Business Spotlight: Welcome to Waco

Waco Title has nothing to do with Waco, Texas.

Since the Arkansas company earlier this year began branding its Springfield-area offices with the name, officials have heard the questions: Who’s Waco?

The name is derived from Washington County Abstract.

The northwest Arkansas county encompasses Fayetteville and Springdale, Ark., and from there, Waco Title has branched out to cover 17 offices in Arkansas and Missouri.

The name is fairly new in the Springfield title business. But the roots of its predecessor date back to 1886 as Lincoln Abstract Co. and later Lincoln Land Title Co.

“We have records going back to the early 1900s,” says Business Development Manager Sandi Zwingle, of the legal descriptions in Greene County stored on track books, microfiches and, more recently, electronic files in Waco’s title plant.

Between 2007 and 2010, Waco made a few strategic purchases in Missouri and brought into the family Lincoln Land Title, in Springfield and Branson, and Elk River Abstract Co. and McDonald County Title & Escrow Co., in Pineville. An October acquisition of The Title Place in Carthage, Joplin and Mount Vernon triggered a February name change in Missouri.

“We were diluting the Waco brand by operating under so many different names,” says Chief Operating Officer Joe Robinson.

In Arkansas, the brand still had operations under Madison County Abstract Co., Mosley Title Co. and Conway Title Services & Escrow. The six Missouri offices are under Robinson’s management, and he moved to Springfield six months ago.

“We decided to move a corporate officer into Missouri … to actually make decisions locally,” says Robinson, who was working out of Rogers, Ark.

The Waco name also connects to a big name in Arkansas banking. The title company is owned by Arvest Bank Group Inc., along with other affiliate companies Security BankCard Center Inc. and Central Mortgage Co.

Robinson says Waco operates with a separate board of nine directors, including Robinson and some Arvest Bank officers.

What’s in Waco
Working with Realtors, lenders, developers and attorneys, Waco officials assist real estate transactions with closing services, title insurance and 1031 tax exchanges. Of the 18 employees in Springfield – there are 46 Waco employees in Missouri – four work in the closing department.

Murney Associates, Realtors agent Andy Trussell schedules about a third of his closings at Waco. The Greater Springfield Board of Realtors 2013 Rookie of the Year, who produced more than $1 million in his first calendar year, says he looks for quality customer service and low fees when choosing a title company.

“They pretty much all do the same thing,” Trussell says of the title services, noting he also works with Hogan Land Title Co., Continental Title Co. and Great American Title Co.

He says accessible closing agents and convenience of location also come into play.

“They are willing to do a closing after five, if they need to, and sometimes on a Saturday,” he says of Waco’s agents. “That goes a long way, too.”

He says the closing and transfer fees and title insurance usually amount to $300-$500 for his clients selling their homes.

Trussell and Zwingle met shortly after he obtained his real estate license in 2012 – on his way to selling about 15 homes those first 12 months.

“It’s been nice to see his business grow, and we’ve been a part of that,” Zwingle says of Trussell, who sold some 17 homes in 2013.

Last year, Waco recorded 1,991 closings. Robinson projects the residential closing business slip by 20-30 percent this year, in part, from interest rates inching up enough to slow refinancing activity in a sluggish real estate market.

“If you’re sitting on a really low rate, you might not want to give it up,” he says.

“We’re going to be impacted going forward by the interest rate.”

Waco operates six title plant databases in southwest Missouri, one for each county office.

“That’s one of the backbones of a title company – really one of the only assets a title company has,” Robinson says.

He says Waco’s records are secured through a data center in northwest Arkansas, and the offices run on RamQuest software to search and manage the deep layers of county records.

“In Joplin and Jasper County, it goes all the way back to sovereignty,” he says.

Industry matters
Robinson says Waco follows seven best practices outlined by the American Land Title Association, industry-identified steps including proficiency in security technologies, timely document recording and sending out policies within 45 days of closings.

On the horizon is an industry change in the settlement statements used in real estate transactions.

“Every title company in the nation is going to have to change their software out and use this new settlement statement,” Robinson says.

The three-page statement was expanded to four pages in 2010, and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau created by the Dodd-Frank Act is preparing to roll out a five-page statement in mid-2015. The standardized settlement statement will combine language called “truth in lending” and “good-faith estimate.”

“It’s all being done for ease of readability of the actual end consumer,” Robinson says. “The consumer was harmed greatly during the mortgage meltdown, so the CFPB has been tasked with (finding) ways of protecting the consumer.”

During the next year, officials at Waco and other title companies will work on CFPB compliance, including expected independent audits as a vetting mechanism by the national banks and lenders. Robinson says the audits could cost $20,000-$40,000 apiece.

But it’s all part of the title business today, where customers expect the title companies to handle all the details, and they extend their trust.

“Most homebuyers rely on their Realtors and their agents for guidance and protection,” Zwingle says.