One of the biggest challenges facing real estate investors today is finding investor friendly title companies and real estate attorneys to work with. So if there are any left, where can they be found and how do investors connect with them?
Without a friendly closing agent, everything else can be for nothing. Anti-investor lawyers and title firms don’t just fail to deliver the best service, but can derail great deals, at the loss of tens of thousands of dollars.
Why is there is such a disconnect here, and what’s the solution?
The Need For Investor Friendly Title Insurance Assistance
The need for a real estate investor friendly title and closing agent is critical to success. This may be more prominent for those flipping houses and engaged in wholesaling, but is just as important for all other real estate investors.
Transactions seem to have become more complicated for wholesalers, at least for those trying to find help to do things legally. The technicalities haven’t really changed in this respect, but finding help has.
Investors also need a title partner that understands the demands they face and knows how to recognize them. This includes clouds on title, those with potential title claims, verifications, additional liens and red flags for underwriters.
The benefits of having a title ally can make all the difference in the world when it comes to the closing. Real estate closings can be a very emotional and high stake. Unless the closing agent has your best interest in mind and believes in what you are doing, there are many variables which can derail the deal.
So why is it so hard to find a title partner today?
The Challenge
Many new real estate investors and those moving into new markets have been complaining about the difficulty in finding friendly title companies and attorneys. In fact, many report that they are being flat out turned away.
This may seem crazy from the outside, but there are two or three reasons for this. A lot of investors are representing themselves terribly because of a distinct lack of education. They don’t know the right terminology or laws and either come across as complete novices or fraudsters. Good attorneys and title reps don’t have time for this.
Many vendors are also paranoid in the wake of so many of their competitors being locked up for shady business practices resulting from the housing crisis. Like banks, many have over-corrected unnecessarily. Others surprisingly don’t understand how to perform double closings and flips legally.
So beyond educating themselves and learning the lingo better, investors really just need to hone in on finding experienced vendors which are interested in winning.
On the Hunt
It may be a little more challenging in some areas than others, but there are definitely ways for real estate investors to streamline the process of finding a friendly title company to work with and save themselves a lot of time. A quick search online can yield many local listings.
More efficient options include hitting the social media circuit, attending local investment clubs, and obtaining referrals from others in the business.
