Buying a house involves a lot of paper pushing. Stacks of paper can take hours for buyers and sellers to sign over and over again. While there’s been some movement in the mortgage industry to provide more digital solutions, the adoption of eMortgages and remote online notarization across the board has been slow. Suddenly in 2020, as the pandemic and government shutdowns swept across the country, lenders and title professionals quickly turned to remote eClosing solutions to keep real estate deals moving.
One couple in Southwest Florida found themselves in such a predicament. Before they could complete the refinance loan on their home, their local government halted any plans for a trip to their title company’s office to sign the papers. Fortunately, they had another option.
Danielle and Steve Krivda talk about their remote online notarization experience and why they’ll never go back to the old way of doing things.
Refinancing with an online notary during COVID-19
Steve, a business and personal development coach at Six Figure Coach Initiative, and Danielle Krivda, a construction manager, moved into their Florida home with their two sons in 2012. It was the perfect home for the active family, but it was missing a pool. In 2020, they decided to refinance with Cottrell Title and Escrow as their closing agent, but then uncertainty set in as the coronavirus spread across the United States, spurring local and state municipalities to force businesses to close.
As Steve and Danielle were discussing their options with James Schlimmer, Managing Partner at Cottrell Title and Escrow, he presented the idea of doing a remote eClosing.
According to our State of the Title Industry Report, 75% of title agents said they plan to make changes, like adding remote online notarization options, to their business in the coming year, but without raising awareness, many buyers and sellers are missing the opportunity to close with RON.
Download the 2020 State of the Title Industry report to learn more.