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December 12th, 2011
As the end of 2011 approaches it is a good idea to be mindful of some dates and deadlines so you can be sure your escrow closes on time.
The King County Courthouse, Chicago Title, and the banks are all closed on December 26th 2011 and January 2nd 2012 for the holidays. This means nothing can be recorded on these dates and no funds can be sent or received through the Federal Reserve system.
If you are setting up closing dates for December be mindful of these dates.
Due to the holiday and bank closures, sellers who are anticipating wires could experience a delay. If the closing takes place on Friday December 23rd and recording numbers come in after 2:30 your seller’s funds could be delayed until Tuesday December 27th. There is always an option to pick up a check the day of closing; clients just need to let us know what they prefer.
If we are paying off loans and the transaction closes on the 23rd there will be interest collected and paid to the lender until the 27th.
The national delivery services UPS and FedEx also have holiday schedules. This means that documents being delivered around the country and abroad could be delayed.
The last day to sign for refinances in December is the 23rd. Again the holiday impacts the rescission schedule for those refinances that are subject to rescission.
The moral of the story is to watch your dates in December and make sure you allow ample time to meet year end closing dates for your clients. Communication with your escrow professional will help insure smooth and timely closings as we wrap up the year.
Have a wonderful holiday season!
May 18th, 2011
Have you ever been to a specialty store, say a vitamin store, and found the person helping you saying, “I don’t take vitamins”? This doesn’t seem likely and if it did happen, you’d probably prefer to talk with a person who had actually taken the vitamins, knew the effect of the vitamins and could talk about the long term benefits, when it is best to take them, the reason the particular vitamin is better than the drug store variety and if it had the potential to make you feel more healthy.
Recently, one of my real estate clients refinanced her personal residence and she was absolutely floored at all she had to provide and the hoops she had to clear to secure the loan. I suggested this might not be such a bad thing because now she has a more current view of what her clients endure! I personally refinanced not long ago and was just flabbergasted at the experience. It really did give me a good perspective. I’ve often been shocked at how little enthusiasm a buyer has at the signing table. My experience helped me understand that they probably just can’t relate or actually believe that they are nearly at the finish line or they might just be plain exhausted. Clearly, this is mostly a reflection on new laws and standards that are in place to protect everybody involved, nevertheless, the task is harrowing.
The way this real life experience helped me better understand our clients combined with the amazing inventory, prices and rates make me think I should scrape some money together and take advantage of the abundant opportunities. We should invest in the product in which we believe – REAL ESTATE! We’d be more credible with our clients and have a current experience to guide them through the rigorous process and be building our own wealth at the same time!
Now, where to find that cash…
May 16th, 2011
The following is a case of fraud taken from our Fraud Insights newsletter for May.
Careless Whispers
An escrow officer with Chicago Title’s Skokie, Ill. office, was conducting a signing without the buyer or seller in the room. To set the stage, the signing ceremony was being conducted with both the buyer and seller’s attorneys and real estate agents.
The attorneys were actively reviewing the documents and signing on behalf of their principals, when all of a sudden the signing came to a screeching halt. The attorneys started whispering and the escrow officer strained to hear what they were discussing. Apparently neither one of them wanted to sign the short sale lender’s document entitled Affidavit of Arm’s Length Transaction. They instead were insisting the real estate agents sign the form for their clients. This is what the affidavit said in part:
Affidavit of Arm’s Length Transaction
The purchase and sale transaction reflected in the agreement is an “Arm’s Length Transaction” … the transaction has been negotiated by unrelated parties, each of whom is acting in his or her own self-interest, and that the sale price is based on the fair market value of the property with respect to those persons signing this affidavit as an agent for either Seller(s), Buyer(s), or both, those agents are acting in the best interest of their respective principal(s). No buyer or agent of the buyer is a family member or business associate of the seller or the borrower or the mortgagee.
The real estate agents didn’t want to sign the Affidavit either. And through the quiet bickering between the attorneys and agents the escrow officer learned the seller and buyer were actually married to one another! They did not share the same last name, so the escrow officer would never have suspected had it not been for the careless whispers among the attorneys and real estate agents.
The escrow officer promptly excused herself from the signing and escalated the situation to her head title underwriter who told her to halt the closing. She did so and excused the parties from the signing. The seller’s attorney quipped to the escrow officer before he left, “Better luck next time!”
The buyer then called the escrow officer the next day yelling and screaming at her for stopping the closing and demanded her money back. Thank goodness the escrow officer halted the transaction! If the short pay lender had later discovered the relationship between the buyer and seller, they may have elected to rescind their short pay agreement and keep their lien in full force and effect. Luckily, the only policy our Company was issuing in the transaction was an owner’s policy to the wife/buyer. The policy would not have afforded her protection against the lender’s lien rights, if her attorney followed through with the signing of the Affidavit – since he would have perjured himself on her behalf. The Company would have been stuck with the money and forced to participate in unwinding the transaction, which would have cost our offices more time, money and complete frustration!
For the escrow officer’s keen sense of hearing and for having the guts to escalate what she knew was clearly wrong, the Company has rewarded her $1,000 as well as a letter of recognition.
January 28th, 2011
One of my hobbies has always been to snoop around houses for sale. When I was younger, it was to dream about what my home might some day be like. Now, I still do it for fun but also to know what is happening in our market. I’ve noticed on the rainy days, I’m not as likely to get out and take a look at the flyer in the box. Half the time they are soggy or missing anyway! Therefore, and in keeping with my intention stay current on real estate technology, particularly where mobile is concerned (remember THIS year 10-17% of your leads will come from your potential clients’ smart phones), I thought you might like to know about www.Interactive-Mobile.com.
These guys make getting rained on and wasting your money on soggy flyers a distant memory. With Interactive Mobile, you’ll simply add a text number to your sign. Your potential buyers will text in that number and within seconds they will receive the listing info. directly on their phone. The best part is you will then receive a message with their contact information. Now you’ve captured a live, interested person and can actually follow up, you’ve impressed your seller by marketing with current technology, you’ve saved trees, and you will never have to worry about empty flyer boxes again. AND I, as the nosey neighbor, won’t be wasting your copy money! As the serious buyer, I don’t have to get drenched when I get out of my car, be disappointed at missing flyers and can expect to get the information I want now!
January 21st, 2011
Is your head spinning? The way people are doing business is changing so fast. It is all at once cool and potentially overwhelming. Last week at Inman News Connect in NYC, Chris Smith from Tech Savvy Agent shared that THIS year, 10-17% of your business will come via mobile devices. This means it is time for us to learn about things mobile. Can you believe that by the year 2013, more people will own smart phones than own personal computers or laptops? With this in mind, over the next few blog posts, I intend to share some mobile apps that have proven to give you a competitive edge.
If you get a chance, you’ve got to check out the Google Map app. With this mobile application, you can pinpoint an area and see the actual street view. So, let’s say you meet a client and they tell you all about their dream home. Then, let’s say you find the criteria on the NWMLS. The house seems perfect. One thing they told you is that they are not interested in living in a high density area. You can type in the neighborhood without leaving your office. Uh-oh! This house clearly resides in a high density neighborhood! HOWEVER, you can see the park that is directly across the street from the house. Maybe they’d consider this? I’m not sure, but I am sure you need this app. It is FREE and will save you time and money and save you from driving Willy Nilly wasting fuel and white knuckling your steering wheel.
January 18th, 2011
Are you still trying to figure out what lies ahead for our new construction real estate market in 2011 and beyond? Well, look no further! Chicago Title is holding our annual Builder Forecast Forum later this month on January 27th. If you decide to attend, which I highly recommend that you do, you will hear from three of the leading experts in our industry on the topics of new construction growth, supply and demand, the job market and more.
Still not sure how you can get that next construction loan? Or if it’s even possible yet? Anthony Grasst of MetLife’s National Builder Division will be filling us in. He will also be letting all of you site agents out there know what he sees happening with the internet and buyers behaviors that will ultimately change your team’s selling processes and follow up strategies. As an additional bonus, your registration fee of $50 will get you 3 real estate clock hours!
This is an event that you don’t want to miss and seats are going fast! If you want more information or would like to register, please contact Thomas Walker at 206-628-5664.
September 26th, 2010
Watch out for this one gang. As we see more short sales, this addendum may cause us all some headaches unless we understand it clearly. In the past, people have sold their homes, gotten their cash, paid their bills and moved on. Now, in the event of a short sale, there isn’t any money to tie up the loose ends like paying past due electric bills. Herein lies the problem with the 22K!
The 22K spells out, “Pursuant to RCW 60.80. Buyer and Seller request the Closing Agent to administer the disbursement of closing funds necessary to satisfy unpaid utility charges affecting the Property. The names and addresses of all utilities providing service to the Property and having lien rights are as follows:” The key here is “HAVING LIEN RIGHTS ARE AS FOLLOWS.” After taking a little poll of my clients, I learned that, as whole, Brokers believe that when they list the utilities on the 22K, escrow will pay ALL of those utilities. This is NOT the case. Escrow will pay the LIENABLE utilities.
As a practical matter, private utility companies will not furnish escrow agents with estimated or final bills. It is the seller’s responsibility to pay his private utility bills.
Just because the seller lists all of their utility companies on the form, does not mean they will all be paid at closing. Make sure your clients know this and can budget payment for their bills.
August 9th, 2010
Short sales comprise around 30% of the closings we see in our office and there doesn’t appear to be an end in sight! In talking with agents, I find they either want to know everything about them or want to avoid them like the plague.
If you are considering dipping your spoon in the short sale broth, there a few things you need to know before agreeing to take one of these sales on. If you are unable to gather this information from the inception, it might be wise to run!
You must at minimum know the following:
• All the lenders associated with the home, the loan balances, how many months delinquent the prospective client is and if there are additional liens.
• The seller’s housing expenses – interest, principal, taxes and HOA dues.
• The actual reason for the hardship.
• How much money the client earns monthly and their debt ratio.
• Do they have other assets?
• Are they able to make a financial contribution and if so, how much?
• Is the property vacant or occupied and is it the primary residence or not?
• Is the property subject to a Homeowner’s Association? Are the dues current?
• Have they received a Notice of Trustee Sale (Foreclosure notice)? If so, how much time do you have to try and sell it?
If you can’t get this information without pulling teeth, you are guaranteed to be pulling your own by the end of this process. There will be piles of subsequent paper to collect after you decide to help these sellers and the amount of cooperation you receive in the beginning is a good sign not only to determine if you’ll be able to sell the house, but to determine if you can work with these clients!
If you are interested in a little free feedback, you can go to www.chicagotitleshortsale.com. You can follow the forms link and be taken to Mortgage Resolution Service’s pre-qualification form (MRS is a sister company of Chicago Title). Once you complete it and email or fax it back to them, they’ll take a look at it and offer you an expert opinion on whether or not you should partake in the soup!
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Disclaimer The posts on this site don't necessarily represent Chicago Title's positions, strategies or opinions.
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