Bill Risser - Fidelity National Title

I've used and promoted HootSuite for over a year now, but I have to confess I was a closet Tweetdeck-a-holic.  The user interface was so much cleaner and cooler on Tweetdeck.  I would leave Tweetdeck up on my laptop while I was working on my desktop.  I felt like I was cheating on my beloved Hoo...

I was asked by an agent over the weekend why the seller in Arizona pays more than the buyer for title insurance.   One, the seller provides a policy based on the sales price, and the buyer provides a policy for the lender based on the loan amount.  Second, loan policies are given a discount sinc...

What a phenomenal day on sports Wednesday, June 23rd was! An incredible World Cup victory for the US team as they score a goal in the 90th minute, followed by the greatest tennins match ever played (it's still going as I post this video) between John Isner and Nicholas Mahut. It just doesn't get...

  In this short sale driven market, HOA management companies find themselves preparing disclosure packages for buyers that never buy.  It's the nature of the beast as deals fall out of escrow at an alarming rate.   Even as we hold off ordering HOA statements until the lender approves a short sal...

When the lender "funds the loan", what does that mean? To an escrow officer, this means that the lender and the escrow officer agree on the amount being wired from the lender to title. What it doesn't mean is the transaction has recorded and the buyer can take possession. Once the wire is receiv...

What is an Apostille? For countries that signed the Hague Convention in 1961, an apostille is a certification of a notary's authority for that particular country. For example, in Arizona, I would need to request an apostille from the Secretary of State. I would then attach the apostille to the n...

I attended ARMLS's first Twilight Training last night. ARMLS (Arizona Regional Mutliple Listing Service) is gong to do a couple more of these over the summer, and I think it's a great idea. The first night focused on social media, with a Facebook and a Twitter session. Kudos to ARMLS for bringin...

As we enter mosquito season here in the valley, my cautionary tale of contracting West Nile Fever in 2006 is timely. Get rid of standing water, wear repellant, and be extra careful at night. Only 20% of the population will come down with West Nile Fever, but if you are in that 20%, it is not fun...

Video No. 2 in my series. Today I talk about communication between agents, lenders and escrow. It is important to notify escrow of any changes to the purchase contract, no matter how small. In Arizona, the contract doubles as Escrow Instructions for the Escrow Officer, so any changes need to be ...

Video No. 1 in my series. The goal is 100 videos in 100 business days. Topics will be mostly Title, Escrow, Social Media, etc, but there will be the occasional foray into "just fun" stuff... If you've got a topic you would like covered, let me know in the comment box below...  Thanks!