Contributing author: Diana Hoffman, Corporate Escrow Administrator
Liberty Title & Escrow in Virginia Beach, Virginia, worked as the title company for the buyer on a transaction where the seller was represented by a law firm. The sale was for a vacant lot with a sales price of $110,000. The buyer was a builder who intended on clearing the lot to build on it immediately.
The signed deed and other seller documents were hand-delivered to the closer, Shae Rylan, Customer Service Representative at Liberty Title & Escrow. The courier instructed Shae to overnight a check to the seller — per the attorney’s written instructions.
Shae began going through the closing documents she received. They were a mess. The package did not include the notary affidavit required when the documents are signed with a mobile signing agent.
In addition, the notary completed the notarial certificate on the deed and other affidavits but failed to affix her seal to any of the documents. The seller supposedly lived in Connecticut, but the notary was commissioned in New Jersey.
On the Disbursement of Proceeds Instruction, the seller checked the box indicating they wanted a wire but did not finish completing the form with his bank wire information. He did sign the instructions and provide his mailing address.
Shae compared the signatures on the documents to that of a previously recorded deed of trust (signed and notarized in Connecticut). The signature was drastically different...
