Fund News and Alerts

Premium Remittances & Year-End Closing

Welcome to YEAR-END.  We need your assistance with Premium Remittances to The Fund.  We anticipate volumes in December could exceed our physical ability to process.  To ensure processing of your premium remittances and consideration for the 2021 annual rankings, you should remit your transactions as soon as possible.  If you utilize one of our software solutions – DoubleTime, ePolicyManager (new ACH policy payment) or E-ClosingDT – and are interested in learning how to remit your policies electronically, reach out to your Business Development Advisor.  Please know we are harnessing every available resource here at The Fund to help with this effort!  12/02/2021

Five Common Underwriting Questions

Fund underwriting attorneys respond to thousands of calls and emails every year. The following five questions are among the most common questions received during the past year.
 

1. Why does the commitment call for a trustee of a trust to convey as trustee and individually?
2. May I use this power of attorney for my closing?
3. What do I do when the owner tells me that a mortgage shown as a requirement to be satisfied on the commitment has been paid off?
4. Can I use a prior policy to waive commitment requirements?
5. Is the policy endorsement that the lender is requesting available in Florida?

Read the article

12/01/2021

Enrollment Open for Spring 2022 REPC Program

Boost Your Career in a Booming Market

Know someone looking to gain the knowledge and skills needed to excel in the title and settlement industry?

11/08/2021

New Feature is Here! Policy Payment

You Asked for It - Policy Payment has been added ePolicyManager. Save time, streamline your post-closing process with Policy Payment, the latest feature that lets you pay policy premium invoices to The Fund electronically online on thefund.com

11/01/2021

Good Things to Know About Florida’s New Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act

“Heirs Property” refers to land passed down to family members through the laws of intestacy and held by descendants as tenants in common. For many years, heirs property owners have lost their property involuntarily through partition actions in which a cotenant in common seeks a forced partition sale of the property. Such partition sales often negatively impact low to moderate income owners or other disadvantaged groups who do not have ready access to affordable legal representation. Read the article.

11/01/2021

ALERT! FinCEN GTO Extended

A new Geographic Targeting Order (GTO) has been issued effective November 1, 2021 and ending on April 29, 2022.

11/01/2021

Alert! Premium Remittances & Year-End Closing

Dear Member,

Can you believe it? Fall is here and year-end is just around the corner! We want to work with you to get your policies and premiums processed through the remaining months of 2021, but we need your assistance with Premium Remittances to The Fund.  With the significant increase in closing volume you are handling, the number of policies and premium checks out there have significantly increased.  Our Finance Customer Service Team is working as hard as they can to keep up with the incoming volume of remittances.  

10/11/2021

Who is Responsible for Construction Liens for Tenant Improvements?

Under Florida law, licensed contractors and other professionals who supply labor, services, or materials to improve real property are entitled to a lien against the property they improve. Generally, an owner understands that if they engage a contractor to improve their property, it could be subject to a lien if they fail to pay. This concept is not as straightforward when the owner leases the land to another who intends to construct improvements upon it. Is there potential for the tenant’s construction liens to attach to the real property? The answer is maybe. 

Read the article

10/01/2021

2021 Legislature Amends Florida’s Community Association Laws

Florida’s 2021 legislative session concluded on Apr. 30. Consistent with what the Legislature has done over a number of years, bills passed by both houses include some that make various alterations to existing laws governing community associations under Chs. 718, 719, and 720, F.S., as well as other statutes that tangentially relate to community associations. All bills described in this article have already been approved by Governor DeSantis and are now law. The article highlights new laws of potential interest to Fund Members. 
Read the article. 09/01/2021

Florida’s Uniform Commercial Real Estate Receivership Act

In the wake of the pandemic, leveraged commercial real property may be more susceptible to default, foreclosure, loss, and waste. Historically, during the pendency of a commercial foreclosure action, one remedy creditors have had is the appointment of a receiver to protect and preserve the income and value of distressed property. But common law commercial receiverships based in equity developed haphazardly; they lacked clarity and predictability. An effort by the Business Law Section of the Florida Bar, acting with the assistance of The Florida Bar’s Real Property, Probate and Trust Law Section (RPPTL), fostered the codification of statutory guidelines. Read the article.

08/01/2021