What Is A Title Company and Do I Need One with Lauri Page

• 0:10 - 0:35
Welcome to the Real Authority show. I'm your host Rick Harrison and every week with the help of thought leaders and authorities in just about every industry will explore The Human Experience to show you how to take your life to the next level and live with purpose whether it's mastering your body and mind Building Wealth and relationships or making overwhelming task simple. There's something for everyone and you won't believe how close you already are to achieving that next level. It's.

• 0:36 - 0:38
On the other side the real Authority show.

• 0:47 - 1:13
Thanks for joining me everyone today. My name is Rick Harrison, and I am the host of the real Authority show today. And today I'm joined by Lori page of Omega national title. And we're going to be talking about title searches and what that what goes into it, you know, what kinds of things should you be looking out for and kind of what it's all about. So welcome Lori. Thank you for having me Rick.

• 1:15 - 1:22
How are you doing? I'm doing great. And this beautiful Monday morning. Glad to be here. I still love your background.

• 1:25 - 1:54
Yeah, so we're we're going to be talking about titles today, right and what it's all about. And yes, we are. We are anything you need to know? Okay got the information some good some bad, but the information is there so, okay, perfect. Well, why don't we start out just by kind of given our viewers a little bit about you and about a mega title and kind of go from there. Okay. Sounds good. Well as Rick said, my name is Lori page. I'm with Omega.

• 1:54 - 2:24
National Title Group proud to be with them they are an amazing company, but the cool thing is the guy that started the company. His name is Scott Des Connie. He started in 2007. He started well. It was too small Oscars now grown into 10 different satellite offices. We can close throughout the State of Florida. We're in Palm Beach. Where in Port Charlotte to offices in Naples Cape Coral Fort Myers when we can we are licensed.

• 2:26 - 2:54
Absolutely everywhere in Florida. It's wonderful and we're working on some few that we have just gone over to the corporate. We are now Omega National Title which just offers us more support and amazing things all together. The people that have been working at Omega all together. Our escrow officers have over a hundred years of experience. There isn't much they haven't done. Wow, as far as real estate transactions. Go for real.

• 2:54 - 3:24
Yeah, yeah, that's good. Good company to be affiliated with very proud. Yeah. Yeah. I know they're highly recommended with our company to then BP Realty. So we do a lot with MVP because MVP is so spectacular. I mean everything that they're Carlson has created and all the agents that he is brought in. There's just so stressed so much strength with the education and the support that they give you all and again, we're just so happy to be a part of all that so yeah.

• 3:24 - 3:54
Yeah, no, I know from firsthand experience. They do a lot for for their agents. So amazing. Yeah good stuff. All right. Well, why don't we start out with just kind of going over? What does Title Company do and what I guess what kinds of things can it protect you from? Okay, well title insurance as a whole protects you from your past anything that has happened on your property from the past. It could be judgments and liens.

• 3:54 - 4:24
And missing mortgages and lost errors lost. There's that have been there for years and we just didn't know about title insurance is going to protect you from from all of that. Okay, and as title insurers now as our job, we're going to make sure that anything that shows up on public record as far as liens go as far as those mortgages go. We're going to clear all that up at you know before any closing so you should go into your home with with clear.

• 4:24 - 4:54
Title as we call it no problems whatsoever to close. However, once in a while, like I said a lost are will show up. It could be from somebody forging a name from years ago. People have gone out and gotten false IDs and came in with that saying this and then and then a year later the wife walks in and goes you sold my property, you know, well, you know, your husband just went off and married somebody else and got a fake ID and had it signed in it.

• 4:54 - 5:24
Name too. So I mean there's just so many things but our title insurers our Underwriters which we call them which is basically our insurance agents still make sure that you're protected from that they'll go to court for you. They're going to fight for you on that and then you they will make sure that you are you're taking care of ya. What I guess what other services did title companies provide other than just doing kind of that backgrounds starch. Well we.

• 5:24 - 5:54
Consider ourselves representation for buyers Sellers and the Agents we hold all the escrow money. And then in the end we will disperse all those funds to whoever needs to be paid including utility bills payoffs for mortgages from sellers. But in the process, the first thing we're going to do is we're going to order a commitment which allows us the opportunity to see exactly what's going on in that property and things that haven't been cleared up are there open permits for example, are there encroachments on a.

• 5:54 - 6:24
Herve are there any other types of liens on a property? Did somebody not pay child support? They can put a lien on their property. So we make sure all of that is cleared up and then we arrange for closings with the buyer and seller we arrange times when everything is in order. We work with the lenders. We're kind of look at us as the straw that stirs the drink we bring it all together we deal with everybody. We put it all together in a pretty package and in the end we close we hand over the keys and we make sure that.

• 6:24 - 6:54
Sure that everybody is paid properly. Okay, so despite kind of that myth that well, I guess might not be a myth in certain areas or States but the agents aren't actually the ones handing the keys to the to the buyers. Well, I mean that is a personal preference sometimes. Yeah, and and with in today's world with what's going on with the virus normally, you know, we would have you know, Mom Dad Grandma Grandpa and all the second cousins at the closing with the with the.

• 6:54 - 7:24
Agents, unfortunately in today's world we can't do that. So sometimes we've been arranging it more so we get the key from the agent and then when the when the loan documents are signed we can hand the key to the buyer. But again that's completely up to the agents will determine all that what you're comfortable with right before closing. Okay. Yeah. I've noticed that at least since I've joined with MVP that agents aren't really handling anything as far as.

• 7:24 - 7:54
Money's anymore concerned it's kind of all being pushed to go through the escrow. And yeah, and yeah absolutely and they should have never been able to you know, they shouldn't be handling money. Anyway, it's just too much liability. We keep it all in in our secure system. We have our bank we take care of all of that. So at the beginning of a contract when you have to get us an escrow deposit and this is kind of important to know how payments are made. You can give a check or a money order for your initial deposit.

• 7:54 - 8:24
Was it but in the very end, you must wire the funds. So where's an awful lot of fraud going on right now as well. So with that being said, we have wire instructions that we will send you and the last four numbers of the account number we leave off completely. So you have to be in touch with us to get those last four numbers right before you're going to make your deposit and whatnot. But yeah, we take care of all of that and then we will send out verifications of the deposit was made we.

• 8:24 - 8:54
Keep in contact with all the clients letting them know. Okay, this was in now. I need a little bit of information over on this end, you know, and then and then we just let it ride we will you know, some people don't have the technology. We don't mind talking on the telephone. So right. Yeah, I mean, I've heard some pretty pretty scary stories as far as wire transfer fraud and other types of fraud going into escrow what kinds of What kinds of stories have you heard and.

• 8:55 - 9:24
I guess how do you guys protect against that stuff locked up? Okay. So did you hear the whole question? I did I did we're talking about fraud and there's with the where is this is a difficult conversation yet. Very very needed. We are really working hard on educating people on this things were bad things have gone worse and just the way people can break into your account the way people can break into, you know, email a.

• 9:24 - 9:27
Accounts and whatnot. We are.

• 9:29 - 9:58
We are you know constantly under watch by Underwriters were constantly being audited. So as a title company, there's no way we can take anybody for granted or cause any fraud in that direction on the other side of that people are out there fishing for information. We have security blocks. We have what's called certified which protects our wire our wires out up to a million dollars for people because it can.

• 9:59 - 10:28
Happen in the blink of an eye where somebody breaks into your account. They'll take your email address change one letter or one number in your email address. You'd never notice it and then say Oh, no, I'm working with Lori page now and I would like, you know, and now, you know now you need to send the wire instructions here. Well, so I mean and it happens often. It happens. So often a lot of it's happening with our seniors, you know in a great way to where Rick Harrison is calling you saying.

• 10:29 - 10:58
Oh, hey, you know I am now working with Lori page. Don't worry about that anymore. I've taken over but you're going to send your money to me and you're going to you know, and then you create this relationship with them. I mean the it's endless the amount of fraud that's going on right now things that we have to be aware of right? Yeah. Look at everything very closely. I mean, I know we talked last week a little bit about, you know, a couple other where you've said that, you know, you've heard of stories where people have lost their entire savings.

• 10:59 - 11:28
Accidentally wiring their entire, you know the entire monies for the for the property over to of Callie Yeah country and it can happen literally that quickly where they will and the guy said they'll send you an email. I had this done. I was working with a woman. She was a businesswoman. She was in all kinds of meetings. She was in a rush rush rush rush rush and she wasn't slow down on a lot of it people are watching they're watching your emails. They're watching everything for a while and they knew that this woman was very busy on the road traveling.

• 11:29 - 11:58
And all the time I'm in the car with her on the way to the bank and I'm like do not use anywhere instructions. But what I gave you all good all good. She gets into the bank and somebody sent her an email from my address change the letter they had obviously been watching sent her new email address and said ignore those after I just said, but she was in a rush just said do not use anything else. I will call you directly. She didn't and we got cause she got Nails For You Know over.

• 11:59 - 12:27
Dollars we were able to get the funds back because she caught it immediately and she called and she was like, I think I messed up we were able to fix it immediately, but we have endless stories on other people to it's not just title. We are we have every fire while we have every security system lined up. They still can get through. So yeah. Yeah scary nowadays. It really is there's so much going on.

• 12:29 - 12:58
So I guess what's the best way for people to obviously you're going to reach out to them as a title company, but how can they be sure that who they're talking to is who they need to be talking to and that's it. A lot of it as follow-up when we when we introduce ourselves to people we call the buyers the sellers both of the agents and make sure that you have our direct phone numbers and if there are any questions that come up whatsoever. If anything looks strange to you then you call us.

• 12:59 - 13:28
Okay have to follow through with that. Now we have closures to so we're going to make sure that you are aware that if you're working with me, I'm going to give you my closers in my processors name. So you will hear from them requesting information. If it's not from them, then we asked them. Please call if you're not sure or comfortable with anything call us directly and we will tell you exactly who you're supposed to be hearing from we work as a very strong team at Omega.

• 13:29 - 13:58
We are you know, and again we're big communicators. That's a big one. A lot of places are not communicating properly. It's all email or text and it's like we must we have to talk to you, right? Yeah. Yeah that makes sense always gotta follow up and that's I think you know with how busy people are nowadays that's kind of issues. No actually actually doing it, but we get caught up in the rat race and it's a good and we're all so busy and then there's so much.

• 13:58 - 14:28
Much news out there and we're and we're scared and we just don't know which way to go right call us. That's you know, that's the best way and educate yourselves. There's so many ways to educate yourselves right now on this highly recommend everybody get a hold of something and learn about it. Yeah, and I can maybe we can provide them with some resources later on and after the show's over. I'll put something out there for him. You can put something together. That would be great. I've got some really good links and whatnot.

• 14:28 - 14:58
Send those to you. Okay, are there any issues that a title search might not uncover, you know any hidden things that it might might show up later on that. I can't really protect you against you know, that is what title insurance would be for the title search. Sometimes absolutely things can be overlooked things that have happened that a big one would be missing errors from 10 years ago. Mmm.

• 14:58 - 15:28
Missed permit, you know, your house is beautiful. You just bought it. However, guess what? Somebody just reported that your treehouse is the slide that goes into your jacuzzi now was built without a permit. So those are the things that title insurance will protect you against missing heirs. They will protect you against that and that, you know, normally a lot of it will show up at the beginning but sometimes there's just no getting around it Uncle Harry from 10 years ago decided he wanted.

• 15:28 - 15:58
Piece of that house. Yeah. Yeah tough tough tough to get around that stuff. And if it really is there's so many things going on. But yep, but that's why title insurance that way you have a title agent title agents and attorneys. We basically do the same work. So Florida, you do not need an attorney they're going to do exactly what we do, but I understand that a lot of East Coast Midwest. I'm a Midwest.

• 15:58 - 16:28
Girl, I came down here saying what do you mean? I don't need an attorney, you know, but you don't you don't down here title agencies are you know licensed and well well bred to take care of all kinds of needs. So yeah, awesome. Yeah, it's nice to have one place to go where you don't have to worry about all these different lines of communication getting muddied up, you know, well, that's it. There's a lot of hands in any closing when you have a lender and you have two agents and you have a buyers and sellers and and you know, whatever else is going on.

• 16:30 - 16:58
It gets it gets muddled. And so again, we're that strong. We're going to put it all together and stir it up and put it in a pretty package for you. I guess how much does just for our viewers kind of information how much does title insurance usually costs? And you know, how do they pay for it? What's the process of that? Well, all of it will be paid for at your in your final statement. So everything gets taken care of at the closing.

• 16:58 - 17:28
Table Title Insurance varies per purchase of the purchase price of your home. It is a promulgated rate in Florida, which means it is a government regulated rate. So we can't just say hey, we're going to charge you this today. It's basically I mean it's a breakdown into you know up to $100,000. It's five dollars and seventy five cents per hundred thousand and then it goes down from there the higher the purchase price and then there's also doc stamps now.

• 17:28 - 17:58
Was the title insurance as a one-time fee depending on what county you're in if you're in Collier County the buyer will pay that if you're in Lee County the seller will pay that and then we also have doc stamps which are basically the same thing as a transfer tax. You're going to hear both terms. It's basically transferring the deed from the seller to the buyer simple as that, but the cow but the county needs some tax money for that and that's you know, that that gets the.

• 17:58 - 18:28
That's a little more expensive even than the title insurance. And again the seller usually pays for the duck stamps regardless of what county. Yeah, and then our feet for Omega. We do closings at $450. That's just our fee. And right now for refinances. We are offering $195 refinances until September 15th. I know a lot of people are trying to refine their homes. Some people have ended up in some issues with losing their.

• 18:28 - 18:58
We're trying to help out and we've lowered our lowered our fee over $200. So that's how yeah, yeah in the market down here is pretty busy lately. Especially last two weeks. It's a probably starting to pick up in a beautiful way. Yeah and reef eyes. I mean anybody out there if you get a chance to refi do at the rates are fantastic if you qualify yeah, yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Well you have it in, you know, you connect with specific lenders and there's some very very strong.

• 18:58 - 19:28
Wrong lenders out here, too. Yeah creating relationships. Yeah. Yeah. No, we have a we have a few that we recommend in for everybody to so yeah, we're done. But yeah, how about is there anything else that you think that our viewers might need as far as information about title title insurance or title searches, you know, there's just there's so much. I think we've covered the basics Rick, but if anybody wants to know anything, please if they contact you reach out to me I'll you know, we can answer your questions without.

• 19:28 - 19:58
Out, you know for all your agents for you. We can do prevalent preliminary statements which really helps out. So if you're going into a listing or you have a buyer, you know have us do a statement for you, and then you'll understand a little bit more about the fees and you know, and how that's working and how you know, it's it's hard to listen and we give out so much information, but, you know the visual to see things it's just makes it so much stronger. But yeah, if you have any questions or anybody reaches out to you after that, please just give me a call.

• 19:58 - 20:27
I'll yeah will answer anything. What's what's the best way to reach you my email? Okay, or my cell phone I work off of my cell phone. Okay. Yeah information or you can give an email address and that would be lore'l a URI at Omega title group.com.

• 20:29 - 20:58
Alright, and if anybody has any questions freak out reach out to Rick he's an amazing realtor. Yeah, I can get you guys in more information to and I'll put some links in the video description as well. So you can just click on them and get brought right to Omega titles social media sites, and you also have my contact information as well so I can help you out with setting you up with these guys as well. So and I'll send you some links so people can.

• 20:59 - 21:28
Are looking at the educating those on what kind of things are going on with fraud right now? Okay, you know, yeah, I'll put that right in there too. Right? Alright, okay. Alright. Well Lori. Thank you for your time today. And no I'm sure you're super busy with everything going on down here in Southwest Florida. But I really appreciate you joining us and providing so much information for our for our viewers today. Well, it's our pleasure truly wreck. Thank you for asking us. Thank you for having us. Okay. Yeah because have a wonderful week.

• 21:28 - 21:33
And thank you, too. Okay. Thank you. All right.

• 21:37 - 22:05
So that's going to wrap it up for today's show. I hope you guys all enjoyed it and got some great information from Lori and a mega National. They're great company to work with and you know, they make the process really smooth. So if you ever have a chance if you're ever down in Southwest Florida purchasing definitely check them out, they have gone National now, so they are a expanding company and the reason that is because they work so well with with all.

• 22:06 - 22:35
A lot of different agents in this area. So that's it. If you guys have any questions, feel free to visit my Facebook and Instagram, I mean, I'm all over social media. So I do have some of the handles coming up on the bottom of the screen. But otherwise, you can also reach out to me at our website. That's www.sevenwellness.com 5 list team. That's T eam.com and you can do property searches all South.

• 22:36 - 22:49
West Florida on that site and you also see our little team that we've been putting together. All right, so I hope you guys have a great rest of the week and I look forward to seeing you on the next podcast. Alright. Have a great day.