I know that, at least in Michigan, there was a way to contact the state and see if there is a lien holder. I simply can't remember how it was done, but my dad was buying a car (this was in like 1975) and he went to the Secretary of State's office in our hometown and they verified there was no lien holder.

But I've always gone by what the title itself said. I've not bought a used vehicle that had a lien on it, ever. The Graphite Roadster had a release stamp and signature on it -no matter, tho, cause we finalized the deal at the DMV office and I paid him while standing at the counter and walked out with a "transportation title" to drive back to Georgia on.

Buying from an estate would be, you'd think, pretty safe.