By: Cindy Immonen, NTP, CLTP, VP, Account Manager of FNF MI Agency
On a cold Wednesday, December 1st we held in person the MI Real Estate Forum! The room was filled with many members from the Michigan Association of Register of Deeds, Michigan Mortgage Lenders Association, Community Bankers of Michigan, and the MLTA. We had great networking conversations throughout the day. The forum was designed to help enhance the communication and collaboration amongst members of our associations affiliated with Michigan’s real estate industry. I must say that it was very nice to see so many of us together.
Dan Elsea, Present of Real Estate One provided us with his Michigan Real Estate Economic Forecast for the coming six months. The forecast looks great for us in the residential purchase area for sure! Dan answered many questions for us as well, as we are all wondering what this economic crystal ball looks like.
In the afternoon we had a panel discussion regarding eNotarization with our coalition members. Joining the panel was Adam Fracassi and Sue Sayer of the State of Michigan – Office of the Great Seal, Secretary of State office. Discussed was the difference between ‘Remote Ink Notarization (RIN)’ and ‘Remote Online Notarization (RON)’. We then reviewed the process of IPEN and RON, an overview of how it works. Many are worried about fraud and how to question the notary if an issue was to arise regarding a document. In this discuss we reviewed items such as the statue, vendors, the process for the eNotary, the process of the eSignor, and how the Secretary of State was involved in the process. New details were discovered regarding the ‘standards’ the Secretary of State office has put into place for us notaries that would like to be eNotaries and remote notaries. Many of us notaries know that we need to fill out the ‘Electronic & Remote Notary Request for Change’ form (Form 99) and send it into the Secretary of State. The Secretary of State will need with this form – proof / information that your notary has been set up with the vendor / approved system you are using (the vendor that you had your notary certificate placed in). The notary will need to fill this form out for each vendor / approved system you are set up with. This bit of information will be held on file at the Secretary of State and is not on the public notary search website. Us notaries will be personally responsible for having our record at the Secretary of State up to date with the vendor systems that we will be notarizing in. If you have questions, please reach out to me.
It was a very awesome event with much knowledge shared and looking forward to us holding this event again in 2022.
I would like to thank our speakers / panelist: Kate Angles, COO of Community Bankers of Michigan; Joanne Misuraca, CEO of Michigan Mortgage Lenders Association; Brandon Denby – Livingston County ROD and President of Michigan Association of Register of Deeds, Inc.; David Martyn – Vice President, Regional Underwriting Director of First American Title and MLTA Board Trustee; and Dan Elsea, President of Real Estate One