When Khara-Beth and I began planning Connell Law's residential closing practice, we quickly realized we had a fairly rare opportunity to create a new practice area from the ground up that could be tailored to function the way we wanted, with our goals driving the design and outcome. No obstacles - no old software, resistant partners, stubborn staff, or outdated systems. Just a clean slate and a desire to create the best closing experience possible, from contract to closing table, for our clients and the industry professionals who would rely on us to take care of theirs.
Of course, the identification of a new opportunity at hand begged scope and outcome informing questions: What could the best closing experience look like today? And is anything really new under the sun in the often mundanely regarded area of residential closings?
Thus began what would turn into several weeks of brainstorming and brain-picking with agents, brokers, and bankers. What did they want from the experience? What did their clients want? What did no one want anymore?
Turns out, the answers to those questions are pretty intuitive. Simplicity of process, convenience of access to information, clear and timely communication about important matters (but otherwise, little to none, as our text logs and email inboxes are already full of unnecessary junk), and security. Oh, and one last thing. Experience. The Millennial generation, now the largest population group by age, greatly values experience. See, Social Media.
We understood immediately that our success in providing a closing experience that could check all of those boxes would rest largely on leveraging the best technology available to manage the flow of information between and among buyers, sellers, agents, banks, title insurers, title abstractors, reconciliation specialists, accountants, and our firm. Real estate closings are much less mundane than they appear from outside of the dance that is the timely and accurate exchange of information that culminates in a "Perfect 10" closing.
Khara-Beth already had some very well-informed opinions about most of the major closing management systems, having worked with several at different firms and businesses over the last fifteen years. Her knowledge was invaluable in allowing us to cut to the chase and begin vetting Qualia, a company known for its "total integration" closing management solutions that focus heavily on seamless connectivity and strong security measures, as our software solution.
Turns out, Qualia Core, the base, or engine, of Qualia's document and information management system, was every bit as intuitive and powerful as Khara-Beth had described. What's more, Qualia's add-on Connect and Shield platforms were being given powerful upgrades and new functionality as we were vetting them.
Qualia's Connect platform provides a single-point input for all parties to the transaction, self-populates all necessary documentation instantaneously, and provides a one-stop, cloud-based portal for each party to access all of their information and correspondence related to their closing transaction. Nice. Convenient. AI-goodness baked in. Several boxes checked.
Qualia's Shield platform provides unparalleled protection of sensitive personal and financial information and virtually eliminates the possibility of wire fraud if used properly and overseen by a conscientious closing attorney. Less stress. A better night's sleep. Another box checked.
That left one last box: Experience. How do you remove the mundaneness from an hour or so spent sitting in a law firm's conference room signing dozens of documents? Better coffee? It's a start. Add a custom tea blend and gourmet treats? Why not? Music? Sure. But we knew we were not quite there. Not yet.
And then it hit us. Khara-Beth and I had been doing all of this planning on the third floor of Victory North, where I have had the pleasure of keeping an office for the last few years. The third floor is gorgeous. An open and airy, beautifully appointed day room provides ample seating, music, and beautiful art on the gallery-like walls, and the conference room has a table large enough to seat the purchaser and seller, the agents, the attorney, and their friends and families.
And with the final box checked, we knew Connell Law would be presenting an excellent experience, from contract to the closing table, with Savannah VIP Closings. Let's start the show!
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