October 2024 – REI INK

Madison Trust Company

Making Control, Versatility Easy for Self-Directed Investors by Carole VanSickle Ellis In 2009, the real estate market was hovering near the bottom of the post-housing-crash slump of the mid-2000s, and Madison Trust Company CEO, president, and co-founder Daniel Gleich was focused on helping his father diversify his retirement investments. In the short-term, this was something of a challenging experience, as one investment manager after another informed Gleich retirement assets were “limited” to stocks and bonds. Gleich, a real estate developer who was well aware of the massive, positive potential in the coming decades’ property markets, was undeterred. The long-term result of his mission to challenge what was, at the time, standard operating procedure for retirement investments, has been life-changing for more than 20,000 of Madison Trust Company’s clients today. “When I heard these financial advisors say, ‘Retirement money is limited to stocks and bonds,’ I just thought to myself, ‘That doesn’t make any sense!’” Gleich recalled. “I understood that we would have to pay taxes on the money if we wanted to move it and diversify, but why couldn’t I invest it where I wanted to?” Soon, he had discovered a relatively unknown vehicle for the time, the self-directed individual retirement account (IRA), and one of its most valuable features, checkbook control. From that point forward, Gleich never looked back. He had found something that would change his father’s retirement investing and that of many, many others over the next 15 years. “It worked beautifully,” Gleich said, “and I was telling friends and neighbors all about self-directed IRAs with checkbook control. After I had set the checkbook control structure up for a few other people, I spoke to one of my partners, Mervyn Klein, future co-founder and shareholder at Madison Trust Company, and we agreed there was a huge opportunity.” They, alongside E. Brian Finkelstein, shareholder and chairman, first opened Broad Financial, an IRA LLC facilitation firm, which worked with a third-party IRA custodian to help investors open checkbook IRAs. By 2012, the founders had realized, as Gleich put it, “the level of customer service that the custodian was offering was not nearly on par with what we were offering.” With an eye toward offering clients a “seamless transaction, all in-house,” the group began the two-year process of meeting with regulators and becoming a trust company. In 2014, the doors of Madison Trust Company opened for the first time. “We wanted to make sure people could invest their retirement money and have more control over those investments,” Gleich said. “There are millions of people out there who could use this investment vehicle and should know about it. At Madison Trust Company, our goal is to help them make that happen.” It was a daunting task, particularly given that around the same time Madison Trust opened for business, the U.S. government actually started work on a report focusing on the dearth of information available on self-directed IRAs and calling for the retirement industry and the IRS to provide more guidance on the topic. That report would be published three years later in 2017. Prioritizing Investor Education & Cutting-Edge Strategy While the federal government began its own research on educational materials available to self-directed investors in the 2010s, Madison Trust Company began a carefully researched educational outreach of its own that would, ultimately, enable the company to grow to the size it remains today. “We spend a lot of time working with our compliance team, consulting the IRS website, and making sure the content team is familiar with all of Madison Trust’s initiatives to ensure that all of our educational material is informative, accurate, and digestible,” observed Brianna Avillo, Madison Trust’s marketing manager. Avillo’s team spearheads content creation for all educational resources on the Madison Trust website, including animated “explainer” videos, infographics, educational webinars, written material, and beyond. “We have an investor-first approach, so our goal is to always make things as easy as possible for our clients,” Avillo said. She explained that for Madison Trust, making things easy for investors means making operations within the organization smooth and pleasant as well. “One of our mottos is that happy employees lead to happy clients,” she said. Gleich elaborated, “If we, as owners, take good care of our employees, and our employees are happy, they will take care of our clients, and our clients will be happy. If our clients have a smooth experience, our shareholders are happy, and the loop continues to go around.” He cited the company’s 900-plus Google reviews with an average star rating of 4.9 out of 5 stars as evidence of the success of this policy and the company’s clients in their self-directed investing endeavors. “If people can successfully self-direct their retirement account, they will have a richer retirement, and Madison Trust aims to provide clients with a pleasant journey getting there,” Gleich said. “The key is providing investors with the opportunity to invest in what they know and believe in.” Dana Udumulla, who serves as investments manager for Madison Trust, said her team relies heavily on the education element provided by the company when she travels on its behalf. “We not only have an education-first approach with our current clients and investors; we are always trying to educate wherever we go,” Udumulla said. “There is a huge retirement crisis looming right now in America, and a lot of people are experiencing anxiety and insecurity when it comes to their finances. By providing education and insight that is simple and straight to the point, we make it possible for anyone to become educated on self-directed IRAs and begin gaining control of their situation.” Walking with Investors Creatively & Constructively Customer care and guidance are crucial elements at Madison Trust Company, Udumulla said, explaining that unlike many other SDIRA custodians in the industry, the Madison Trust investments team has the educational background and training to provide guidance with regard to client inquiries within the self-directed investing space. This means members of the investments team are available to clients

2024 Election Could be a “Wash”

The Impact of Elections on the National Housing Market by Carole VanSickle Ellis Conventional wisdom states that uncertainty in almost any element of the economy will usually result in “bad news” or short-term negative behavior in most financial markets. Presidential elections have historically been considered a prime example of how uncertainty affects investor behavior, with financial markets typically responding to the election process and months following the actual vote with less movement and lower gains. While this holds true for many areas of industry, the housing market seems to stand apart from the trend. New research published by the Yale School of Management and Northwestern University could hold the key to identifying how any given election cycle could affect housing on national and local scales. “There is good reason to believe that just uncertainty by itself is bad, but we also know that when there is high volatility, there is also high opportunity,” said study lead Stefano Giglio, Yale’s Frederic D. Wolfe professor of finance and management. Although the study focused primarily on financial markets, the research team said the broad array of sources from which it drew data for analysis meant the study “has implications for both financial markets and the broader real economy.” In financial markets, investors tend to react to the potential for volatility by “shoring up” portfolio defenses, sometimes paying “heavy premiums to insure against the risk of an actual loss.” However, in nonfinancial markets, such as real estate, investors actually tend to take the opposite approach, attempting to insure “against periods of low volatility,” Giglio said. He concluded, “Periods of high uncertainty are not necessarily ‘bad’ economic states, but possibly times of innovation, creative destruction, competition, and, ultimately, growth.” Sharper Business Solutions founder Gary Harper, whose company helps entrepreneurs and real estate investors scale their businesses, agreed with Giglio’s assessment that high uncertainty is not necessarily bad for business as long as investors are cognizant of how external factors, such as consumer confidence, affect their company’s performance during election years. “Consumer confidence often fluctuates during election years, so it is important to gauge market sentiment and adjust your strategies accordingly,” Harper said. He suggested implementing strategies that emphasize stable, long-term investments during times of broader economic uncertainty. “While election years can bring volatility, they also present unique opportunities for savvy investors,” he said. Monick Halm, a California-based real estate investor and founder of the REI Goddesses mastermind, observed election-year reticence on the part of some investors could represent opportunity for others. “While others are holding back due to fear or uncertainty, there may be less competition in the market, which can lead to more favorable buying conditions,” she said. Halm continued, “This is the time when strategic investors step in, take advantage of potential price adjustments, and set themselves up for future gains. The key is not to get distracted by the ‘noise’ or the headlines. Instead, focus on your long-term goals and stay adaptable.” Establishing Causal Relationships Between Politics, Consumer Confidence & Housing Although consumer sentiment surveys have been around for roughly three-quarters of a century (the Consumer Confidence Index, or CCI, made its debut in 1967), economists have historically struggled to establish clear causal relationships between sentiment and specific areas of consumption. However, since 1991, one relationship has emerged as an increasingly powerful driver of consumption of everything from household appliances to home purchases: a November win for a consumer’s preferred political party and increased short-term spending. Hector Sandoval, director of the Economic Analysis Program and a research assistant professor at the Bureau of Economic and Business Research (BEBR), explained that a party shift, in particular, seems to improve consumer sentiment and increase spending on the part of the party entering office. As politics become increasingly partisan and consumers’ feelings on the topic become increasingly passionate, the fallout for local housing markets could be stark, particularly in markets where there is a marked political shift in the wake of November’s elections. Sandoval’s research focuses primarily on consumer sentiment and spending within the state of Florida, where there have been relatively few major power shifts in the last 30 years at a state level. As a result, he said, his team was unable to determine “a statistically significant relationship” when it came to gubernatorial elections, but a study of national politics revealed that the “widening gap between Democrats and Republicans” is affecting actual consumer spending. Based on their beliefs, consumers were likely to make larger purchases when their preferred party was in power, with this trend becoming more pronounced when the preferred party was reentering office after a period of absence. Interestingly, if Sandoval’s conclusions hold on a national level, the 2024 election might not necessarily have a substantial net impact on consumer spending or the national housing market simply because the nation is divided relatively evenly over the perceived unsuitability of theopposing candidates. For former president Donald Trump, in particular, it may surprise readers to discover that the country is split roughly down the middle when it comes to his presidential performance. Pew reported in March 2021 that 38% of Americans believed he had made “progress toward solving major problems facing the country during his administration,” while 37% said he “made these problems worse.” The remaining respondents said he had either “tried but failed” (15%) or “did not address [major problems]” (10%). At that time, Pew analysts observed that although “Republicans and Democrats offer starkly different assessments of Trump’s presidential legacy,” the actual numbers indicated public sentiment could be considered something of a wash, since 47% ranked the Trump administration as “great,” “good,” or “average,” and 53% ranked it as “poor” or “terrible.” In 2024, these sentiments became more passionate (and more evenly split), with 51% of Americans rating the former president “very coldly” and 49% stating their feelings were “very warm,” “warm,” or “neutral.” As a result, if studies like Sandoval’s hold true for the 2024 election, one half of the population’s shifting sentiments and spending patterns are likely to cancel

Creating a Best-in-Class Experience

Building a New Wholesale Broker Paradigm by Ezra Dweck and David Jacob IceCap Group is one of the largest private money lenders in the country providing business purpose loans for both short-term bridge and long-term fixed rate rental loans for 1-4 family, 5+ multifamily, and mixed-use real estate properties. IceCap Group is institutionally managed and backed by a family office with a 30+ year history of successfully investing in real estate. In March of 2023, IceCap Group launched the BluFin Group as its new wholesale origination channel to extend its capital resources to a nationwide broker network. In tandem with the BluFin Group, a streamlined, tech forward, and client-service-focused platform was developed to support this network of brokers by offering alternative debt origination and funding solutions through unapparelled expertise. The firm immediately began expanding wholesale lending operations and closed its first wholesale division loan on June 2, 2023. IceCap Group had developed a burgeoning broker business prior to the launch of BluFin, but after seeing the competition in the marketplace, they realized that there were inefficiencies that needed to be addressed. To cure this void, they went out and sought additional talent by identifying the right team in Thomas DeMartin, Dalton Harben, and Chad Saunders. With a long pedigree in the wholesale market and closing thousands of successful broker transactions prior to joining IceCap, they knew firsthand what was absent in the processes of other lenders. The new partnership was a seminal moment for Ice Cap arising from a vision of excellence born out of opportunity realized from vast combined industry experience. The firm is presently constructing a best-in-class, one-stop lending solution for investor financing by breaking down barriers and offering solutions to various challenges plaguing this industry and markets. This solution includes enhancing the broker and consequently, borrower experience, by providing full transparency, self-service technology, and common-sense underwriting guidance. Credit and underwriting departments often achieve a bad reputation and are viewed as a necessary evil by those in production; however, BluFin has flipped the script by combining the forces of production and credit to achieve a common goal: a clear path to closing. It is not just all about closing, though. How a broker and lender partnership arrive at closing is often neglected by industry competition, leading to nail biters, head scratchers and often times painful experiences. BluFin’s approach is to fill the gaps and refine the process. The firm focuses on the total experience by offering a streamlined and problem-solving approach to achieve a closing and impart a legacy experience that maintains broker retention well above the industry norm. A Unique Capital Base and Experienced Team While many competitors and brokers might say BluFin and all of its capabilities sound great, they might also feel they have heard this similar type of message from other lenders in the private lending space. Despite IceCap’s firm belief that it has created a new lending paradigm for the broker community which should be experienced by all brokers and borrowers, the firm also believes it offers the industry a unique capital base which enables BluFin and IceCap to be more than just a “sell everything” conduit. Aside from access to the traditional bridge and term note buyers, the firm offers a sophisticated departure from the norm in managing three different internal debt funds in addition to an insurance fund and extensive access to the securitized markets. By lending the firm’s own capital, IceCap can focus on both “conduit” type originations and discretionary deals that offer attractive risk-adjusted returns for the firm’s dedicated funds. This includes multifamily and mixed-use bridge loans, ground-up loans and five-year term loans, allowing the firm to serve a diverse range of client needs. The coupling of prudent lending standards and innovative technology ensures that the firm can remain agile and focused, while providing brokers with consistent and reliable lending solutions. The past four-plus years since COVID have been anything but stable and smooth sailing in the real estate lending space especially as interest rates and cap rates moved appreciably higher. The industry has seen many lenders disappear, capital standards tightening and now the GSEs are cracking down on bad actors, especially in the title industry. While all of the above has been occurring, IceCap continued to lend and has expanded its capital base without suffering any real credit stress on its discretionary or sold loan originations. The firm abstained from overly aggressive lending practices which had unintended consequences across the competitive landscape. Much of this success is grounded on a strong leadership team with real estate equity and lending backgrounds combing decades of Wall Street experience with entrepreneurial hustle. Empowering Brokers for Success BluFin’s mission is to expand on IceCap’s explosive growth in this space by leveraging the capital base developed by a trail blazing team of experienced finance executives. This is accomplished by extending Ice’s diverse suite of flexible funding solutions to a network of brokers that were ripe for something more refined and empowering for their client base. A critical component to this is market-based pricing through its wide array of counterparties, including alternative asset managers, private equity firms, and insurance companies keeping them nimble and consistently ahead of price moves. IceCap is not beholden to any one capital source which many other lending outfits are subject to as consolidation has increased in the private lending space. IceCap counterparties provide a clear vision of the overall market which is then extended to its clients daily using a self-service full-process platform. The firm offers no origination fee loans and provides raw par pricing with the ability to earn yield spread premium or buy down interest rates. Fees are vastly different across the competitive landscape and often overlooked by lending partners. BluFin observed various areas to reduce fees across product lines without sacrificing service and capabilities. It has lowered underwriting fees, cut the junk, and allowed brokers to earn more while saving their client’s money which is a crucial component to winning more business in the investor

Funding Alternative Lending Strategies

Four Options for the Real Estate Investor by Marc Connelly With traditional lending institutions pulling back, and 4.5 million individuals, couples, and families struggling to find suitable units amid the housing shortage, investors, developers, and homebuilders across the nation are doing their part to close the gap — with the help of some surprisingly innovative financing options. Here are four options built with investors in mind: Option One PRIVATE LENDERS This option, for many real estate investors and developers, checks all the boxes — flexibility, speed, and more accessibility than traditional bank financing — with funding options to suit almost every scenario, budget, and deadline. Think hard money loans which are ideal for fix-and-flip projects, bridge loans for when it’s a race against time to sign on the dotted line, and long-term loans for those lengthy repayment periods. Private money is often used in three scenarios: when traditional financing is unavailable, for investment properties, and for time-sensitive fix-and-flip scenarios. Private lending is championed for its ability to shape the loan around the investor’s needs, not vice versa. By focusing on the property’s potential — not just the borrowers’ credit — while tailoring the terms and structures to their needs, this flexibility is what makes private lending so sought-after by investors. Yet, with this immediate access to capital and the ability to fund unconventional projects come higher interest rates and, usually, shorter repayment periods. It is a compromise that many investors choose to make, as bank institutions face a lack of equity liquidity, without enough supply to fill the demand. In 2024, $820 billion worth of commercial property loans are due to mature, with ‘at least 45% of the loans scheduled to come due in 2025, 2026 and 2027’ being behind – something that will make it even more difficult to secure a traditional loan. Here are some private funding alternatives: » Bridge Loans // This financing option is designed to fill short-term gaps in financing, such as for light renovation projects, until projects are stabilized or sold, or long-term financing is secured. Bridge loans allow investors to leverage equity from other projects to take advantage of opportunities quickly and compete with cash buyers. » Fix and Flip Loans // There short-term loans enable an investor to buy and renovate a property quickly and sell for a profit. » DSCR Loans // Debt Service Coverage Ratio loans are qualified based on the property’s income and its ability to carry the proposed debt. This long-term loan is used for investment properties and does not need personal income verification to qualify, retiring short term debt. » Ground up Construction Loans // These loans are designed to support new construction projects from the ground up incorporating land acquisition and building costs. Option Two FAMILY OFFICE FUNDING SOURCES Family Office funding has emerged as a significant alternative funding source for real estate transactions. According to a recent study by UBS Global Family Office, 78% of family offices are invested in real estate. Aligning with the right fund could provide an investor with a great partnership for liquidity, thus enabling faster growth. Here are some ways that family offices are providing funding: » Direct Investment // The Family Office invests directly in a project instead of going to an intermediary such as a REIT, allowing direct control over investment decisions and asset management. Direct investment requires more internal expertise and steady deal flow to meet fund obligations, making it an ideal partner for the experienced operator seeking growth. » Flexible Financing // Bridge loans, construction loans, and mezzanine debt are capital structures utilized in this option. Direct equity can be aligned with debt and to also create a Preferred or JV-Hybrid approach. » Co-GP Investments // This type of financing allows a Family Office to lever up its capital stack, making a larger investment, while leveraging the Sponsor/ Developer expertise and infrastructure to get deals done. » “Programmatic Equity” // An alternative has emerged for smaller investors who need additional down payment and closing costs to close more deals. Emerging equity funds provide the capital for a share of the profit. Leveraging the Private Lender guidelines, these funds allow smaller experienced investors new access to capital to help grow their businesses. Option Three SELLER FINANCING In theory, seller financing is simple — instead of paying the property seller in full, investors pay in monthly installments, allowing them to reserve some equity to plunge into more projects, while also saving on closing costs, capital gains tax, property tax, and homeowners insurance. It is an attractive option, especially for those struggling to secure traditional financing. Yet, in practice, it is not quite as straightforward. Facing large down payments, higher interest rates, fewer regulations, and the risk of the seller not keeping up with their mortgage payments, it’s vital for investors to protect themselves both through due diligence and rigorous contracts. With that said, here are some of the many advantages: » Flexibility // By liaising 1-on-1 with the seller, investors can propose terms and rates that work for them. » Speed // Investors can expect to close within days without the red tape. » Unconventional Terms // Borrowers can get creative with their terms, supporting unique projects and scenarios. » Tax Benefits // Investors will avoid many of the usual taxes associated with purchasing — and owning — a property, namely capital gains tax. » Accessibility // Investors who are unable to access traditional lending options will be considered, as well as homes in disrepair that cannot be considered for mortgage purchases. Option Four BLOCKCHAIN It is easy to think of Blockchain as an opportunity for tomorrow’s investors. But what is all the fuss about — and is it really an opportunity for today’s investors? Blockchain opportunities are endless, with many nicknaming blockchain the “internet of value.” From effortlessly converting investments into digital tokens to the way contracts can be managed, blockchain is changing the face of real estate investments — for good. Here’s how: » Tokenization

A Newfound Hope

by Amy Daniel
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How Investors are Shifting with the Market by Amy Daniel There is an emerging excitement for investors as activity is beginning to reignite in the space. For the last few years, there was a pause in the market as rates increased, housing costs soared, and inventory remained low. But as 30-year fixed mortgage rates begin to drop, there is a newfound hope across the entire market, with rates averaging 6.46% in the first week of September, down from 7.22% in early May and a recent high of 7.79% in October 2023. This is the lowest rates have been since April 2023. While investors typically take on 5-year short term loans that recently have had lower rates than a 30-year fixed mortgage and have been much steadier, changes across the entire market have an impact on the space and investors are beginning to react. We are starting to see things loosen up and investors who sat out over the last few years are coming back, ready to play. Investor home purchases in the second quarter of 2024 were up 3% year-over-year. That means investors purchased a total of $43 billion worth of properties, according to a Redfin report. The most popular purchase for investors in Q2 was single-family homes, which comprised 69% of all investor purchases. As investors work on next steps within the every-changing market—whether it is shifting their portfolio or thinking about refinancing — there’s a lot of moving parts that they need to consider. Impact of the Market We are seeing a lot of larger investors pruning their portfolios right now, whether there is a certain area that they want to get out of, or they are looking to switch up their inventory. Lower traditional rates will have a large impact on this and should be seen as a positive for those looking to make a change in their portfolio. As investors sell off assets, simply put, they need someone to buy them. In many instances, they are selling to individual buyers who are purchasing these homes as a one-off asset. As traditional 30-year fixed rates drop, investors can sell off assets faster and make a switch. They are no longer stuck in a market with no movement and can make moves to prune their portfolio. What is the Right Move? As rates begin to shift, simultaneously, many investors have loans that were taken out during the hot pre-pandemic market from 2018 to 2020 come due. With this, lenders are being more aggressive and having conversations with borrowers to determine the next steps: Do they want to pay off the loan or pull in different assets and refinance? With 5-year short-term loans coming due and movement in the market, we are seeing an increase in refinance requests from investors looking to refresh their portfolios. So, what is the right move? Investors are constantly thinking about the bottom line and there are certainly deals to be had as the market continues to change. Refinancing can help investors leverage a lower rate or tap into equity to make improvements or rehab a property. It is important to track the data and analysis to determine the next steps. Historically, refinancing could make sense for investors any time they are saving one or more percentage points. The terms of the loan should also be at the forefront of an investor’s mind when they are considering refinancing. Is there a pre-payment penalty? Carefully reviewing the terms of the original loan is vital. It is important to understand the rules and parameters of the loan before making a move. The Right Lender With every decision — from making changes to their portfolio to refinancing — investors must partner with the right lender who will help them make the best decision for their unique situation. The right lender will be proactive and communicate with investors frequently, keeping them aware of changes in the market and when it might be beneficial for them to refinance. Investors should seek out a lender that is not going to make them jump through hoops and someone who specifically understands the single-family rental space. Building an ongoing relationship with a lender can make a big difference. Investors should find a lender who understands the space, what they are trying to accomplish, and one who will help them get to their end game. Looking Ahead: What’s to Come It is tough for anyone to know what lies ahead but those of us who are in the space are always focused on margin and profitability. We are starting to see some areas where values are coming down and we have seen some rate improvement. If that continues into 2025, despite rental pricing coming down, investors could still find some good deals and make the margins they are looking for in their specific markets. And they should have a healthy swing on portfolio growth and allow for some continued pruning to happen in areas where investors want to sell. The lower rates will help the one-off purchase of these homes to homeowners. On top of everything else that is going on, we are also in an election year which could spark additional changes in the future for the real estate community.

Title Insurance 101

Navigating the Differences Between Lender’s and Owner’s Policies by Radian Title Services Protecting assets is a primary goal for experienced real estate investors, but do you fully understand one of the most common safeguards in property transactions? Title insurance for your investments comes in two forms: the lender’s and owner’s policies. All investors should understand these policies and how they may help protect real estate assets. Lender’s Title Insurance Policy Lender’s title insurance policies may be required when borrowers take out a mortgage. Here is some helpful information: » Coverage Scope // Only protects the lender’s interest in the property up to the loan amount. » Diminishing Value // As borrowers pay down the principal mortgage amount, the policy’s coverage amount also decreases accordingly. » Limited Lifespan // Once the loan is paid off, the insurance policy expires. Lender’s title insurance policy coverage does not extend to a borrower’s equity in the property. Should a claim arise under a lender’s title insurance policy, the borrower may still be responsible. It is important to note that lender’s coverage does not apply when you pay cash for a property. Owner’s Title Insurance Policy Protecting your stake in a property is where owner’s title insurance may help: » Equity Protection // Helps safeguard ownership rights and the full value of the title1. » Lasting Coverage // Policy coverage does not expire once the mortgage is paid off (or if you have paid in all cash). Instead, the policy terminates when the insured sells the property. » One-Time Investment // These policies are paid for once at closing, and coverage continues for as long as the owner, or their heirs, have an interest in the property. Owner’s title insurance policies may not be just a safety net, but also a strategic tool. It can help protect your property interests from unforeseen claims, such as: » Undisclosed heirs of prior title holders claiming ownership » Forged documents that occurred prior to insurance policy issuance » Errors in public records » Undiscovered liens or encumbrances Not All Title Insurance Policies Are Made Equal It is easy to believe that all title insurance policies are created equal, but that is not entirely true. While the American Land Title Association (ALTA) and state land title associations provide standard policy forms, there can be variations in coverage and service quality. Innovative title companies are disrupting the status quo. For instance, Radian Settlement Services offers titlegenius by Radian, a 100% digital closing platform that revolutionizes closings: » Competitive Rates // Helping to potentially reduce closing costs without compromising on protection. » Enhanced Transparency // Stay informed at every step of the closing process with reminders and status updates. » Bulk Order Uploading // Reduce the time spent manually ordering title insurance for each closing. These innovations represent convenience, potential cost savings, and help to reduce uncertainty around your real estate closings. Strategic Considerations for Title Insurance » Portfolio Protection // When building a real estate portfolio, consider how an owner’s title insurance policy may provide long-term protection across multiple properties. » Due Diligence Tool // The title search process for title insurance can help uncover potential issues before you close, enabling proactive addressing. » Cost-Benefit Analysis // The advantages of owner’s title insurance policies may exceed the initial investment when you compare that cost to potential expenses incurred while fighting claims not covered by insurance. The Bottom Line Your success hinges on making informed decisions that help to protect your assets. While lender’s title insurance policies are oftentimes mandatory, owner’s title insurance policies may be used as strategic investments in your portfolio’s future. Safeguarding assets is essential. Incorporating title insurance into your investment strategy may help to protect your property rights and provide peace of mind. 1 Coverage amount may be the lesser of the insurance amount or the difference between value of title as insured and value of title subject to the risk insured against by the policy. Coverage does not include forgery that occurred pre-policy issuance (or the Investor’s acquisition); other restrictions may apply.