Getting Started With Bluegrass Land Title as an Agent

Starting a New Working Relationship

Every transaction at Bluegrass Land Title has a full team behind it. Each office is organized around the same core roles, and agents work with that same structure no matter which location handles their file.

Business Development Team

Whether they meet at a local event or connect on social media, a business development officer is often an agent’s first point of contact at Bluegrass Land Title. That relationship continues throughout the transaction. Agents can send contracts directly to their representative, who will start the file, introduce them to their escrow team, and stay in touch as the transaction moves forward.

When questions come up about a file, agents have someone they already know to call. Their business development officer can answer questions, connect them with the escrow team for file-specific details, and bring in a Bluegrass Land Title attorney if an issue needs legal guidance. It’s a partnership that starts with the first conversation and carries through closing.

Escrow Team

Once your file opens, several members of the escrow team work together to prepare it for closing. The escrow officer gathers information up front and helps wrap up the file after closing. The clearing department helps with payoffs, and on some files, an assistant escrow officer helps gather authorizations and makes sure signed documents are scanned and uploaded.

Your senior escrow officer is your main point of contact throughout the transaction. They work directly with the lender and/or agents as needed to make sure the closing figures are accurate. If you want to know where things stand, schedule a closing, or find out what’s still needed from you or your clients, your senior escrow officer can help.

Closing Agents and Closing Attorneys

Once the escrow team prepares the closing package, a closing agent or closing attorney leads the signing. At Bluegrass Land Title, that might be an in-house closer, a member of the business development team, or a closing attorney. 

The person leading the signing guides buyers and sellers through the documents and makes sure everyone signs where required. When a closing agent leads the signing, they also serve as the notary for the transaction. After the signing, the closer returns the completed documents to the escrow team to finalize the transaction.

In addition to facilitating closings, Closing Attorneys also provide legal support throughout the transaction. They prepare documents such as deeds and escrow agreements and answer legal questions as they come up. For example, if someone is signing on a seller’s behalf under a power of attorney or selling property as the executor of an estate, an attorney reviews the relevant documents early in the process to confirm that person has authority to sign. If anything else is needed, the attorney explains the issue to the agent and their client and walks them through the next steps before closing.

Across all of these roles, agents get to know the people on their team as they work on transactions together. “Our goal is to build lasting relationships with the agents we work with,” Kierra Bozeman, Marketing Director at Bluegrass Land Title, explains. ”We want to build relationships with agents so that when they walk into our office, they know us by name and we know them by name, too.”

Sending Your First Contract to Bluegrass Land Title

Agents can send a first contract to Bluegrass Land Title in three ways:

• Through the buyer’s lender. The lender can send the contract to Bluegrass Land Title as part of the loan process.
• Directly to a team member. Agents can email the contract to any Bluegrass Land Title team member, such as someone on our business development team or escrow staff.
• Online through Qualia. Bluegrass Land Title uses Qualia to manage transactions, and agents can submit a contract through the Qualia link on the Bluegrass Land Title website.

If it’s your first transaction with Bluegrass Land Title, let us know when you send over the contract. “We’ll make a note in your file and check in along the way so you know where things stand and what to expect next,” says Bozeman. “If there’s a way we can better support you or your clients, just let us know.”

Once the contract arrives, the order opening team creates the file and begins the title search. When the file opens, we enter all the contact information we have into Qualia.  Qualia then automatically asks buyers and sellers for the information needed to prepare the file for closing. Agents use Qualia to enter their commission, confirm their information, and add other important details like HOA, Admin Fees, etc.

Throughout the transaction, agents, buyers, and sellers can use Qualia to message the escrow team securely. To help protect buyers’ wiring instructions, Bluegrass Land Title shares them exclusively through Qualia.

What to Expect During a Transaction with Bluegrass Land Title

Once your file is open and the title search has begun, the escrow team handles most of the work to get it ready for closing and keeps you informed along the way. Whether you prefer an update at every step or a quick heads-up when something needs your attention, the team will stay in touch in the way that works best for you.

“I like to ask agents early on how they want us to keep them in the loop,” says Bozeman. “Some want to know when we hit each milestone, and others just want a heads-up when we need something from them. We want to customize each agent’s experience as best we can.”

Agents can share how often they’d like to hear from the team, and the team notes that preference in Qualia. Agents who want to talk something through can always call their escrow officer directly at any point in the transaction.

“We can also communicate directly with their clients, so the agent doesn’t have to be the middleman,” Bozeman shares. Agents who prefer this approach can ask the team to update their buyers or sellers and answer their questions directly. The agent continues to hear from the team as often as they’ve requested.

Much of the work needed to prepare a file for closing happens behind the scenes and without the agent’s involvement. The escrow team obtains payoff statements and the authorizations needed to request them, calculates property tax prorations, and reconciles the closing costs with the lender to confirm the amounts match. The team also schedules the closing and, when a seller lives out of state, arranges a mobile notary so the seller can sign remotely.

Bluegrass Land Title’s escrow software assigns tasks to the escrow team at each stage of a file and builds in checks along the way, so the team verifies details as the file progresses. Agents can help keep a file on schedule by sharing information early and flagging contract changes promptly.

If something on a file needs to change, agents can go directly to the escrow officer, closing agent, or attorney assigned to the file. “If an agent needs to add or correct something on the file, we want them to feel comfortable reaching out so we can take care of it right away,” says Bozeman. For example, if an agent forgets to include an admin fee, the escrow officer can add it with a single message or phone call.

The team approaches every file thoughtfully, paying particular attention to the agent's unique preferences when a transaction is an agent’s first with Bluegrass Land Title. “We handle every file with care, and when we know it’s someone’s first transaction with us, we’re especially mindful of that,” says Bozeman. 

Closing Day at Bluegrass Land Title

Closing day is often the first time buyers and sellers meet the Bluegrass Land Title team in person. “We want people to feel welcome the moment they walk in and celebrated when they sign,” Bozeman says. “It’s a chance for agents to give their clients one more reason to feel good about the experience.”

Buyers and sellers are welcomed into comfortable conference rooms, often with music playing in the background. Before anyone signs, the Bluegrass Land Title team takes time to answer questions and walk clients through the paperwork.

At most closings, Bluegrass Land Title displays a photo of the home on the screen. Many closings end with a group photo once the paperwork is signed.

When an agent mentions a client’s birthday or another milestone ahead of time, the team can plan a personal touch, such as birthday balloons or a champagne toast. The team also enjoys celebrating with agents who are marking one of their first closings.

Some closings are more emotionally difficult, such as a family selling a parent’s home after a death or a couple selling a home as part of a divorce. When an agent lets the team know ahead of time, the team can plan the closing with those circumstances in mind. For example, divorcing sellers can sign separately rather than sitting at the same table, and the team knows not to address them as a married couple. Small accommodations like these help everyone at the table feel more comfortable during a difficult closing.

“Many buyers and sellers come in stressed about the process,” says Bozeman. “Our goal is for them to leave feeling like it was easy.”

How buyers and sellers feel at the closing table can shape how they remember the entire transaction. At Bluegrass Land Title, we take our cues from the people in the room. Sometimes that means celebrating a milestone together. Other times, it means giving clients a quiet, welcoming space to sign.

Building Relationships

An agent can typically suggest which title company handles a transaction, and many work with more than one. “Some agents send every transaction to us, and others rotate between a few title companies,” Bozeman explains. “We’re glad to work with agents either way. Our goal is to support them, and make sure the transactions we do close are closed successfully.”

Agents interested in trying Bluegrass Land Title should give us a try. That first file gives the agent a chance to meet the team, see how communication works, and watch how their clients experience closing day. It also shows how the team responds when questions or changes come up during the transaction. From there, the agent can decide what kind of working relationship fits their business.

Bluegrass Land Title also stays connected with agents outside of individual transactions, regardless of how many files they send. That includes agents whose brokerages typically work with a different title company.

“We love to support agents in a variety of ways. We will host lunch and learns and CE classes, and also offer spaces where agents can host a meeting at our offices,” says Bozeman. “We want to build those relationships no matter where they choose to close, because we want to support the industry as a whole.”

The team is also glad to meet any agent for coffee or lunch, whether they’re new to the business or have been closing for years. Agents who are newer to real estate and want additional guidance can turn to the team for mentoring and support as they build their business.

When you send us a first contract, our goal is for the transaction to feel easy, however you define that. “We want agents to finish their first transaction with us thinking it was the easiest one they’ve ever had,” Bozeman shares. From there, the working relationship grows at whatever pace fits your business.

If you’re ready to try a transaction with us, send us your next contract and let us know if you’d like a little extra communication along the way. We have offices across Kentucky and serve clients in Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana, and West Virginia. Contact us or call your local office to get started.