You have discovered one of the reasons to use a broker. A broker can handle all of those loose issues and keep both parties safe. Maybe find a broker that would do the paperwork for a small fee $500 - $700. After all, they won't have any real expenses. You could also use a Documentation service. They charge about $450 and can do all the paperwork as well as the new documentation. Both the broker and Doc Service can get an abstract done. They cost $25.