I think that it takes a pretty good staff, both  in terms of size and knowledge, to manage a large network of vendors.  Like Wanda said, they might be paying more for the search, but saving quite a bit in expenses elsewhere.

I imagine that a well run vendor management company can operate more efficiently than an in-house staff trying to accomplish the same thing.  Mainly because the VMC will have orders from other clients and will be able to spread their expenses over more orders. 

Consider a company trying to handle three states in-house.  They may only have a few orders per year in some of the smaller counties and they are a small client for that abstractor.  A VMC may have several clients and deal with even those remote counties on a more regular basis.  If that abstractor goes on vacation when the client needs them they may not have a back-up or even know that they need one.  The VMC, who regularly sends work there, will be more on top of things.

So, if the client decides to pay $30 more for a search, they may be saving money in the big scheme of things.  So long as you are still getting the work - I don't think its anything to be too concerned about.  I just hope it is a reputable company that won't try to low ball you on your fees.

I don't have a problem with VMCs if they know what they are doing and they care more about quality than finding the absolute cheapest search they can get. 

Best,
Robert A. Franco
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