Well, it’s that time of year again. And while, like you, we’re all really busy—especially as 2021 draws to a close—we’re grateful that the Thanksgiving holiday forces us to slow down and reflect. As a society, we don’t do that well or really even make it easy to do. But we think it’s something we could all use a bit more of. So let’s start by being grateful that we have an opportunity to be….well, grateful!

Illinois is a state of contrasts and complexities. Home to the notorious (for settlement services purposes, that is!) Cook County, Illinois is a place that certainly keeps loan officers and title agents preparing CD’s and LE’s on their toes.

Like some of its neighbors to the south, Washington is best known—at least, when it comes to generating a Loan Estimate, for it’s varied and sundry county-specific and city-specific transfer taxes. These also can change from time to time, and never in unison.

Even though it hasn’t been 2020 in terms of seismic change, 2021 has been another roller coaster of a year (and yes, we’re going to start referring to 2021 from the rearview mirror—2022 will only be about six weeks away by the time you read this!). We’ve talked enough about all the different factors, trends and changes which have shaken the “just another day at the office” mentality.

California has built a reputation as a heavily regulated state with a  complex system of laws and rules, no matter what part of the economy or society being discussed. So it’s probably no surprise to learn that, when it comes to property fees, taxes and other influences on creating an accurate Loan Estimate and closing, California is one of the trickier places in which to do it.

LLL had the pleasure of visiting with Briana Ings, Head of Product and Design and Snapdocs. Briana told us that she’s seen a lot of progress in the mortgage and title industry in the past five years in terms of updating, implementing and embracing new and better technology.

So this is our 100th Deeper Thoughts. Almost two years of content. LodeStar Reports is even older than that. Hopefully, you’ve seen the quality of content grow as our company and subscriber/readership base has.  The more we’ve listened to you, the more things we’ve written about and the more, hopefully, we’ve all learned.

LLL had the pleasure of visiting with Melissa Johnson Eldridge recently. Melissa is the President of NEMA Online Signing Solutions & Consultants as well as the creator of NEMA’s Online Notary Training. At a time when topics like Remote Online Notary (RON) closings are taking center stage, Melissa is certainly in the center of the action!

We recently hosted Wes Williams, an attorney and leading expert on cryptocurrency and blockchain, on LLL. The conversation was fascinating—you should check it out if you get the chance.