although archived by the CLTA, the following Guarantee forms remain available for issuance upon submission to, and approval from, STG Underwriting:
- Guarantee 11 – Personal Property Guarantee (06-05-14)
- Guarantee 13 – Property Search Guarantee (11-04-16)
- Guarantee 17 – Plant Information Guarantee (06-05-14)
In connection with these changes, the STGC Manual now has all Guarantees in Section 9 in numerical order by the Guarantee form number. The revised and new Guarantee forms will be added to Stewart's Virtual Underwriter and may also be found in the online CLTA Policy & Endorsement Forms Book (CLTA P&E).
CLTA ENDORSEMENTS
The following revised and new endorsements were also filed by the CLTA with the DOI, effective April 17, 2025, and are also referenced in the amended STGC Manual:
Revised Endorsements:
- CLTA 152 / ALTA 48 (01-10-25) Tribal Limited Waiver and Consent
- CLTA JR1 / ALTA JR1 (01-05-25) ALTA Residential Limited Coverage Junior Loan Policy – Supplemental Coverage
New Endorsements:
- CLTA 116.02 / ALTA 22.2 (01-02-25) Land Address: This new endorsement provides coverage for loss or damage in connection with an address assigned to unimproved land within the records of a specified source such as the assessor’s office or post office.
- CLTA 141.9 / ALTA 36.9 (01-02-25) Energy Project – Minerals and Other Subsurface Substances – Land Under Development: This new endorsement provides coverage for removal or alterations of an electric facility that is built according to plans defined in the endorsement, where the loss or damage results from the later use of the surface to extract (or otherwise develop) subsurface substances, including minerals.
- CLTA 152.1 / ALTA 48.1 (01-02-25) Tribal Limited Waiver and Consent Agreement: This new endorsement provides the option of referencing and incorporating a separate sovereign immunity waiver agreement entered into between an underwriter and the tribe on each transaction.
In connection with these changes, the STGC Manual Section 10 has been updated, and may be found in the online CLTA P&E.
These rates/forms have been provided to third-party title production system (TPS) vendors. Please contact your TPS vendor or account services representative to have the new/revised rates/forms implemented in your system.
If you have any questions about this bulletin, any pricing concerns, or any other bulletin please contact a member of your Stewart Title Guaranty Company’s California Underwriting Team.
For on-line viewing of this and other bulletins, please log onto www.vuwriter.com.