Michigan’s Real Estate Infrastructure is Open for Business!

Editor’s Note: We receive many questions during these confusing times concerning the sale of homes. Below is a press release from a group of lenders and title companies.

Michigan’s Real Estate Infrastructure is Open for Business!
Michigan’s lenders are open for financing, Michigan’s title companies are open
to provide clear title to homes and properties and Michigan’s Register of Deeds
offices are open to inspect and record real estate transactions despite
limitations on in-person provided services created by the COVID-19 pandemic

LANSING — The leaders of Michigan’s real estate records and financial infrastructure, which
help keep our property economy functioning behind the scenes, announced that state residents
should rest assured they can still conduct a wide range of property transactions across
Michigan despite limitations on in-person meetings created by the COVID-19 pandemic, thanks
to efforts by the industry to adopt remote processing procedures and the increased ability to
use E-Notary services under a recent executive order.
The Michigan Association of Register of Deeds, Michigan Land Title Association, Community
Bankers of Michigan, and the Michigan Bankers Association are all working together to ensure
that services are still available for residents conducting real estate transactions such as
mortgage lending, home refinancing, home and property sales transactions, property transfers,
researching land titles, conducting closings, and having records inspected and recorded by
county registers of deeds.
While in-person meetings and document signing processes are usually required at several
points during real estate transactions, many of these transactions can now be processed
electronically during the current health crisis.
This is possible in part due to Governor Whitmer’s Executive Order 2020-41, which temporarily
eases restrictions on the valid use of electronic signatures and electronic notary services. As a
result, many real estate transactions, including lending, mortgage refinancing and real estate
sale closing meetings, can be conducted electronically during the COVID-19 crisis.
These transactions are also possible due to the increased use of video conference technology
used by banks and title agencies along with efforts by register of deeds offices to adapt to the
closure of most county office buildings.
“Michigan’s Registers of Deeds, mortgage financing and land title sectors, are typically the
unseen backbone of our state’s real estate economy, processing secure real estate
transactions and transferring the fees and taxes from those transactions to fund important state
and county government services,” said Michigan Association of Register of Deeds
President Stewart Sanders, the Newaygo County Register of Deeds. “In the interest of
doing everything we can to help Michigan’s economy continue to function, we have come
together, using new technologies and utilizing of Gov. Whitmer’s EO 2020-41 which temporarily
eases the restrictions on the use of E-Notary and Remote Online Notary capabilities to help
ensure property transactions can continue”.
“Gov. Whitmer’s authorization of increased use of electronic signatures and electronic notary
services now gives us the flexibility with closing meetings to be completed remotely,” said
Michigan Land Title Association President Tom Lico, the President and CEO of Capital
Title Insurance Agency in Southfield. “We are open for business and ready to serve our
customers despite today’s challenging circumstances.”
“Michigan’s banks are here to help,” stated T. Rann Paynter, President and CEO of the
Michigan Bankers Association. “As the novel coronavirus continues to impact communities
across the country and the broader economy, Michigan’s banks are also taking steps to
respond to the needs of individual and business customers directly affected, while continuing to
execute their own business continuity plans under challenging conditions.”
Mike Tierney, President and CEO of the Community Bankers of Michigan commented
that “Community banks across the state of Michigan have risen to the challenge of keeping
Michigan’s economy going and functioning as well as possible under the unique business
challenges this crisis has created. Our bankers have worked closely with the Register of Deeds
Offices across the state, title companies, and realtors to keep the real estate sector going
through all of the challenges each of the groups has faced trying to serve Michigan residents.”