Michele Blanco's Blog

How You Can Conduct a Closing in Your Office

Michele Blanco — Mon, 11 May 2020 09:14:10 EST

Many states have “Stay at Home Orders” that have made one-on-one interactions with clients next to impossible. You want to protect yourself, your clients, and your associates, but you also have to keep business moving forward. What can you do?

Let’s take a look at some of the strategies title agents are using right now to keep operations moving forward. You can conduct a closing – safely – in your office or on the road.

RON: Remote Online Notarization

Remote Online Notarization (RON) is one of the most straightforward solutions during this pandemic. If RON is an option that’s available to you, it’s likely the easiest solution. An all-digital closing, when allowed, frees up your time but also ensures everyone remains safe. Check your E&O policy to be sure Remote Online Notarizations are not excluded from the policy.

E-Closings Work Well

Digital real estate closings, now known as e-closings or even e-signing, are an excellent opportunity for buyers and sellers to sign all of the necessary settlement documentation electronically. You don’t have to meet with parties in-person to close the detail. Title agents will lead these actions through video conferencing solutions.

One key caveat here, though, is that some services can be worrisome when it comes to a privacy standpoint. Zoom, one of the most popular tools for video conferencing during this period, isn’t ideal for all situations. There have been some security and data flaws in it. If you’re uncomfortable using Zoom, there are alternative video conferencing tools such as Microsoft Teams, Cisco Webex, Google Meet and more.

Increase Cybersecurity Protections

Another important step during the current social distancing requirements is to provide consumers with a safe transaction. With more transactions being handled over the internet, there is a heightened risk for cyberattacks, including ransomware attacks on companies. Most agents want to do what it takes to ensure their customer data is safe. That means increasing cybersecurity at your location.

Finding the Right Balance

Even in situations where it becomes difficult, at best, to conduct a closing virtually, there are steps agents can take to improve circumstances for in-office visits. This includes minimizing the number of people in the office to just one client at a time. Or, instead of meeting in the office, meet outdoors at a park where there is more space between you and your clients. Proper sanitization before and after all appointments is critical.

What Are You Doing to Keep Your Business Moving?

It’s a difficult time, but it’s also one of the best times for innovation. What are you doing to get the job done while practicing safe social distancing? As states begin to open up to allow for more business and interaction, what tips do you have for doing so safely? Feel free to share your tips down below!

The Need For and Use of Multi-Factor-Authentication

Michele Blanco — Thu, 05 Mar 2020 09:57:06 EST

As a title company, your reputation and very existence relies on the information, documentation and verification of data. Anything less than maximum attention to protecting the security and validity of that data puts your company at risk. Protecting your identity is equally vital.

A Forbes Magazine article not only states that real estate fraud is the fastest growing cyber crime in the nation, but that related Business Email Compromise (BEC) and Email Account Compromise (EAC) are major contributing factors in these crimes.

Once the email account of a title company is breached, a cyber criminal can assume the online identity of the involved title agent. They can send the client emails and notifications that have the appearance of being authentic. The cyber-criminal may then request the client to wire transfer funds to the criminals account. The money may never be recoverable and the title company's reputation irreparable.

The answer may lie in multi-factor authentication (MFA).

MFA is a digital identification process that grants access to data or programs like email, only after the user provides two or more pieces of evidence that the user is who they say they are, or have sufficient evidence from the authorized user to access the data or program. Used in combination with best practices passwords, MFA can add significantly to the security of your email, better protecting your identity. Secondary authentication evidence may include numerical codes that are generated, biometrics or location. They are certainly a step above “What was the name of your childhood pet?”.

The problems associated when a title company's email is hacked can be extensive. Not only can the identity of the title company look authentic to a client, but to others associated with a real estate transaction. This includes real estate agents, lenders, insurance providers and even attorneys. MFA can not only protect you and your clients, but provide better security through the entire transaction chain.

There is another valuable reason to use multi-factor authorization in your title company. It shows concern for the security of your data and transactions and demonstrates use of best practices in the care of information entrusted to you. This can assist in the defense of a negligence claim against your agency, in the event your client sustains a financial loss due to a cyber incident.

At Norman-Spencer Agency, our business is protecting your business. We offer proprietary insurance products for niche industries like real estate and title companies since 1988. When data, accuracy and trust are your currency, we can help protect you. Please feel free to contact us with your questions.

How Do You Know if a Potential Client is Trustworthy?

Michele Blanco — Mon, 26 Aug 2019 16:13:09 EST

If you spend any time on discussion boards, you'll see many title agents checking if a client is viable to work with. Worst case scenario, you'll see agents who have already gone through a requested service only to find out later that their client doesn’t pay on time—or at all. Don’t fall into that second category and learn some research tips for vetting a potential client before accepting any work from them.

Check their Online Presence

One of the first things you should do is to check their website for clues whether or not they are trustworthy to work with. Using incognito windows or VPNs to audit their website for some of the basics:

“About” Page: This should provide some basic information about the company, like how long they’ve been in business, who they work with, etc. Beware of lack of detail or short general descriptions for the company that really looks like “filler text” than a genuine bio. If they cannot put the effort into describing themselves, are they going to put an effort into paying you on-time?

Showcased Work: This could also be testimonials or a portfolio of their accomplished work. Do you recognize any of their customers? Are their “brags” legit? Showcased work isn’t a necessity for your client to have, but even a gesture of taking the time to have one may show they do care about the work they are doing and who they are doing it with.

Contact info: Contact information is one of the most important pieces of information a company can provide. If they do not provide such info, that is definitely a red flag. Why wouldn’t you want to be contacted if you already have a website? You can also use the listed contact info to compare against any communications you receive claiming to be from the company. You don’t want to be used in some sort of phishing or hacking scandal.

SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) Certification: An SSL certification lets you know that the site is secure. This is especially vital if they have payment portals or other information collected throughout the site.

Privacy Policy: A privacy policy will tell you how the company will use or protect any information they receive from their clients. Without one, you don’t know how they will use personal information. Additionally, coupled with a non-secure website, can definitely be a bad sign they don’t take their website (or their company) seriously.

FAQ: A FAQ section is super helpful for any website to have, but especially on that of someone you’ll be doing business with. It should help dispel any questions you may have right off the bat.

Not having these components could be a telltale sign that something is not right with the company. You should also check for suspicious signs like misspellings, strange ads and pop-ups. If anything looks off to you at this point, you should probably tell them you pass on the offer. Otherwise you could be getting trapped by a scam, or risk not getting paid.

Ask Professionals in the Industry

Still unsure about working with these new clients even after auditing their website? Ask your colleagues about them! Talk to others who may have worked with them or have them refer you to people who have. Also look at company review sites like Google Reviews, Glass Door, Reddit or other discussion boards for possible answers. You can even ask some questions yourself on these sites! The most direct thing to do? Talk to the client themselves. You can even ask if they have references you can investigate for yourself.

Ultimately, you should trust your instincts! If you have any hesitations or concerns, it’s better to be safe than sorry. You also may be thinking too that taking all this time to find out if a client is legit is a waste. Will you be missing out on more money if you didn’t just accept jobs at face value? Possibly, but is that a gamble you’re willing to take? Think of it this way: the time you take to evaluate a client’s ethics and behavior is saving you time and money later when they turn out to be unreliable to work with. If you practice your due diligence, you could have been working with someone who would value your work and pay you on time. Money is valuable, but more so is your time and talent.

True or False: Zillow is Taking Over Title Searches

Michele Blanco — Thu, 15 Aug 2019 10:51:58 EST

Have you heard? There’s a new kid in town and their name is Zillow. We’ve seen it creep it’s way in slowly, but surely over the years, however, word on the streets says they are preparing to take over every part of our real estate industry. Is it true? Here’s what we know right now:

What We Know So Far

The rumors are true, there are a ton of job listings for title and escrow positions on their website, such as Title Examination Manager, Title Examiner, and Escrow Officer. Is Zillow really attempting to takeover the industry? Zillow’s own mission statement stated in their job listings is to “make the process of buying or selling a home a consumer friendly, state of the art experience that can be launched with just the click of a button.” This means that they are most definitely in the process of making themselves the one-stop shop for home buying and selling minus the middle men like title agents.

Zillow Offers

Besides the surge of job postings for their Title & Escrow Agency, Zillow has been working on invading other branches in the real estate industry. In case you hadn’t heard Zillow Offers is a bold step into their take-over initiative. This branch of Zillow works as a way for home sellers to sell their home quickly, or on their own time. It’s provides a streamlined way to sell a home.

The Process:

Home Details: To start, you’ll answer some questions about your home and send in photos. The company emphasizes that there is no need for professional photos, just snap some quick photos of whatever your home looks like in the moment.
Offer: Next, if Zillow deems your home eligible, you will receive a cash offer. You can choose to either accept the offer, decline, or work with a real estate agent.
Next Steps: Should you accept the offer, you will then pick a closing date. An evaluator will be sent out to the home and complete an evaluation, leading to the final, more accurate sale offer.

It can only be speculated and presumed that as they continue to grow this sector of their business, one might wonder if they are going into the “home flipping” business.

Claim They Don’t Flip Houses, but They Do

Zillow Offers denies it, but in essence, what they are doing is flipping homes. Here’s a direct quote from their FAQ page on the subject:

“We take care of the repairs and prep work a homeowner would normally have to do themselves to get a home ready to list, and we handle the showings, open houses and maintenance while the home is listed so the seller doesn’t have to.”

However, the process described above is essentially the same process done when “flipping a home”, just not necessarily focused on profit margin (aka the buy low sell high method). With that being said, how in the world are they going to make money off this system? If you’re providing potential customers “fair market value” right off the bat, how will you continue to make a profit margin that is sustainable? Steve Eisman, a well-known real estate investor, says it best: “Either, one, Zillow has mispriced the house or there’s something wrong with the house.”

What Do We Do Now?

So what do you do now that Zillow is really entering the picture? The good news is, it could take years for this to become a viable business, considering just last quarter they lost $71 million in their Homes division, and more than likely, there’ll be more hiccups down the road. However, one thing you can do to get ahead of the game is market yourself well! Utilize whatever websites, ads, or social media you have and promote your own talents. Be sure to show off your strengths and point out what you can do that algorithms cannot. Don’t sell yourself short and charge your fees appropriately. Remember, not everyone’s preferences may be in line or comfortable with Zillow’s non-traditional home buying option. Zillow may mean more competition, but that doesn't mean you’re out of the game!

5 Cyber Security Issues Title Agents Should Be Aware of

Michele Blanco — Fri, 07 Jun 2019 09:41:06 EST

Cyber security failure is a potential risk all businesses face, but one that is especially important for the real estate business. As a title agent, you should be aware of some of the top security threats posed, and what they mean for you.

Email Fraud

One of the biggest issues popping up is with email - spoofing (phishing) and business emails being compromised. This is when criminals act as business partners and convince you to wire funds to their own bank accounts. It could also mean a criminal posing as you, the title agent, and getting your client to wire funds to them. They could be asking for other information that could help them get the funds into their account.

Ransomware

One type of ransomware issue deals with the operational systems. Hackers get into the systems where information is stored and are able to hide the data in those systems, meaning you don’t have access to it anymore. They will hold that info for ransom until they get paid for the data.

Another type of ransomware problem deals with the physical systems you work on. Hackers are able to get into any internet-enabled device, such as a laptop or cellphone, and control or even crash them. While this may not mean the end of the world for you, it definitely sets you back.

Malware

Other types of malware are able to hack into the business’s data to steal information. This could include important client information like bank account access, identity information, as well as your information. Malware can be sent via a spoof email, through fake or untrustworthy software posing as something else, or installed through a hacker.

Additionally, a business that uses cloud-based systems to store info can also be at risk. Storing information in the cloud can protect you if someone tries to hack your systems directly, but if the hacker attacks the cloud storage provider, you’re in trouble.

How Do You Protect Yourselves From These Attacks?

Though it seems like there is no escaping the threat of a cyber attack, there are precautions you and your company can take to prevent loss from a security breach.

Keeping passwords protected and hard to decipher is most important for your real estate business. Make sure your company has secure passwords that are reset after a certain amount of time. Secure passwords are ones that are not reused, include more than 10+ letters, numbers, and symbols. Never save your password unprotected on a computer or phone—if need be, write it down and keep it in a safe place at your desk.
Training those in the company to recognize potentially malicious emails, whether it’s trying to get information or transfer funds to a different location, is the first, important step.
Backing up your computer/data is another way to save information in the event of a cyber breach—if you have the data backed up on a separate drive, there’s less of a need to pay ransom for it, and will be relatively easy to restore.
Put policies into place for your business clients as well, like: requiring 2-step authentication, never emailing about wiring instructions, and investing in security from third-party companies.
Should you suspect or actually have a security breach: tell your clients immediately and inform them you have a plan of action ready to fix the issue. The trust you garner with your clients can easily be taken away if situations like this are not addressed appropriately. Think about it in their shoes, and let that guide you in how you’d want to hear a response. You may lose money now, but don’t lose future funds by not being upfront and honest to your customers.

There’s a saying that “if you fail to plan, you plan to fail” and that’s especially true when it comes to cyber security. There are more cyber security issues to keep up with in today’s digital age, which can mean trouble for businesses everywhere. In the real estate business, it is especially vital to keep updated on the potential threats you may face, as they directly harm your clients as well.

Real Estate and Email Fraud: How it Affects You

Michele Blanco — Mon, 13 May 2019 13:58:30 EST

More and more people are falling victim to email scams, and the stakes are raised when it comes to real estate. With the rise of technology comes higher risks of breaches in internet security, which means even as a title agent you and your clients can be affected by such risks. Read on to learn how to stay better protected as well as how to prevent any potential fraud.

Email Spoofing Spreads

Hackers are intercepting information contained in emails between buyers, seller

s and title agents, and using that information to get access to the money being transacted. They will monitor the transaction until it is about to close, and then send a spoof email, typically changing the instructions for wiring a downpayment so that it would go into the scammer’s account. Spoofing means the sender changes the email or email address to look like it was sent from an organization or person the recipient trusts. These can be part of a phishing scam, in which the sender can obtain information like passwords, bank account info, and other confidential information to use for their own gain. While some instances may be done by manually changing email settings, many times it is through a virus or malware.

How Do We Protect Clients?

The biggest way to help protect your clients from these scams is by informing them. Now that you are aware of the rising problem, you can warn your clients too. Let them know the ways in which you will be contacting them and what kinds of things you would contact them about. For example, sending your clients a letter stating you will never email them about changing transaction details.

You can also learn to recognize the signs of a scam. Signs may include: spelling mistakes, strange links or attachments, a sense of urgency, or threatening messages. The best thing for a client to do is call you directly to confirm what they received is something you sent, or if they receive something that doesn't seem right.

How to Prevent Email Fraud?

There are several precautions that can be taken by you, your company, and your clients to prevent being victimized by email fraud.

● Routinely change your password every 6 months

● Invest in security protection on your website or software to prevent hacks and data breaches

● Don’t input important confidential information over public wifi

● Report any suspicious activity to a manager, IT and security, or even the authorities if necessary

While email scams can always to be avoided, it becomes serious and damaging when it comes to the client’s money. If hit by a scammer, the money, including loan funding, can be stolen through a real transaction leaving the client with a huge financial loss—not to mention your reputation takes a huge hit too. It’s important to take these scams seriously as a title agent. It’s never too late (or early) for your company to take steps to prevent and recognize these email scams.

Top 5 Real Estate Abstractor Tools & Software

Michele Blanco — Mon, 13 May 2019 13:52:15 EST

Sometimes work can be hard. It can especially seem that way when you don’t have the most helpful tools. It’s frustrating, and a quick glance at the tools out there can look… sketchy. We’ve compiled a list of reliable solutions to help with the title and settlement processes.

Before you start your software search, make sure you do the following:

● Always check to make sure the website is secure. Open any new software websites in a hidden or “incognito” window so as to minimize their way of tracking you after you leave their site. A few quick tips on how you can check for this are:

○ Looking for the lock icon and the “S” in HTTPS in the URL bar! This is an SSL certificate, which means the company has made sure that any sensitive information entered on the site is protected. Without this certificate, your client’s information could be subject to being breached.

○ Make sure they have a privacy policy that communicates how the company collects, protects, and uses your data. If a business is not going to be upfront about how they’ll use your client’s data, you probably shouldn’t be trusting their services.

○ Anything that looks or feels suspicious like misspelled ads, links, logos, or pop-ups are a red flag for a website being infested with malware. Check to see if there is contact info or an address. If there is not, get out of there fast!

Now that you are aware of the signs of suspicious or malicious behavior. We took these tips and found some websites and software you may find useful as a title searcher:

1. Superior Notary Services

Need notary services on the fly? Superior Notary Services allows you access to a notary anywhere, anytime. The notary comes to you, and they also offer after-hours and weekend appointments to help you in a crunch, even for real estate businesses!

2. Qualia

Qualia is an award-winning and certified cloud-based software that provides headache-free services for your professional needs. This includes nationwide mortgage release tracking, easy appointment booking to get documents notarized, and integrated title search and commitment services right at your fingertips. Additionally, Qualia allows analytic reports and combined payments which help show your progress and give easy access to everything you need in one place!

3. SLK Global - SmartProp

With over 15 years of experience, SLK Global is a “business process transformation enterprise” that provides technology for title insurance and other related industries on a global scale. Specifically for title abstractors, they can have access to property search reports and services that give comprehensive information on: current owner search, legal & vesting, TSG/REO, and more. SLK Global also claims that their service will “reduce 58% of turn time for title searching.” Less time searching, and more time turning over projects! Not to shabby right?

4. EasyDoc123

It may have a simple name, but they’ve also had 25 years worth of experience in the real estate industry. EasyDoc123 is a company based out of Pittsburgh, PA, and provides professional services for such needs like: title searches, real estate document preparation, file organization and more. EasyDoc123 has thousands of vendor partners, like notaries & attorneys, who are able to complete requests quickly without breaking the bank to do it.

5. Source of Title

Forums can be your best friend! Source of Title is a dated looking website, we must admit, but it’s used every day by title agents, abstractors, and more to check on everything from their new clients’ reputability to troubleshooting a title issue. Always be careful with what you say and to who on sites like these—you don’t want to burn your bridges with a potential client. However, considering there’s not always a lot of resources out to find answers to current, real-time problems in this niche industry, utilizing a place like this may be more handy than you think!

Lastly, by making sure you have the right tools at hand to help keep your workload manageable you’re not only going to make your life easier, but make profits faster! Just be sure to keep your guard up when searching for production and management tools. Ask fellow industry colleagues if you’re unsure about a company or service. There are even forums where you can inquire about issues like these and get answers pretty quickly. Remember: if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Trusting in the wrong service could result in you getting hit with a lawsuit so it’s better to be safe than sorry.

Debunking Misconceptions in the Real Estate Industry

Michele Blanco — Mon, 13 May 2019 13:44:09 EST

In the real estate industry, all of us have the same common goal, and that is to make sure the buyers and sellers of the world are taken care of and are as happy as possible throughout their experience. But how can we keep them happy if we don’t know what their main concerns or hesitations are? When it comes to real estate, we have a few to share with you.

The agent gets to pocket all commission from the sale.

Not true. This is one of the biggest misconceptions regarding real estate agents is that they are walking away with the entire 6% commission in their pocket. As you know, in most cases the commission gets paid directly to the brokerage, and then is split out to the agent. That split varies based on the company and sometimes depends on that specific agent’s level of production. This doesn’t even take into consideration the taxes and social security money that needs to be withheld.

I do not need an owner’s title insurance policy.

Define “need.” Why should they have to buy their own separate policy when they have already bought a policy for the lender? So when explaining title insurance to your home buyer, make sure you break it down. They need to understand that the lender’s policy is to protect the lender from losing their loan investment, and the owner’s policy is to protect them in the case that they need to spend money defending their rights of ownership in the property.

The numbers on Zillow are what goes.

False. Sellers are often using online real estate sources, like automated valuation models (AVMs), to help spread the word about their home for sale. There are disadvantages to some of these sites as they have a tendency to give the buyer a false impression when it comes to the estimated value of the home “zestimate.” It is important to explain to both the buyer and the seller that the estimate or “zestimate” is not set in stone. Sometimes it will be higher than the home’s worth, sometimes it will be lower. It is simply a starting point.

It is better to overprice my home, somebody can always offer less.

Not true. Many sellers take this approach. They believe that if they price their home for higher than what it is worth, by the time somebody makes them an offer they will get what they wanted out of the home. What they aren’t thinking about is, many people will look past a home that is out of their price range (when in actuality it would be inside of their price range) and the result can be that the house remains sitting without much interest. It is best to advise your clients to put a fair price on their house to begin with, resulting in optimal traffic and a quick contract!

If I refinance, I don’t need a new title insurance policy.

Nope. Not True. If they have an owner’s policy, that will still be active, however their lender’s policy will need to be replaced with a new one. Just explain to them that when refinancing, their loan will be paid in full, which means the lender’s policy will expire. A new lender’s policy will be required for the new mortgage in order to protect their investment.

You should renovate your kitchen and bathroom before you sell.

Not always. Sellers often believe that the kitchen and bathrooms can “make or break” a sale. So they decided to renovate them before selling their house in order to list a higher price. Many times, this plan will backfire on the client. They need to know that generally, people do not recoup even close to the money put into remodel on an average mid-range home.

The home will either pass or fail the home inspection.

False. We know that home inspections are designed to assess the condition of a home. But buyers often look at the home inspection as a pass or fail type of situation. In reality, the home inspector will provide a report explaining all of the issues and/or key items ages and condition, and then they can work with their agent to decide if those are deal breaker items or not.

What can you do as a real estate professional?

At the end of the day, the people buying and selling homes far outweigh the number of people in the real estate industry that can help set these types of myths straight. Do what you can to educate your clients and let them know that we are all on their side. Sometimes taking a few extra minutes to explain the details, including some of the above, will make all the difference in the world to them and their experience.