As lenders and real estate agents face new demands, title companies face a decision.
A previous article for this publication announced that a new law effective October 1 will combine mortgage disclosures under the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) and the Truth in Lending Act (TILA) into a single rule. The new law is intended to streamline the mortgage process for consumers. Lenders will be held more accountable in real estate transactions, and it may already be too late for some title companies to get ready for the changes. This is where Marketplace Title and its clients hold a distinct advantage.
Throughout its organization, the award-winning company emphasizes responding, rather than reacting. It is widely known for anticipating every possible factor that can affect the entire closing process and developing watertight systems to ensure peace of mind for every client. Likewise Marketplace Title has made a very deliberate decision: it has seized on the impending regulatory change as an opportunity to become an authority in all aspects of the law so it can serve as an educational resource to real estate agents.
Marketplace Title has expanded its office to make room for the new Real Estate Success Center, where real estate professionals can enjoy free classes to gain a thorough understanding of the law, as well as courses in marketing and other business building strategies and tools. It has preemptively adjusted its procedures and systems and invested in advanced software. It has expanded its staff, and extensively trained its team members so they can provide expert guidance and service, even while they promote real estate agents’ businesses! Marketplace Title also employs its own full-time IT Security Management Director to safeguard Non-public Personal Information. In addition, it is undergoing the process of becoming certified by a third-party CPA firm in the American Land Title Association’s Best Practices.
President Joe Taylor said, “Lenders will be vetting title companies more closely, as failure to understand the new law could result in delays and hefty fines. Although not currently required, the steps we’ve taken will result in a new standard by which title companies will be judged.”
Published in the August 2015 issue of the Estero Spotlight Magazine and written by Sara Fitzpatrick Comito.
