Beyond Tater Tots: Regs, Rules & Resources

Hello Members,

Welcome to February.  The month of love (Valentine's Day) but lots more.  February 1 was National Tater Tot Day.  Who knew?  February 9 is National Pizza Day, February 12 is National Hug Day and we wrap up the month on February 27 with National Chili Day.  Am I scraping the barrel for things to say?  Fear not.  I have two pretty substantive things to relay.

Back Office Support.  Many of you have inquired about the opportunity to get help with what we all call "back office support" with your closings.  This can be a result of staff shortages, workload, vacations, or other reasons.  You might want help with various parts of the transaction, such as the preparation of closing documents, the settlement statement (ordering payoffs, calculating prorations, etc.) and coordinating various details with the parties.  It's always good to remind ourselves of both the best practices and the regulations you must follow if you are thinking about this option.  First, make sure you are working with a reputable and experienced company (that's obvious but if you are acting as closing agent, you are responsible for their work).  Second, make sure that the division of closing services fees and the title premium follows the applicable statutes and regulations (both Florida and RESPA).  The definitions set forth in Sec. 627.7711, F.S. are instructive.  "Closing Services" includes preparing documents necessary to closing the transaction, conducting the closing, or handling the disbursing of funds.  "Premium" is the charge as specified by rule and "Primary Title Services" is what you must do to earn the premium.  Additionally, RESPA requires that you must perform "core title services" in order to be entitled to any portion of the premium.  This is kind of a gross generalization in the interest of brevity.  But I am trying to make the point that when you are allocating functions and fees between you and the support company, keep all of this in mind!  (This also applies when you are "hired" by a title agent (whether another attorney or a non-attorney title agency) to handle a portion of the closing for them.  What are you allowed to be paid?)  Hope this helps.

BROKER COMPENSATION RULES.  Do you have questions about the new rules around broker compensation as a result of the NAR settlement? You are not the only one!  Sign up now for a Zoom call with Shannon Widman, our Deputy General Counsel, to discuss how you are affected as an attorney for a buyer, a seller, a broker or as a closing agent. Shannon will walk you through the forms, share best practice suggestions, and show you how to use The Fund’s Members-only resources to navigate these changes to help you grow your business.  Two dates in February are offered: February 11 at 3 pm and February 26 at 9 am. https://www.thefund.com/nar

That's all I've got for this week.

Let me know how we can help you.

Melissa Jay Murphy
Executive Vice President, Chief Legal Officer,
and General Counsel