ADVISORY: This particular segment is longer than usual, but
worth a read. It is a date-stamped opinion from my recollections circa 2021 - it also reflects the amazing people, culture, and time of a specific era of the company that has since changed.
Many clients and industry partners have asked “why are you such an ‘evangelist’
for your title partner?” The answer is
not because I previously worked for the company – but the all-around approach
that encapsulates the client experience is what I fondly remember far before I
ever worked there. With that disclosure,
here is simple reasoning as to why a choice in title insurance and escrow
services is a fundamental capstone that rounds out the equation of solid client
representation.
GREAT ESCROW
This is now a basic expectation within the transaction landscape. Part of that service is accessibility and
when and how an escrow officer is willing to interact with a real estate
broker, lender, or client. I’ve often
noted that our collective share of escrow officers in Portland is smaller than
the membership of our most exclusive private golf club, the Waverley. This is true.
Within the escrow club is a much smaller set of truly gifted individuals
who transcend that of masters of numbers and attention to detail and have the
human touch where they weave the real estate broker into the conversation to
make the client feel completely confident that they are surrounded by total
competence.
INTERPRETIVE GUIDANCE
Each escrow company has what was formerly known as “customer service.” Customers shop at a grocery store, but clients
use the services of an escrow company.
Not all client services groups are created alike. The best ones have a team of true data scientists
who are able to help real estate brokers and lenders with special projects to
find solutions to their business needs.
In some markets, the regulatory framework requires the broker to pay for
information, but on many occasions data has been used to source hidden “product”
to assist brokers in finding their clients a match. Ask me sometime about a research project using a
GIS specialist for locating the ideal zone for a client within a country club for an
industry partner in another market.
Client services teams refine data to make it manageable and usable for a
wide array of purposes and good ones succeed in matching those expectations.
EXCEPTIONAL TOOLS
Title companies are famous for repackaging data that is readily available to
interpret via a variety of platforms.
However, there are standouts that every title client development officer
(sales is so pedestrian) should have at their fingertips. A solid rule-of-thumb is to master three
tools – just as we advise new brokers to do with the barrage of product arrows
that are hurled in their direction. As
these are almost always rebranded filters of like-information, choose the user
interface that works in concert with your desired consumer client experience.
ACCESS
Your title company is neutral in many ways as it serves many masters. That neutrality offers an incredible opportunity
for them to act as a “connector” as relationships are free but take time to nurture and
develop. One such example is having an
out-of-market expert on a certain client segment. Upon learning that my former company had an expert on
Asia-Pacific marketing, I invited her to the Portland market under the banner “Director
– Insights and Analysis - Asia-Pacific, Global Markets Practice.” In one day, she participated in a grueling
schedule to bring her message to over 300 real estate professionals. And, I was able to fulfill on my brand promise
that I still use in my real estate practice today to “give them something they
can’t get anywhere else.”
MARKET INTELLIGENCE
At my company, Windermere Realty Trust, we are blessed to have an in-house economist, best-of-class education on social media and other marketing tools,
and the counsel of extraordinary wisdom in the comparative Ivy League quality team of
managing principal brokers. Title
partners where C-suite personnel are visible and available for dialogue and
sharing best practices are extremely valuable and create an environment which
elevates the real estate profession as a whole.
Investigate how regional and national title company leadership are
participating in growing and sustaining business of their local operations. These individuals see hundreds of markets in
action, and have incredible insight to macro trends and how they will affect the
local marketplace.
OFFICE ENVIRONMENT
In a post-Covid world, nothing can replace human interaction. This is especially true with something that
has the gravitas of transferring large assets like property. Clients are curious, nervous, excited and the
emotional spectrum runs the gamut. The
goal of the escrow office is to reflect the market it serves and to assure the
consumer that their transaction is in good hands. We designed a 10-point plan that summarized
the escrow experience from “introducing the transaction” to the closing and
beyond. Security, privacy, and a dash of
relevant local artist works and furniture (in a private client setting) all
contribute to the recipe of a positive client experience.
DON’T LET RESPA BITE YOU
Above all else – adhere to and beware of title partners who offer a pot of
gold for your business. In California, the
environment is heavily regulated to ensure that companies are not buying
business. The reputation of the title company
should be as such as a client feels the interaction is so natural that they
expect the same experience in future transactions. Intellectual capital and idea sharing are
free, and that deep knowledge and close connection with the escrow team, client
development officer, and local/regional/national leadership is all you need in
your toolbox to be successful. Local
regulators have not been beneath asking for proof of payment for advertising
and events, measuring size of ads proportionate to payment, other items that
may seem easy to slide under the radar.
Therefore, short term benefit and bragging that the “title company will
pay for this or that” is a sure sign of the suspect character of a real estate broker
and the financial fine, professional reprimand, and damage to reputation is not
worth the risk.
AND FINALLY – COMPANY REPUTATION AND FINANCIAL STRENGTH
I’ll admit, my former employer is the highest ranking Fortune 500 title
insurance company. While that is a
benefit, this company takes its business very seriously and pays out “losses”
if they are incurred to the consumer with precision accuracy. This cannot be said for all companies in this
sphere. In recent times, a new title
player emerged that was funded by a private equity firm (the investment exit
strategy for these types of companies is always acquisition) and therefore the
interest is not with the industry partner or public’s trust, but with acquisition
in mind fueled by a take-no-prisoners ravenous mentality. Loss reserves of public companies are
well-documented and while losses are infrequent, public companies can back up
their title insurance commitments and claims.
Selecting a title insurance company with documented reserves and a rich
history is as much a benefit to the client as it is to the real estate professional. An incorrect title vendor decision and an unpaid
or heavily disputed loss will cloud a real estate broker and is a concept of
reputation management that we collectively never truly analyze. Thinking long-term is a necessity with any
vendor selection and most of mine have been with me for my entire time in the
real estate sphere.
If you haven’t already guessed by now, my example of stellar performance in escrow services and title insurance was of Fidelity National Title and their market leading teams in client, development, and escrow services. My 20-year relationship with the company on both the inside (as VP Corporate Relations) and the outside (both before and after as client) reflects on a very special place in time when FNT Portland’s Jeff Meucci was the undisputed visionary as the company’s sales organization leader prior to his promotion within the operation. May we only have more thought leaders like him within our market and throughout the industry.
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