“Ask Me” Corner:

Welcome to the new “Ask Me” Corner, where we ask CMA members about their experience with various industry practices and what best practices they use in their offices. This month, we’re asking, “how do you handle reviewing title policies in your office?” Here are some of the answers we received:

Karen Gledich: At Residential First Capital, reviewing the final title policy is a crucial part of our post-closing diligence process. We have a dedicated team member who manages this step by calendaring a 30-day follow-up after each closing and maintaining a tracking spreadsheet to log requests and responses from the title officer. Some title units deliver quickly – others take their time – so having this organized system ensures that no file is overlooked.

Once the policy arrives, we review it carefully to confirm that the insured lender and beneficiary are correct, the loan amount and endorsements match the commitment, and all paid-off liens are properly reconveyed. If corrections are needed, we reach back out to title for revisions. When the policy is complete and accurate, it’s uploaded to our servicing software, and a copy is placed in the fireproof safe for the servicing team to review as needed.

A consistent, documented process like this not only ensures clean loan files but also demonstrates strong post-closing controls and compliance for investors.

Michelle Ong: LBC Capital: We have a post-closing dedicated person who collects the title policy. We check the correctness of the information – property address/APN, borrower’s names, and our company’s name. We compare our lender’s instructions, the prelim and the title policy and make sure that our instructions were followed. We check if all the endorsements and exceptions are correct. Sometimes, the policy does not reflect the correct information, so we have to inform the title company to make the necessary changes. So far, all of the title companies are pretty cooperative, although some take longer than others.

Lori Randich: At Redwood Mortgage, we have our Loan Closers check the title policy when it comes in. They work on the file when it comes out of Underwriting, drawing our loan documents and the title and escrow instructions. So, they’re very aware of what the policy should cover, including the subject loan, any senior or junior liens, the status of property taxes and the endorsements that were requested. We follow up on late policies and requested corrections with vigor and try to have the final title policy in our office within 30 days of loan closing.

Next month’s question:

“When a property is held in a trust or LLC, what entity/trust docs do you like to see in the file – and who should review them?”

Have a good answer to next month’s question? Email your answers (100-200 words) to Mayumi Bowers (mayumibowers@gmail.com) and you may see your valuable input shared with CMA members!