For integrity reasons, I must disclose that I’m on the software side of the industry after spending the last 5 years running a small independent agency in Michigan. Originally, I invested thousands of dollars into a heavily used software platform but soon realized that this platform was very costly in terms of time, maintenance, lost efficiencies and errors. Concurrently, I was being slapped in the face by a declining Michigan Real Estate market and decided I would have to shut down my business in a few months and put 11 great employees in the unemployment line if I didn’t become leaner and more agile - fast!!

For 5 months, I tore apart every process in my business from front-to-back and met with every employee and underwriter rep. to challenge them on old processes and to develop new ways of accomplishing title and closing work. After completing this analysis, I realize that I needed to dramatically change things to accomplish my goals and remain competitive. 

My new business strategy was simple: Purchase software to speed up my processes, enhance my workflow and customer servicing facilities and reduce errors. So I started by purchasing one piece of software that allowed multi parties and user to access information from anywhere in the world. This purchase allowed me to:

1. Access information about my business when I wasn’t around.
2. Eliminated down town by allowing employees who are sick to process a file from home.
3. Reduced closing delays due to HUD changes, at the table, by allowing a closer to have full processing and document retrieval capabilities during an in-home closing with or without an Internet connection.
4. Allow Mortgage brokers to place orders and access documents remotely.
5. Allowed my company to process a title order and generate a commitment 24 hours a day by outsourcing to India.
6. etc. etc. etc. etc.

The bottom-line, guys, is that I’m not here to push a brand of technology but I’m here to open your eyes to the possibilities created by deploying good technology within your organization. I invite any discussion or questions about the usage and possibilities of technology in the title industry. Why am I doing this? Because I had a blast in the title industry and have a love for the practical application of technology.

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