NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. /California Newswire/ — NotaryCam(R), the pioneering leader in online notarization and original provider of mortgage eClosing solutions, announced it has observed a significant increase in remote online notarization (RON) adoption and utilization for real estate transactions in Florida over the past three months. Since January 1, which is the date Florida’s RON law went into effect, the company has experienced a 100% month-over-month increase in RON closings.
“With such a high concentration of property transactions being executed by out-of-state residents, Florida represents a great use case for RON,” said NotaryCam Founder and CEO Rick Triola. “Our volume of Florida RON closings is doubling almost every other day, and we have signed hundreds of new partners in the past three months. We’re thankful that Florida real estate professionals have embraced RON quickly and whole-heartedly to enable their clients’ transactions to proceed faster and smoother than ever before.”
According to the Florida Realtors(R) association, international buyers accounted for 36,400 of all existing home sales in the state between August 2018 and July 2019, which represents $16 billion in volume. The association also estimates that the vacation/rental-home business accounted for $27.4 billion in sales within the state in 2018. In addition, Florida also has four out of the top 10 cities on the U.S. News & World Report “Best Places to Retire” list for 202), including Fort Myers at No. 1, Sarasota and No. 2, Port St. Lucie at No. 5 and Jacksonville at No. 6.
For Florida-based real estate closing attorney and NotaryCam client Jordan Lulich of Lulich Attorneys and Consultants, the availability of user-friendly technology has made RON a popular option with clients across all demographics.
“We have started offering digital real estate closings to Florida sellers and buyers. I thought this would only be popular among younger clients. However, to my surprise, even older clients have been able to successfully complete the closings through NotaryCam,” Lulich said. “The technological support and guidance that is offered is really top notch, and I have only heard positive feedback from the real estate agents and clients that I work with. We continue to push all of our clients to close digitally as it makes the process easier for everyone.”
“I have been part of many closings where I’ve had clients close in other states or areas, but never live,” said Robenson Juste, a broker associate at EXP Realty and based in Indian River County, Fla., which includes Vero Beach. “Mr. Lulich was able to do an online closing with the seller. This process with Mr. Lulich was very smooth and effortless. It created a unique digital experience where we all shared the joy together even though we were all in different places, creating one happy seller experience.”
“I have had on two different occasions clients who were not able to attend the in-person closings at our office,” said Michael Salazar, a Miami-based broker with Luxury Property Realty. “Rather than stress about ensuring the mobile notary would be able to accommodate a mail away closing, we scheduled an online closing through NotaryCam. I was nervous at first because I can be old school in terms of having in-person closings. However, to my surprise, the process was so smooth, and even my elderly clients seemed to enjoy it. Now, whenever we get the chance, I always try to do an online closing because I enjoyed it so much”
Additionally, according to Lulich, the increase in RON activity was especially pronounced during March and into April with in-state buyers and sellers due to concerns and regulations surrounding COVID-19.
“For the past six months, I have been passionately talking about RON closings only to be faced with skepticism and reluctancy,” Lulich explained. “However, now clients, customers and vendors are flocking to have their closings completed digitally. RON closings will be extremely useful and more popular in the coming weeks in light of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’ stay-at-home order issued on April 1.”
On March 18, U.S. Senators Mark Warner (D-Va.) and Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.) introduced Senate Bill 3533, also known as the SECURE Notarization Act, which would legalize RON nationwide. The bill was introduced in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, which has prompted several states and municipalities to issue “shelter-in-place” or “stay-at-home” orders and individuals to practice social distancing in an effort to slow the spread of the disease. In addition, many states have also issued temporary RON provisions to address the challenges of conducting in-person notarization transactions during the pandemic.
“Given the current climate, in-person closings simply are not an option for the foreseeable future,” Triola added. “As Florida has demonstrated, the ability to conduct real estate closings remotely is critical to preventing this sector from grinding to a complete halt. NotaryCam applauds all efforts to make RON an option in all 50 states.”
About NotaryCam
After pioneering the world’s first multi-party/multi-state remote online notarization (RON), career real estate executive Rick Triola founded NotaryCam and completed the first mortgage remote online closing (ROC) in 2014. Today, NotaryCam is the leader in online notarization and mortgage eClosing solutions, having notarized documents worldwide for hundreds of thousands of customers in all 50 states and more than 146 countries. The company’s patented eClose360(R) platform delivers the “perfect” online mortgage closing in every jurisdiction and supports all eClosing scenarios – RON, IPEN or Hybrids – with a flexible workflow for document recording and unparalleled identity verification, security and customer convenience. NotaryCam also proudly maintains an industry-leading 99.8 percent customer satisfaction rating.
Visit https://www.notarycam.com for additional information or to get a document notarized today.
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Originally published on CaliforniaNewswire.com — Remote Online Notarization Taking Hold in Florida, notes NotaryCam