WASHINGTON--The Government Accountability Office voiced deep concern today regarding regulation and oversight of the title insurance industry, saying current practices "raise questions about the extent of competition and the reasonableness of prices that consumers pay for title insurance."

The report called on state insurance regulators to "take actions" to improve consumers' ability to comparison shop for title insurance and strengthen the regulation and oversight of the title insurance market, including the collection of data on title agents' operations.

Further, it said Congress may want to consider, as part of its oversight of the Department of Housing and Urban Development, a beefing up of the agency's authority to enforce the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act, which governs the sale of residential real estate.

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