It’s been an interesting week. During Tuesday’s storm I was sitting in a class up above downtown Everett. Quite the bluster! Even in the 6th floor of a modern high-rise, we could hear the wind. Fortunately, my friends and family came through reasonably unscathed, with the greatest problems being power losses and fence destruction. Many in the region had far worse results (the Seattle PI has a great run-down of the aftermath).
With the storm, traffic was significantly eventful and my poor instructor quite late. I took the opportunity to chat with many of the good folks at Everett’s First American Title office. Such great people! A few folks I’ve known for years, but have never met. Such is the nature of modern business!
Our class covered the Escrow Process, where we focused on several key changes and issues facing this sector. One of the biggest: cyber-fraud.
I’ve been hearing an amazing number of cases of spoofed, or near-spoofed email addresses where funds are redirected. With this, we covered ways in which our business is responding to better protect your information.
Also, we looked at the way the CFPB’s new disclosure rules are getting implemented. The mortgage industry has taken this very, very seriously and implemented (for the most part) solid processes to keep closing timelines solid. Each lender has their own process, which is complicating things. And we’re having issues with certain folks not respecting the amount of time it takes the other players to act (“yeah, it closes tomorrow, here’s our stuff at 6pm. Too bad you don’t have time to get all your work accomplished. It’s your fault, of course”).
Anyway, always trying to learn more. Real Estate is vibrant and ever changing business. It is one of the things that delights me about it. This also speaks to the value of real estate agents. We stay up-to-date on all the changes occurring. Even if you bought a house last year, the market has changed. There are new processes, forms and documentation. Let us help you navigate this morphing realm.
