Sacramento Report
July 21, 2009
Restrictive Covenants Legislation Undergoes Extensive Amendments
Legislation that originally sought to require title companies to strike any unlawful and unenforceable covenants at the point of sale has been significantly amended to eliminate the point of sale requirement entirely. Now the bill would require county recorders to charge a new recording fee to develop an enhanced process for locating and redacting these references in older documents.
The California Land Title Association has continued its opposition on the bill, citing the need to keep recording fees to a minimum in a sputtering real estate economy. AB 985 (De La Torre) is being held on the Suspense File in the Senate Appropriations Committee and is still facing opposition. CLTA continues to work with the California Association of Realtors and other affected groups to further modify the bill to address our concerns.
