Matt Sweet

As the old saying goes, a picture is worth a thousand words. Yes of course it is… A great picture tells a story. But this week, I've learned a fresh perspective on this old saying because creating a diagram actually solved a problem for me. So in this case, it's "a diagram is worth a thousand words"

Here's my discovery... Last week one of our property information specialists drafted a very informative article on property taxes (for King, Pierce, and Snohomish Counties) for our blog. It was thorough and explained important dates such as:

• When property taxes are due
• When property taxes may be paid
• Which payments cover which parts of the year
• Property tax proration scenarios for buyers and sellers
• How property taxes are calculated

This information may sound simple in bullet form but when I read the article I found myself having to pause and re-read it in order to visualize some of the dates and proration scenarios that would apply when a real estate transaction is involved.

So as a visual aid, I sketched out a diagram representing the year and plotted the information on it's timeline. The result was a more efficient or scannable way of visualizing the important dates in the tax calendar year and understanding the tax proration scenarios. So in contrast, when you look at the written article, it looks like 1000 words. But when you look at the diagram, it looks like 50 words and it's fun to look at.

What kind of learner are you? Do you prefer to learn from a more narrative approach? Or would you rather see a diagram or infographic?

Here's the original article: Property Tax Annual Cycle in WA

Here's the diagram:

As the closing agent, there are times when the parties we're working with on transactions ask for advice that we are not allowed to give. Or, on occasion it may be assumed that we are responsible for certain tasks that we are not allowed to perform. And with our multicultural / international team in the Puget Sound area working with agents and their buyers from foreign countries on a regular basis, FIRPTA is one of those things. We often get questions about it but have clear limitations on providing advice or performing certain tasks.

So with that in mind we drafted the following post:

Top 8 Questions about FIRPTA

I wanted to share it here because it answers the top questions we recieve about FIRPTA from behind the Escrow Desk, including:

• What is FIRPTA?
• What is the purpose of the FIRPTA 10% withholding?
• Who is responsible for finding out if the transferor is a foreign person?
• Are there exceptions from the FIRPTA withholding?
• Who is responsible for withholding the 10%?
• How and where is the FIRPTA withholding paid?
• What is the settlement agent's role with regards to FIRPTA?
• Will a Limited Practice Officer give legal advice with regards to FIRPTA?

Have you had a transaction that required the FIRPTA tax? How did it go? Were buyer and seller expectations set properly?

I'm truly curious. Do you think that providing a service that sends out reminders of important business dates, or events, via text is a good thing?

Or in other words, what if your preferred title company offered a service that sent you a short text message to remind you in advance when the recorders office is closed or when a clock hour class is coming up? In WA, when the recorders office is closed, it has the potential for disrupting a transaction. So in the past we have printed out nice at-a-glance calendars as a reminder to our clients.

But wouldn't it be cool if you could subscribe to a service that sent you a short text a few days before the holiday or furlough closure? ...Or would it be cool?

I'd really like to know if this would be a useful service to you.

Here are a few questions to ponder.

• Are business to business text messages acceptable? Or do they cross a personal boundary?
• Would you want to be notified of new blog posts via text?
• As a Real Estate professional what information would you want to recieve from Title & Escrow via text?
• Is this just a bleeding-edge shiny object or is there a real future for txt mktg?

I've actually set up a service for King, Pierce, and Snohomish County schedules in Washington state and you're welcome to try it out to see how it works.

If you want to give it a try, here's what you need to do:

Text the word "recorder" to the number "47170"

Enjoy! And thanks for your feedback!

You’re out shopping for property and may have just found your dream home when your Realtor® informs you that “the driveway easement to the street runs over the neighbor’s property over there.” Great! Huh? Is that a problem or what? In this case it’s not a problem at all. The copy of the title report that the listing agent provided confirms that the easement is included in the legal description and is therefore “ok”.

In our scenario the dream home property benefits from the easement over the abutting neighbor’s property. That same easement burdens the neighbor’s property.

So, what exactly is an easement? One definition that I like a lot is: “the right to use someone else’s property for a specific purpose.”

The dream home property has an appurtenant easement over the neighbor’s property. Its owners and/or guests have the benefit of coming and going over the driveway area without needing permission from the neighbor to cross over their land. On the other hand the neighbor that is burdened by the easement must not impair or restrict the use of the easement area on their property.

If a piece of property does not abut or “touch” a public road it will be necessary to establish an easement over the parcel(s) of land that lie(s) between the nearest public road and the property. Without a valid easement a property owner may not have the legal right to go over their neighbor’s property and that could cause big problems down the road (pardon the pun). Without legal access a property is said to be landlocked or having lack of access.

Not to worry! Once you purchase your dream home you can rest assured that your Ticor Title policy insures that you the owner have access rights.

Questions relating to terms such as "easement" may arise when a buyer begins looking at homes. At Ticor we are happy to review preliminary title commitments with our clients to answer questions and set your mind at ease!

Best Regards,

Matt Sweet

Ticor Title Northwest

This post is reposted with permission from Ticorblog.com/blog

Our Ticor Gives Back campaign is in full swing with our staff rallying to fill the boxes in each branch and our giving spirits are high. On Monday alone, our Renton branch filled 11 boxes (200 food items). And the emails back and forth on our team are so positive and full of gratitude as we work together to get involvement. It is a great thing to be a part of.

Now, I mentioned in my last post that there are a few of us who have offered to donate extra under certain circumstances. So to make it easy, we've put together a couple videos to explain:

Denise Eider, our South King County representative has offered to match every can that her clients bring in! Way to go Denise! Check it out!

I (Matt Sweet), the tech. man on the sales team, have committed to donating a food item for every picture or video we receive of someone participating in the drive. Check it out!

If you would like to get involved, please email us, call 425-255-7575, or stop by one of our escrow branches with a donation of any amount.

Best Regards,

Matt Sweet

Ticor Title