Firstly, paramount, I owe you a long overdue apology for comments I made a few months ago, here it is, I’m sorry. It had nothing to do with you, but I took it out on you, mea culpa, I behaved like an ass.

Now about your friend, we all pay that stupid title insurance when we buy or refi, I usually complain about it, but this is what it is for. That title insurance company took between $500 and $1000 from your friend for a ten minute search (on refi’s it’s a total racket) but this is a scenario where it pays off and it’s why the lender mandates it. The lender will lose far more than your friend if this foreclosure were to happen. If the title insurance company missed it, then they can pay to fight it, and if they lose, they can pay to remedy it. That was their only job, they usually get it right, but once in a while they have to pay, which is why it’s caled insurance. Advise your friend to dig up his loan docs, find out who the title insurance company is and start with them.