I was really edified to see the report of Wanda's comments at the conference about demanding respect. God knows you guys seem to get precious little of it.  Hopefully at some point the abstractors can organize into some cohesive force with a voice to be reckoned with., including payment of fees that reflect your contributions to the industry.

I have observed the changes of this industry within the past twelve years....changes which have not been for the best. I remember a time in the not too distant past when the title search was ordered with sufficient time to take into account complications, the document package was flawlessly prepared by the lender and overnighted to the attorney in time for his review, the closing date and time were scheduled with the borrower, the loan closed smoothly and the deed/mortgage was recorded within 24 hours.

Quality control at all levels of the industry has fallen by the wayside. It appears to be left to the last minute with the emphasis on correction of mistakes at additional expense after the fact rather than prevention of mistakes up front. The lines of communication have been blurred among the lender, mortgage broker, title company, abstractor, signing service and signing agent. Dealing with the various players has become like playing a game of telephone in which you whisper something in the ear of a person at one end of the line, and as the message is communicated from one person to another it comes out as something quite different at the other end of the line....not to mention last minute changes in the terms of the mortgage which have not been discussed with the borrower.

I just did a closing last month for a first and second mortgage. The borrowers were furious because they tried to close the previous night with another attorney, but could not because of a problem with the document package. When the doc package was handed to me, the signature lines had not been made out for someone signing under a power of attorney. Fortunately, they were able to correct it on the spot. As the closing progressed to the second mortgage, it became apparent that it had been drafted for the wrong product (wrong interest rate and term of loan). It required a third meeting with the borrower the next night after the lender/title company corrected their mistake. Needless to say, it was a miracle that it closed.

The sad part is that this appears to be the norm in the industry rather than the exception to the rule with the full burden falling on the signing agents and abstractors. Good luck ,Wanda. You have your work cut out for you.