Your state now requires a servicer of a note which is secured with residential real estate, where the servicer does not have a 100% interest in the note, to be licensed by the state.  Moreover, the servicer needs to be CFPB compliant. There is no small servicer exemption and this applies to the servicing of as few as one note. What does this mean in practical terms? If you or your client want the advantages of the servicing of a note they hold (and there are many – look under the note servicing tab on this website’s home page) you should refer your client to a properly licensed and CFPB compliant servicer. Such entities so qualified, that specialize as a third-party servicer for clients like yours, are few and far between today – a by-product of increased state and federal regulatory oversight.  Escrow Services, Inc. is such a third-party servicer and welcomes the opportunity to service small investor portfolios and individual notes.  Call us today to discuss your clients’ servicing requirements and how we can help. 

Like most things in life you get what you pay for when you engage a company to service your note. Beware of low set up and monthly fees, as this is most often not your wisest or best choice for a servicing agent. Nobody works for free and as the old adage goes, ”There is no free lunch”.

Many servicers with low set up and servicing fees charge on a per item basis for virtually all additional services and reports, including account histories, payoffs, 1098 & 1099 reporting, copies, consultation with a live person, issuing checks, and myriad other items. Escrow Services’ one time set up fee and monthly servicing fees cover all the aforementioned items and more. Our philosophy is to charge a fair price to act as escrow agent and not nickel and dime our customers for additional fees. The more time we spend billing additional fees the less time we have to spend on our business which is servicing our customers. We believe this is the right way to conduct business and our customers agree.

June 30, 2016 represents year one since the date set by the Louisiana Office of Financial Institutions for all mortgage servicers in Louisiana to become licensed for the specific purpose of servicing residential mortgages. ESI, active as a private mortgage servicing agent since 1985, remains the only Louisiana domiciled licensed escrow agent licensed to service residential mortgages. The advantages of engaging ESI to service your private mortgage note include;

• Billing of monthly payments in accordance with regulatory requirements
• Complete accounting of all payments
• ACH drafting of payments on the due date
• ACH direct deposit to lender’s account
• Preparation of IRS Forms 1098 & 1099
• Providing a complete third party account history to facilitate re-financing, sale of notes, or foreclosure
• Maintaining an arms-length transaction between lender and borrower
• Handling of tax and insurance escrows
• Providing 24/7 online access to account by both lender and borrower

If you are an attorney, title company, IRA Administrator/Custodian, or financial planner advising your client to use an escrow agent to service their private note, ESI, properly licensed in Louisiana, local, and with over 35 years of service is the firm you can recommend with confidence.