Monday, July 27, 2009

Harry Yazbek and the Order of the Virginia Sales Team

(I'm sorry, that's the best I could do... I'm sure Darrin Friedman can come up with a better Harry Potter themed intro -- feel free to use the comments below ;)

It is with mixed emotion that I announce that Harry Yazbek will be leaving Mid-Atlantic Settlement Services at the end of this week. Harry has decided to pursue another opportunity with a foreclosure law firm (one that does not compete with Mid-Atlantic Settlement Services). While his presence will be missed, this is an exciting opportunity for Harry to build a foreclosure team. Please join me in wishing Harry much success in his future endeavors!

Effective Monday, August 3rd, all Northern Virginia TSRs will report into Daniel Coleman. Dan has been the Regional Vice President / Sales Manager for the Greater Baltimore Region for almost two years, and has led his TSR team to higher levels of customer service and market share. I know Dan will be a welcomed addition to the Virginia team. Dan’s contact information is Daniel[dot]Coleman[at]MASettlement[dot]com and 410-382-7491. You may also find him on Twitter and Facebook.

I am also pleased to announce that Sarah Tyndall Bodsford will be transitioning to the role of Virginia Marketing Manager over the next few months. Sarah’s focus will be in traditional and social media marketing, training and customer service. Together, Dan, Sarah, Virginia Operations Manager Penny Ross and the Virginia TSR Team will ensure that our Northern VA brokers, agents and lenders receive world class customer service.

We will be looking to hire two Title Service Reps (TSRs) for the Lake Ridge / Dale City and Springfield / Alexandria / Arlington regions. Should you have a candidate in mind who you think would be a good addition to the team, please let Dan or myself know. We will provide posting information soon.

I am excited about this new sales alignment in the Northern Virginia marketplace, and look forward to moving ahead!

Wednesday, July 22, 2009

Mortgage Disclosure Improvement Act (MDIA)

The Mortgage Disclosure Improvement Act (MDIA) goes into effect July 30, 2009. Do you know what it is? How it affects you and your buyers? Cindy McCarty from Coldwell Banker Home Loans provided us with some following key points.

Key Provisions:

1. The lender must provide or mail an initial TIL disclosure within 3 days after receiving the customer's application.

2. The lender must deliver or mail a TIL disclosure at least 7 business days before closing.

3. A final, accurate TIL must always be provided at closing.

4. If the annual percentage rate (APR) increases more than 0.125%, the borrower must receive a revised TIL at least 3 business days before closing.

Why might the APR increase?

  • Interest rate changes
  • Loan amount increases
  • Type of loan changes
  • Fees charged increases
  • Loan-to-value (LTV) increases

Things to consider:

When writing a purchase contract, remember that the earliest possible day that closing can occur is 7 business days after the lender issues the initial TIL.

Set customer expectations about closing timelines and, whenever possible, plan for a closing date that provides enough time to accommodate the additional waiting period required if the APR increases by more than 0.125%.

Examples/Scenarios:

Example #1:

8/3/09: Application taken
8/4/09: Initial TIL delivered
8/12/09: EARLIEST POSSIBLE CLOSING DATE

Example #2:

8/3/09: Application take
8/4/09: Initial TIL delivered
8/10/09: Customer locks rate, which increases the APR by more than .125%; revised TIL sent to customer.
8/13/09: Customer receives new TIL
8/17/09: EARLIEST POSSIBLE CLOSING DATE


Note: These examples are assuming Coldwell Banker Home Loans/PHH is the lender. It is entirely possible that other lenders will interpret the MDIA language differently.

Wednesday, July 1, 2009

We Have a New Banking Relationship in Maryland

Effective today, July 1st, new title orders taken will be disbursed out of our new M&T Bank account for Maryland properties only (VA and DC files not affected). After an exhaustive search and interview process, we chose M&T based on their ability to handle trust accounts, their history of delivering top-notch customer service, their geographic spread across Maryland, and their commitment to the Maryland and Greater Baltimore communities.

Existing files already opened will be processed and disbursed from the Bank of America account we are currently utilizing. Nothing will change for those files. This change will only effect files opened today or later.

This move should be seamless for our customers through the transition. Should a wire mistakenly be sent to the wrong account during this transition period, we have internal mechanisms in place to get the funds into the proper account. Our customers need not do anything differently, except that lenders will need to pay close attention to the wiring instructions that accompany each commitment.

Should any questions arise, please feel free to call your TSR or send an email to info[at]MASettlement[dot]com.