A title abstract is an abbreviated history of the ownership of a piece of real property. Title abstracts are used to help verify that a person is in fact the true owner of a property. Competing claims of ownership to a property can cause legal complications. So, many people use title abstracts to help them make sure that there are no competing claims.
Title abstracts can be very helpful for getting a sense of the history of the title. However, many people still choose to have more thorough searches done of property histories to make sure that no one has an interest in the property except the seller. These searches are done by trained professionals, and they can be complicated to conduct. However, many people view them as a good investment, because a property bought with competing claims of ownership can result in lawsuits, or even a loss of the property.