Seller Representation Form

If any of the sellers will not attend the closing, one of our staff will be contacting you to make appropriate arrangements.  Additional fees shall apply for drafting a Power of Attorney, email/mail away signing, or  a separate signing other the scheduled closing time.

Wire fraud is a serious issue in real estate transactions, and anyone can be a target. Please read the following information carefully so that you don’t fall victim and have your closing funds wired to a cyber perpetrator.  

The Problem:
Cyber criminals are hacking email accounts and sending emails with fake wiring instructions that look like they are coming from a trusted source. These emails are convincing, timely and incredibly sophisticated. They often contain transaction-level information to make them more convincing and harder to detect as fraudulent.

How your closing funds may be at risk:  
Following the closing of your transaction, you may request that amounts owed to you after closing be sent via wire payment transfer. For that reason, we need your help in safe guarding your funds so that they are not sent to a fraudulent account. Here’s a list of things to be aware of during this transaction process:

1. Secure your email account with a complex password and turn on two factor authentication in your account settings;
2. Be on the alert for any abnormal or missing messages in your email;
3. Give us a call or stop in to one of our offices if you suspect something is not right. Before calling our office, use Google or another search engine to verify the number you are calling;
4. If you know that you would like your closing proceeds wired to you, let us know right away and we will use CertifID (see below) to confirm your wiring instructions before closing;
5. If you provide us your bank account information, we will use CertifID to confirm your identity and verify your bank account information.

Don’t Act and Contact Us Immediately
If you suspect any abnormal or suspicious activity or are asked to do something that does not make sense, you CANNOT ACT and must contact us immediately by phone on a number that you independently verify online – do not trust phone numbers or email addresses provided in any suspicious communications.

Wiring Instructions Will Only Come Through CertifID **Unless you bring a voided check with you when you sign documents in our office*
In order to protect you and your funds we use CertifID, a fraud prevention product that allows us to confirm your identity and protect your account information.

How CertifID Works
In less than sixty seconds, CertifID will confirm your identity and display your bank account information directly to the screen of your device. Here’s a quick video that explains how CertifID works and what to expect if you are receiving funds via wire transfer after the closing: https://certifid.com/certifid-introduction-video/ 
For more information, please review www.certifid.com or reply to this email and I would be happy to walk you through the process.

PLEASE NOTE:  our office will NOT be wiring you the proceeds.  The buyer’s attorney will be wiring you the proceeds after closing.  The account information you provide us will be overnighted or hand delivered to the buyer’s attorney office and will NOT be transmitted electronically under any circumstance.  We strongly suggest you confirm the security measures of the buyer’s law firm prior to deciding how you will receive your funds.  We can not control the internal processes and procedures of the buyer’s law firm, their staff, or their banking practices.  Also, the buyer’s law firm may charge a fee for wiring funds.

**PLEASE UPLOAD A COPY OF THE SELLER’S TITLE INSURANCE POLICY. IF YOUR SELLER DOES NOT HAVE A COPY, ENCOURAGE THEM TO CONTACT THE TITLE INSURANCE COMPANY OR PRIOR CLOSING ATTORNEY TO REQUEST A COPY AND FORWARD IT TO OUR OFFICE.**

If there a loan on this property that will need to be paid off as part of this closing, then our office must have the seller’s social security number. We do not want you to put it on this form since it is transmitted electronically to our office. Please either call or have the seller come to our office to provide their social security number.

Also, many HOA companies require upfront payment to verify HOA dues. Depending on what your contract states, if the sellers are responsible for paying the fee, we will need the seller’s credit card information to place the order. Again, we suggest you call or have them come to our office to provide this information.

WE STRONGLY SUGGEST YOU AND YOUR SELLER WATCH THIS VIDEO TO EXPLAIN THIS PROCESS IN MORE DETAIL.