NALTEA In Focus

Thanks For Your Service To Your Fellow Abstractors

info@naltea.org (National Assoc of Land Title Examiners & Abstractors) — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 20:38:20 EST

It's a new era for NALTEA. Our 2009 conference has come and gone. We have enjoyed seeing many familiar faces, and were thrilled to meet several new members in Charlotte, NC. It's a bittersweet time for the board of directors, and for the members who have benefited from the efforts of our outgoing officers and board members.

We offer our sincere gratitude to our outgoing board members and officers: Lynn Hammett, who served on the board since February of 2006, and as NALTEA president for the past year; and Vikki Moffitt, who served as vice president from February to April of 2008, and has since served as a board member.

NALTEA appreciates their service.

NALTEA is proud to announce the election of two new board members, elected by the membership on Sunday, October 11, at the conference in Charlotte. Jill Kissell previously served as NALTEA's secretary, and Debi Merrill as vice president. Also on Sunday, Pat Scott was elected to serve a third two-year term on the board. Following the announcement of the election results, the new board of directors appointed Pat Scott as president, to succeed Lynn Hammett.

On Tuesday, October 13, the new board voted unanimously to appoint our newest officer, Malinda Griffin, to the position of secretary.

NALTEA congratulates the incoming board members and officers on their new positions, and the outgoing board members and officers on their tireless work on behalf of independent abstractors everywhere.

The new board of directors expects to welcome a new vice president shortly. Stay tuned.

Are You Ready To Serve?

info@naltea.org (National Assoc of Land Title Examiners & Abstractors) — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 11:43:53 EST

NALTEA Election News & Candidate Bios

Sunday, October 11, 2009, 10:15 AM, at the

Charlotte Omni Hotel, downtown Charlotte, North Carolina

Among the events planned for our 2009 conference in Charlotte, NC, is an election for three seats on the board of directors. The three seats are currently held by Lynn Hammett, Pat Scott and Vikki Moffitt.

At this point, we have three announced candidates for the board positions: Vikki Moffitt is running to retain her position on the board, Pat Scott is running to retain his position on the board, and Debi Merrill, our current Vice President, is running for a board position. Additional nominations will be accepted until Saturday, October 10th. If you are a voting member of NALTEA, and you have a desire to serve on the board, please send notification of your candidacy to membership@naltea.org by Thursday, October 8th. If you are planning to attend the conference, you will have an opportunity to announce your candidacy during the conference.

If you would like to vote in the election, but will not be attending the conference, you may vote by proxy. Please send an email request to membership@naltea.org if you would like a proxy form.

Please take a moment at this time to meet the current candidates in their own words:

Vikki Moffitt

Every element of my professional and personal background contributes directly to my success as a mortgage and real estate professional at Southern Abstract Services, LLC. I boil it all down to one distinct rule. The most important aspect of my real estate service, no matter which area it may be, is that I live and do business by the Golden Rule. In order to be a dynamic businesswoman, you have to value being affiliated with companies and organizations that also puts clients, members and others first.

With professional training in sales, marketing and negotiating skills, I work to uphold my personal commitment and I take great care to every detail of the real estate abstract process, from our order receiving department, order logistics, to the finished abstract product. With my trademark zest and enthusiasm for life, I attempt to make the process astonishingly easy for our company’s clients, which in turn allows our clients to be more successful in their own areas of expertise.

Educationally and professionally, I have been an active member of NALTEA since 2005 and have attended all conferences since that time. I am one of the first members of NALTEA to take the official certification exam and receive the NCA designation. Currently I sit on the Board of Directors for NALTEA and a former Vice- President of NALTEA. I currently serve as the NALTEA board liaison for the Benefits and Publication committee. Formerly I was on the NALTEA Public Relations Committee. I am a licensed Realtor in two states. I also hold a paralegal degree, with multiple discipline areas. Additionally, after receiving my first degree, an Associates Business Law Degree, I then went on to receive my Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science Pre-Law. Having studied political science and business law in college, I continue attending seminars and college credit classes in multiple legal areas in order to further my education in the field and to stay on top of the ever changing real estate environment. I take at least 21hours of CE classes every four years.

My civic activities in both the national and local community include supporting the local Ronald McDonald House, contributing to the Children’s Miracle Network and I am an active member in the LaGrange Women’s Club as well as an active member of the Georgia Association of Paralegals, Troup County Board of Realtors, National Association of Realtors, National Federation of Paralegals, League of Women Voters, American Land Title Association, Dixie Land Title Association and various Business and Professional Women’s Organizations.

My deep roots in the community and my business acumen bring the greatest advantage to our clients. I strive to embody our company’s vision of delivering the most comprehensive, innovative mortgage and public records service while giving back to the community and industry. In my off time, I am an avid traveler, novelist and budding cyclist. I have been married for almost 23 years and we have two children. We are church members of First Baptist on the Square.

Let me end by saying, that it has been both an honor and privilege to serve the membership of NALTEA these past few years. I feel that there are great things ahead for the NALTEA membership and I would like to continue to serve on the Board of Directors. I envision NALTEA taking the lead in promoting public records awareness and the safety issues that arise from the outsourcing of these same records. Since we have already established some of our educational goals which will certainly continue to evolve over time, our stance and action in regard to public records will be one of our greatest challenges along with increasing membership. I hope you will allow me to continue to serve and promote the NALTEA membership for another term.

Debi Merrill

My name is Debi Merrill. I am currently the Vice President of NALTEA and am interested in running for the Board of Directors at this time. I have been a member of NALTEA for 3 years and serve on the Education Committee. I am interested in assisting Title Search professionals in gaining knowledge and in improving their relationships with others in the industry, thus increasing and improving service to their clients.

I am the President of SearchQuest, Inc. with over 32 years experience in the real estate industry. SearchQuest was created in 1993 to meet the demands of some of the nation’s largest finance companies, mortgage banks, title insurance companies, attorneys, and others. We are a network of 37 independent title searchers covering the entire state of Tennessee.

I have been a member of the TN Land Title Association for many years, working on the education and membership committees. I look forward to being part of an organization committed to improving and building public awareness of the value of our profession to the real estate industry.

Pat Scott

My name is Pat Scott. I have served on the NALTEA board since 2006, and I am willing to serve two more years if the membership so desires.

I chaired the Public Relations Committee for several years. Last January, due to a vacancy, I relinquished the PR chair for the Membership Committee. Several months, and as many mistakes later, I think I am finally getting the hang of it.

The more I see our industry, and its participants suffer, the more strongly I believe in the importance of a strong advocate for the independent abstractors - and the more I believe it is vital that NALTEA succeeds. We have a long way to go yet before we have the respect of the greater title, legal and lending industries. I think we have an excellent opportunity for growth, now that our certification program is in business.

I have been in the title industry for twenty years. Those years are nearly equally split between operations and sales. Since 1997, I have been the sales manager for OConnor Title Services, Inc. I have a lovely wife, Linda, a charming 14-year-old son, Woodrow, and a fine dog we call Roxy.

I look forward to a great increase of involvement in NALTEA this year. And, whether I retain my board position or not, I still look forward to committee participation.

5 Great Reasons to Attend the 2009 NALTEA Conference in Charlotte

info@naltea.org (National Assoc of Land Title Examiners & Abstractors) — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 11:39:51 EST

Do you need a reason to attend the 2009 NALTEA Conference in Charlotte, North Carolina this October? Below are just 5 really good reasons to attend, and these are just the pre-planning events! We've posted a really low pre-planning conference fee that is good until August 15th. As soon as the final agenda is set, the cost goes up!

2009 NALTEA Conference, Charlotte, North Carolina, October 9-11

So if you need a reason, here are 5 good ones:

1. If you haven't taken the Certification Exam already, you'll have an opportuntity to take it at the conference! The exam is only $125 (in addition to the very low conference fee) and includes a copy of Jeanne Johnson's review manual...a great resource to have in your office.

2. FREE review class for the certification exam.

3. FREE Train-the-Trainer class for NALTEA Certified Abstractors. Learn the nuances of teaching adult learners the basic concepts of real estate. This FREE class is worth the cost of the conference all by itself! Train-the-Trainer can catapult you to expert status in your community and provide a stepping stone to teach your passion. As a NALTEA Trainer, you can assist NALTEA in preparing others to become NCA or NMA Certified Abstractors and generate an additional income stream for your business. If you are an NCA or NMA designated abstractor, or if you plan to take the exam at the conference, you need to attend this FREE class!

4. Great speakers to provide insight to the changes we are seeing in the industry. Join us for a dialogue on how we can best position ourselves to benefit from the expertise we have using the technology that puts public records at the fingertips of the world.

5. Network with your peers and learn how others are diversifying their services.

The NALTEA Events Committee is finalizing speakers and activities for the conference, so you can take advantage of our pre-planning conference sign-up. For only $100 through August 15th, you know you will have 5 great reasons to attend the conference, and after August 15th we'll be able to give you 5 more great reasons to attend. Rooms at the Omni Hotel are only $89 per night. The value is fantastic! Sign up today at www.naltea.org. Scroll to the bottom of the home page and you'll see the link on the right.

See you in Charlotte!

NALTEA October 2009 Conference!

info@naltea.org (National Assoc of Land Title Examiners & Abstractors) — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 23:25:30 EST

NALTEA has finalized the date and location of the October 2009 Conference.

The event will be held October 9-11 in downtown Charlotte, NC at the Omni Hotel. A limited number of rooms have been blocked off at a really great rate of $89 for a single or double. The cost of the conference is $150 for members and $175 for non-members with some exciting staggered discounts to encourage early registration.

After September 16th, the full conference fee is required of $150 for members/$175 for non-members.*

*Non-members can apply the additional $25 fee to their NALTEA membership when they join at the conference.

The conference will include breakfasts, lunch on Saturday, industry speakers, an opportunity to take the NALTEA designation/certification exam and participate in a pre-test prep class, as well as an opportunity to participate in a Train-the-Trainer class with Jeanne Johnson as an exclusive member benefit. Each of Jeanne's review and training classes are valued at over $200, and she's providing our members the opportunity to take the instructor training and student test-prep classes at no extra charge! If you want to sit for the exam this October, sign-up for Jeanne's test-prep class. If you've ever thought you might want to become an instructor, qualified Certified and Master Abstractors can sit for the Train-the-Trainer class and become qualified NALTEA instructors.

Our website has not been updated with a form yet, but it should be available soon. In the meantime, please send me an email and I'll fax or email back a registration form. You can send a check or use a credit card for the NALTEA conference. Registration for the great $89 room rate at the Omni will be through the hotel website and must be made prior to September 16th or while rooms remain available.

We look forward to seeing you this year in Charlotte!

Meet The Candidates!

info@naltea.org (National Assoc of Land Title Examiners & Abstractors) — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 23:12:54 EST

On Monday, January 19th, NALTEA will hold its annual meeting and elections. At this time, we have three candidates in the running for two open seats on NALTEA's board of directors. Each has provided some biographical information and a paragraph or two to let our members know what he or she will work to accomplish for NALTEA, if elected.

This is an opportunity for NALTEA members to get to know our candidates, to ask questions, to find out which candidates best represent what you think is best for your association and your industry. Let's meet the candidates (in the order in which their nominations were received):

Ed Gunther, Vice President of InfoTrack Information Services, Inc.

NALTEA Members:

My name is Ed Gunther and I am the Vice President of INFOTRACK INFORMATION SERVICES, INC.

I am interested in filling a vacancy on the NALTEA Board of Directors. I am currently the Vice President of NALTEA and have participated at the NALTEA conferences for the last three years. I am very interested in promoting education in the abstracting field. INFOTRACK is currently enrolled in the sponsor program of the Land Title Institute and have our abstractors enrolled in courses ongoing. We recognize the need for effective training throughout the industry.

I also feel that our industry faces many challenges from off shore companies that are attempting to turn our profession into a commodity. Furthering the image of NALTEA and the quality work of Abstracting Professionals is a key element in keeping the title industry work here in this country.

Increasing the visibility and the influence of our organization is of great importance as we go forward into 2009.

Ed Gunther

Dave Pelligrinelli, President of AFX Corp. LLC.

I started title searching in 1995, in Alpharetta , GA. At the time, I covered Fulton and DeKalb counties. This is also when we opened the website TitleSearch.com. In 1999, we opened a second office, in Boca Raton , FL and incorporated as AFX Corp., LLC.

Over the years, AFX has done over 200,000 searches for lenders, attorneys, government agencies, and investors. More recently, we have been involved with major projects for the SEC, US Treasury Department, and FBI. We routinely handle commercial searches, mineral rights, and environmental liens. (More detailed information about the company can be found at http://www.afxc.com.)

In 2005, we began using our site http://www.Abstractors.com as a vendor database, to coordinate outside abstractors used for searches outside our native area. Last year, I noticed a large volume of visitors coming to this site looking for local abstractors, so I decided to open this directory up to all abstractors, as a free resource for promoting individual abstractors. Hundreds of vendor managers each day are exposed to the directory, and the listings contained in it.

In the early 2000's, the focus of the TitleSearch.com site was directed more towards investors. To promote the title search industry to consumers, we also publish a blog at http://www.TitleSearchBlog.com. We use popular real estate subjects to connect to issues related to property records and searching. This captures the publics' interest in real estate to promote the issue of records searching.

I joined NALTEA within the first year it was formed, and have been an active member since 2005. Having seen the evolution of the title search industry over the past decade, it is easy to understand the current challenging environment for individual abstractors. There are several issues putting pressure on the individual abstractor. Declining transaction volume, online records, overseas outsourcing, and a lower standard of search accuracy each are issues which make the job of maintaining and growing an abstracting enterprise more difficult now than it was in the past.

I believe that the success of the individual abstractor lies in recognizing that these issues are not going away, and they need to be addressed head-on as factors to be dealt with. Educating clients to the inferior nature of foreign outsourcing is a valid strategy. However, it is unlikely that the existence of online records will disappear. This is a genie that has been let out of the bottle, and cannot be put back. However, there are good methods for abstractors to continue to thrive in light of this, without sacrificing search integrity or client relationships. These are the types of opportunities which I would like to help abstractors take advantage of. We have implemented several customer management systems that make a huge impact on cultivating and sustaining excellent client relationships. These are simple, low cost things that are easy to do, but that help promote your searching/abstracting as something more than a commodity service that should be shopped around to the lowest bidder.

I am available to help NALTEA increase membership, and more importantly help its members (and all individual abstractors) not only survive this challenging environment, but also increase their success. Of course, no discussion of ensuring abstractor survival would be complete without promoting methods to enforce timely payments from clients. At the same time, it requires abstractors to present themselves to clients in a way that large professional clients recognize as deserving to be taken seriously.

Keeping individual abstractors as the backbone of searching is important in order to prevent the "title search" from becoming a completely automated process. While online records, short searches, and reduced standards are already a reality, we can keep "automated searches" from happening by keeping the current population of individual abstractors profitable and viable.

This is important because once more abstractors are gone for good, institutions will likely need to pursue automation out of necessity. This is one remaining event that we can still prevent as an industry, by promoting the strength of individual abstractors to keep enough of us around. Individual abstractors have contributed to working towards this goal by maintaining high search standards. As an industry trade group, NALTEA can capitalize on this effort and help keep the search industry profitable.

If asked to do so, I would be glad to help take the lead in making this happen.

Debi R. Merrill, President of SearchQuest, Inc.

NALTEA:

I am writing hoping for the opportunity of working with the Association as a Board Member. I have been involved in the Real Estate industry for over 32 years. I am interested in assisting Title Search professionals in gaining knowledge and in improving their relationships with others in the industry, thus increasing and improving service to our clients.

I have been a member of the TN Land Title Association for years, working on the education and membership committees. I have most recently attended seminars as a vendor, to meet and learn what Title Companies, Attorneys, and others using Real Estate search services are actually experiencing. To learn what they like and dislike about their current searchers and searches. With the times that we are in, it is most important to see what our customers actually need, and then strive to do our best to give them what they truly want. We can not get so set in our ways that we no longer listen. We are researchers, and need to continue to research our profession, as well as each individual title search.

I have been a member of NALTEA for 2 years and would like to be a part of an organization committed to improving and building public awareness of the value of our profession to the real estate industry. I will support our profession in promoting education and growth of NALTEA and to help set goals that are achievable over the coming years to make NALTEA the best ever!

Debi R. Merrill

President

Experience

11/93 - Present             SearchQuest               Estill Springs, TN

President

Maintain and control a title search company

Effectively promote the business

Manage numerous employees and independent contractors

1/93 thry 10/93      Title Insurance Company of Tullahoma     Tullahoma, TN

Title Searcher

60 year searches on land and owners in numerous counties

Review and advise on clearing title objections

Document Preparation and loan closings

7/89 thru 1/93     AEDC Federal Credit Union      Tullahoma, TN

Legal Assistant

Searched RE Titles and assisted loan officers with title problems

Prepared garnishments and levies, processed foreclosures, typed bankruptcy claims

Senior Loan Officer

4/78 thru 1/89               Various Companies              TN, CA, IA

Title Searcher

Miller and Martin Law Firm; Chattanooga, TN

Los Padres Savings; Solvang, CA

Brenton Bank and Trust; Des Moines, IA

The floor is still open to nominations. If you are interested in serving on the board, or if you would like to nominate another member, please send a note to info@naltea.org .

The current NALTEA officers and board would like to take this opportunity to thank all of our candidates for their readiness to work for their association and their industry. We wish them all luck on Monday evening.

We have asked the board candidates to check in with this blog on occasion during the week leading up to Monday's election to answer any questions that our members may have. So, please feel free to ask away.