As a title company, contracting for search and abstracting services, the new 5 pillars of ALTA Best Practices are going to require us to get assurances from our contractors that they too are following best practices in how they collect, maintain and store information about our customers. We are going to have to make sure our contractors have a policy of doing background checks on employees and that they get updated at least every two years. 

If a contractor does not comply, we will not be able to do business with that contractor until they come into compliance.  If we get caught not living up to the five pillars or if it is discovered we don't require best practices out of our contractors (even with office cleaning services) we will lose our certification and may be removed from the list of certified title companies of many of the nation's leading lenders.  Even if we and our contractors meet the five pillars, a different lender may have a completely different certification process and charge us fees to undergo their vetting.  We will most likely have to communicate with you using encrypted email services, and not just doing a quick email with my personal google gmail account.  The new computer rules are going to make us compartmentalize who gets access to what in our office and even the authorization of new users to our software will have to be accomplished by someone who does not use the software.  In essence, an employee who does not work in your company.  Isn't that special?

The industry is in for some big changes in the next year as Best Practices and the new Settlement Statements, that will replace the HUD1 come online in August 2015.  Hang on for the ride, or else it's time to retire.