I'm not certain when the "change" happened, but in hindsight, I'm figuring it must have been around mid-September. I called the transaction coordinator last month to ask her to follow up with several title companies because I never received closing packages on my last bunch of closed transactions. Sometimes title sends them directly to Lyon's corporate office, but they always manage to at least send me a HUD-1 at my Lyon midtown office. I mean, they know that agents are supposed to receive a closing package.
It was like deja vu this week. I was in the process of cleaning out my bottom file cabinet, packing up a box of closed files to cart out to my garage to make room for a new batch, and I noticed my last few closings were not in the bottom cabinet. That's where I put them after I have received the closing package. Nope, the files were still in my top filing cabinet. I opened the files -- no HUD-1s.
One title company's excuse was the escrow officer who handled the file no longer worked there. She was a long-term employee, too. Then, this morning I read in Inman News that 5 top title companies, which control 93% of the $14 billion title industry, are in the red and posting 3rd quarter losses:
- First American Title
- Fidelity National
- Stewart Information Services
- Old Republic International
- LandAmerica Financial (expected to report loss on Nov. 10)
First American's COO Dennis Gilmore says its recovery plan calls for "increasing employee productivity." Everybody has already laid off a ton of workers, more than 18,000. The overworked title and escrow officers are working 12-hour days. How are they planning to increase productivity? Chain them to their desks through lunch and dinner? Make them sleep at the office?
Photo: Big Stock Photo
The Short Sale, by Elizabeth Weintraub, coming from Archer Ellison in January 2009
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Certified HAFA Specialist
My Sacramento Real Estate Listings
Elizabeth Weintraub is an author, home buying columnist for The New York Times-owned About.com, a Land Park resident, and a Land Park real estate agent who specializes in older, classic homes in Land Park, Curtis Park, Midtown and East Sacramento. Weintraub is also a Sacramento Short Sale agent who lists and successfully sells short sales throughout the four-county Sacramento area. Call Elizabeth Weintraub at 916.233.6759. Put 35 years of real estate experience to work for you. Broker-Associate at Lyon Real Estate. DRE License # 00697006.
The Short Sale Savior, by Elizabeth Weintraub, available at Amazon.com.
Lyon Real Estate is not associated with the government, and our service is not approved by the government or your lender. Even if you accept this offer and use our service, your lender may not agree to change your loan.
Photo: Unless otherwise noted in this blog, the photo is copyrighted by Big Stock Photo and used with permission.
The views expressed herein are Weintraub's personal views and do not reflect the views of Lyon Real Estate.
Disclaimer: If this post contains a listing, information is deemed reliable as of the date it was written. After that date, the listing may be sold, listed by another brokerage, canceled, pending or taken temporarily off the market, and the price could change without notice. It could blow up, explode or vanish. To find out the present status of any listing, please go to elizabethweintraub.com.
