The Reduction of Corruption in Bulgarian Real Estate

2010 will begin an interesting phase for Bulgarian real estate, with property prices at the lowest they have been for some years, mortgage loans becoming increasingly accessible at lower rates and the possibility of the new Notary Act coming into effect. The Bulgarian real estate market is expected to begin its revival with the new Notary Act, enabling transparency of all real estate transactions to be processed through the State Depository Bank.
With the passing of an amendment to the Notary Act, all new transactions such as real estate and vehicle purchases will be required to pass through the State Depository Bank. Designed to end the common existence of excessive cash purchases, the declaration of all acquisitions will be a major change to the current purchasing methods from many investors.
The new Notary Act is expected to come into force from the 1st January 2010 in an effort to reduce real estate fraud, corruption and money laundering. The changes will also ensure that all necessary fees and taxes relating to the sale and purchase are paid.
The introduction of a State Depository Bank will be set up to process all real estate payments, yet with restrictions as it will not be designed to function as a regular commercial bank. The bank will not be permitted to charge interest on payments; however a fee is expected to be charged on all transactions.
Although the procedure is set to come into effect as of January 2010, many of the details are still to be confirmed. It has not yet been decided how the bank expects to charge necessary fees on transactions, yet it is suggested that a sliding scale based on the property purchase price will be adopted.
The banning of cash transactions for purchasing real estate in Bulgaria will represent a new era in the market. In an effort to reduce taxes, the actual purchase price of properties has rarely been declared at the correct amount. These efforts to reduce tax fraud still omit the possibility of buyers and sellers agreeing to lower prices for the official transactions and exchanging cash privately, yet the majority of cash transactions will be greatly reduced.
The recent increase in demands for Bulgarian properties particularly from Russian clientele is potentially relating to the cash purchasing opportunities of the current market position. While the Bulgarian real estate market is predicted to be facing the lowest point of its downturn over the past 12 months, future sustainable growth will only be possible with major changes in the operational processes.
As the market is making efforts to move away from the extensive corruption methods that previously existed. The renewed growth into a stable economic sector is still predicted to take several years, despite the low property prices and the reduction in the supply against demand ratios. Amendments in the mortgage sector have produced some optimum opportunities not seen in the Bulgarian real estate market for some years, providing additional assistance with the recuperation of the market.

How To Use Association And Organizations Membership To Get New Clients For Your Business?

Most people join organization and associations but never utilize their benefits. As a serious business owner, and we at CD&C Business & Legal Form Processing Services, LLC ("CD&C") would like to think we fall in that category, growing your business should be at the top of your priorities. Joining a business association/organization could help you get new clients/customers and possibly increase your business sales and recognition. Organization and associations offers several benefits that may enhance your business. Some of the benefits includes but are not limited to the following:
Workshops, seminars, webinars, conferences and teleconferences. These benefits allow you to network with your peers, open discussions about what is going on in your industry, what others are doing and possibly put you in contact with potential clients/customers.
Webinars and teleconferences are often offered online and by telephone where you can listen and participate in the comfort of your home. Often time you are allowed to record the teleconferences so that you can view and listen to them whenever convenient for you.
Attending organization and associations meetings keeps you informed of the changes in your industry such as new products and services, discussion of new ideas and a review on how the industry is doing in general.
Forums/Notice boards provide a place for you and your peers to meet on a regular basis and give feedback about their experiences in the your business. Forum/Notice boards sometimes offer insider and time saving tips as well as answers to questions from people who are active in your line of business.
Newsletters and industry articles, subscribing to association and organization newsletters will keep you inform on news updates. Make sure to take the time to read their newsletters and articles to keep up on the trends in your business, what your competition is doing and in most cases you will get feedback from your client/customers about what they think about the business and its services.
Always read archived newsletters and articles to learn about things that worked and didn't work in the past for your line of business. Past issues will also give an history of your business and answers to frequently asked questions.
Get involved, volunteer with your association and organizations. Join committees. You may consider contributing to their newsletters this will give you exposure for your business and you may be viewed as an expert in your industry. Joining committees will also allow you to make decisions that will affect your business and a voice in the changes to your industry.
Other benefits includes the following:
Member discount - before shopping for business supplies you should check your organization and associations and their business affiliates for discount.
Some organizations will lobby to protect your business industry in state legislature and state courts.
Take advantage of their continuous training and educational programs.
Most of them offer directory listing where you should consider advertising your services. Keep in mind that potential clients go to the organization and associations to find help.
Some organization and associations like the National Notary Association offers personal identity theft protection for their members.
If they have a logo ask permission to use it on your website and marketing materials it can create credibility for your clients/customers.
Organization and associations establish professional standards, gives your business credibility, keeps you update on legislative news & activities, recognition of your profession and update court rulings. It can also increase awareness & value in the market place.

What Every Attorney Should Know About the New Durable Power of Attorney Form

At first glance the one obvious difference between the old durable power of attorney form and the new form which became effective on September 1, 2009 is the longer length of the new form.
Beyond this obvious difference, the major distinction, in my opinion, is that the new form poses significant execution problems, especially for seniors. Additionally, the drafters appear to have had little concern for the difficulties most small and solo practitioners have in obtaining witnesses for the execution of documents. In their zeal to protect the elderly from financial abuse, the drafters may have gone overboard and created a document that is so complicated and so difficult to execute that it may end up being underutilized. In fact, at a recent seminar a prominent attorney suggested that he is strongly considering recommending to his clients that they execute and fund a revocable living trust to avoid the complexities of the new form, as well as the persistent problems associated with recognition and acceptance of powers of attorney by financial institutions and banks.
I will attempt to highlight for you what I believe are some of the most important aspects/provisions of the new form which necessitate your attention:
(a) The form must be in 12 point font;
(b) If more than one agent is designated they must act together unless the principal initials the box permitting the agents to act separately;
(c) If successor agents are designated they must act together unless the principal initials the box permitting the successor agents to act separately;
(d) The execution of the new form automatically revokes any and all prior powers of attorney executed by the principal, unless otherwise stated in the "Modifications" section of the form. This would include any banking and financial institution powers of attorney ("POA") previously executed by the principal. I would strongly recommend that you address this issue with the principal, and provide for it in the "modifications" section of the form. It should be noted that there are several bills presently pending, A.8392 and S.5589 which propose technical amendments to the new form with respect to the revocation or termination of the POA.
(e) Part F of the form, relevant to the "grant of authority" to the agent(s) with letters "A" through "P" having a separate matter assigned to each letter listed, permits the principal to either initial each box he or she wants to grant the specific power/authority or to initial letter "P" which lists the letters for the matters, identified as "A" through "O" for which authority is to be granted.
Letter "M" of the old form as you may recall previously contained a gifting provision. No gifting provisions are contained within letters "A" through "P" of the form, with the exception that letter "I" relevant to "personal and family maintenance" allows the agent to continue making gifts the principal made to individuals and charities prior to the POA being signed, in an amount not to exceed $500 per recipient in any one calendar year.
Letters "A" through "P" of the form should not be modified in any way, shape or form. I also do not believe additional lettered matters should be added in Part F beyond letter "P". For an explanation of each of the powers granted see General Obligations Law §5-1502 A through General Obligations Law §5-1502 O.
(f) Part G of the form is the section which permits the principal to state any "modifications" to the authority granted in letters "A" through "O" of part F of the form. However, it is important to note that any "modifications" stated in part G of the form should not be provisions which allow the agent(s) to make gifts of the principal's assets or change the principal's interest in property. Any gifting other than the minimal gifting provided for in letter "I" of the powers must be provided for in the Statutory Major Gifts Rider ("SMGR"). For example, in the modifications section you could provide that the execution of this POA does not revoke a prior banking or financial institution POA. You could also define the "reasonable compensation" you would like the agent to receive or perhaps limit the powers of a "monitor". This is also the section where many elder law planning techniques can be provided for, such as entering into a personal service contract. As long as the modifications do not involve gifts of the principal's assets or changes to his or her interest in property they can be provided for in Part G of the form;
(g) If the principal wishes to allow the agent to make gifts in excess of the $500 provided for in letter "I" of the powers, he or she would need to both initial Part H of the form and complete and execute the SMGR;
(h) Part I of the new POA allows the agent to appoint a "monitor". The monitor could demand accountings by the agent, records and documents. The appointment of a monitor in the POA form would allow the monitor to obtain documents from third parties. If the principal appoints one family member as agent(s) and then appoints other family members as monitors, we may be leading our clients down a slippery slope that may detrimentally impact the agent's ability to act under the POA. It may be wise to specifically delineate the monitor's authority and the extent that he or she can seek and demand records. For example, you may wish to consider limiting the demand for records to once or twice per year.
The monitor(s) are also permitted to commence a lawsuit against the agent(s). See General Obligation Law §5-1509;
(i) Part J of the form provides that the agent(s) may be reimbursed for reasonable expenses incurred on the principal's behalf. If the principal wishes to allow the agent to receive "reasonable compensation", he or she must initial the box in Part J of the form. If the principal wishes to limit or define "reasonable compensation" he or she also can do so in the Part G modification section of the POA form.
As you can see, the number of times the principal is required to place his or her initials has significantly increased from the old POA form. For many seniors this will be another hurdle to executing the new form.
(j) Part L of the form relates to the termination of the authority of the agent. Of course the POA terminates when the principal dies or becomes incapacitated if the POA is not durable. See GOL §5-1511. Under the new law as in the past, delivery of a written instrument to both the agent(s) and any third party who may have relied on the POA as to the revocation of a POA is sufficient notice of revocation. See GOL §5-1511(3);
(k) The new POA form must be dated and signed by the principal and acknowledged by the principal before a notary public;
(l) Part N of the form provides the agent with a statement of his or her legal obligations, duties and liabilities as an agent. It clearly places a significant burden and responsibility upon the agent for record keeping. In my opinion, the agent under the POA is now in a similar fiduciary position as the trustee of a trust. Part N of the form also places the attorney representing the Principal in the unenviable position of having to advise the agent that there may exist a potential conflict of interest, and that he or she may wish to seek separate legal counsel before executing the POA in Part O of the form. If the Agent does not obtain separate legal counsel, it may be necessary to obtain from him or her some written acknowledgement of the waiver of the potential conflict of interest and their decision not to retain counsel.
I believe a number of nominated agent(s) will decide that they don't want the responsibility of being an agent once they have read the notice provisions of the form and consulted with an attorney.
(m) In Part O of the form, the agent(s) must sign and have their signatures acknowledged before a notary public. Multiple agents do not need to sign at the same time and do not need to sign at the same time as the principal.
The new POA form is not valid until all of the agents have signed and had their signatures acknowledged before a notary public.
(n) The Statutory Major Gifts Rider (SMGR), see GOL §5-1514, must be executed simultaneously with the POA form by the principal. When both documents have been fully executed, they will then be read as one document.
Gifting under the SMGR will be authorized only if the principal has initialed Part H of the POA form. Clearly, the SMGR is intended to alert the principal of the gravity and importance of granting gifting powers to the agent(s), particularly if the agent(s) is to have the authority to gift to him or herself. However, when one analyzes both the execution requirements of the SMGR and the legislative provisions relevant to the powers enumerated in #'s "1" through "9" of the "modifications" section (Part B) of the SMGR, there are enough ambiguities and contradictions to devote a full day seminar to. In spite of this I have been able to gleam the following:
1. If the principal wishes to allow the agent to make gifts to others, including him or herself up to the federal annual gift tax exclusion ($13,000 for 2009) he or she will need to initial the box in Part A of the SMGR;
2. Part B of the SMGR must contain any "modifications" or expansion of the gifting powers the principal wishes to give to the agent(s), and the box in Part B must be initialed by the principal. The Part B modifications relate to any expansion or modification of the power of the agent to gift beyond the annual exclusion amount ($13,000) to third parties. The powers in Part B do not include the powers to the agent to gift to him or herself (emphasis added). That authority must be provided in Part C of the SMGR. The gifting to third parties in Part B can be unlimited or gifts of a specific amount. It appears sample modifications of the gifting powers that can be inserted in Part B can be found in §5-1514(3) of the GOL. It does not appear that GOL §-1514(3) limits the modifications that can be made, see GOL §5-1503. However, this is one area of ambiguity.
3. Part C of the SMGR has to be initialed by the principal if he or she wishes to grant the agent(s) the authority to gift to him or herself with the extent to or limitations therein stated.
This, it appears that the boxes in Part A, B and C of the SMGR will have to be initialed by the principal if he wishes to grant expanded gifting powers to the agent(s) with respect to third parties and him or herself, and that the modifications of said powers need to be clearly delineated therein.
4. The SMGR must be dated and signed by the principal with his or her signature acknowledged before a notary public (Part E of the SMGR);
5. The SMGR must be witnessed by two people who are not potential recipients of gifts under the SMGR. The witness' statement must indicate that they observed the principal sign the SMGR in their presence (Part F of SMGR); and
6. Part 6 of the SMGR must state the name and address of the SMGR's preparer.
As can be seen from the above, the new POA form and SMGR have many complexities which must be carefully studied and analyzed. I wish you and your clients the best of luck in doing so.

Presenting Loan Documents - Order of Importance

When a notary signing agent receives the loan documents for a closing, the documents are not necessarily in the order in which they should be presented to the borrower.
One might think that it doesn't matter. Just start from the top of the stack of documents and work your way down. Just get them signed. That's the objective. Right?
Not necessarily.
One of the things I do as a notary signing agent is try to put myself in the position of the borrower. When I'm presenting the documents, I try to imagine which documents I would want to see first. What would be most important to me. So I take certain documents and put them at the top of the stack. (I'll use a yellow sheet of paper as a bookmark so I know where to put it back when I send the documents back to the title company.)
The very first document that I present to the borrower is the HUD Settlement Statement. I have actually received a set of documents in which it was placed at the very bottom. It doesn't matter. It goes to the top. That document shows all of the important numbers, so the borrower shouldn't be kept in suspense. It's also a document that they are entitled to see one business day before the closing. That rarely happens. So the least the signing agent can do is show the borrower the Settlement Statement as soon as possible.
The next document that I go over is the Right to Cancel (if there is one for that particular transaction). I do this for a couple of reasons. It has been my experience that the borrower is more at ease with signing the documents if they know that they have that right. There's no point in pretending that they don't have a right to cancel by placing the document at the bottom of the stack. Don't worry. The borrower is not going to cancel the loan, just because you showed them that document. If they cancel, it's because they changed their mind and decided they didn't want the loan.
Another reason that it's one of the first documents that I go over is because, they will be getting 2 copies of it to keep. I place those copies in the envelope with the rest of the borrower's copies. That way the envelope is sealed and out of the way. I normally don't have to open it back up for the remainder of the closing. I want the flow of documents to go as smoothly as possible. The fewer the interruptions, the better.
There are some other key documents that I want to show the borrower. They are curious to know what their interest rate will be, what their payments will be, if they have an adjustable rate, a prepayment penalty, and a few other key terms of the loan. If these documents are not already at the top of the stack, then I will present the Note and Truth in Lending. I put a tab on the payment coupon because it shows the actual payment amount, when it's due, and where to send the payment.
There are several other documents that I will put a tab on. I try to anticipate what questions the borrower will have. So I want to be able to put my finger on that document. It doesn't have to get signed right away. Just let them see it, then put it back in the stack. Anything to satisfy the borrower's curiosity and give them peace of mind.

What Is Translation Certification and Notarization?

If you are having a non-commercial document (e.g. driver's license, birth certificate, military service record, university diploma and transcript) translated, you may be required to submit a certified and notarized translation. Certification and notarization provide a higher level of confidence to the recipient that the translation has been performed by a professional translator and that the translation accurately reflects the information contained in the document. In order to ensure the document is accepted, the certification and notarization process must be executed in accordance to industry best-practices. Described below are the key steps of the certification and notarization process executed by a Language Services Provider (LSP).
Step 1 - TRANSLATION: The document is translated from the source language into the target language by a professional translator. Next, the translation is edited by a separate linguist. Finally, the edited translation is proofread and/or undergoes a quality review.
Step 2 - CERTIFICATION: The LSP generates a Translation Certification of Authenticity on company letterhead. This document certifies that the translation is accurate and has been performed by a professional translator. When translating from English, the Certification must be translated into the target language as well.
Step 3 - NOTARIZATION: A notary public notarizes the Certification (English version only). However, before doing so, the notary public validates and records the LSP's identity, and the LSP signs the Certification before the notary public.
Step 4 - SEAL: The LSP applies its embossed corporate seal to all translated documents and to the Certification, which stipulates that any documents not bearing the embossed corporate seal are not covered by the Certification.

When The Borrower Is Late To The Closing

A lot of emphasis is placed on the notary signing agent being on time for the closing. So much so that I usually arrive 10 minutes early and will sit in my car, or drive around the block.
But what if the borrower is late? It really depends on the situation, and the temperament of the notary signing agent.
Recently I had a closing in which the wife was home, but her husband wasn't. The wife finally reached him on his cell phone and told him to get home right away. In a situation like that, you just try to be patient. The mission is to get the loan closed. So you want to accomplish the mission.
Hopefully you haven't booked a closing so close to it that it will cause you to be late to it. But what if it will cause you to be late to your next appointment? Fortunately I have never been in a situation where the borrower's tardiness would cause me to be late for an appointment. But if I were in that situation, I would have no choice but to apologize to the borrowers and tell them that I have another appointment. I will come back to them when I have completed it. I would have no qualms about doing that. They should have been on time.
Last Friday was an extreme example of a borrower being late. The borrower was more than an hour late. It was irresponsible of her, to say the least. What made it difficult for me was that it was in Pueblo -- 40 miles away. If it were in Colorado Springs, I would have left and come back later. But it would have been a waste of time and gas to drive back to Colorado Springs, then return to Pueblo. So I waited it out. I have some movies on my Palm and that kept me entertained. I could have also gone to a cafe and waited. She finally arrived and I proceeded with the closing. I think I did a pretty good job of maintaining my composure, because I really wanted to strangle her.
The main thing that I don't want to do when the borrower is late is leave other people in a lurch. If I left, the title company would have had to go through the trouble of finding another notary signing agent, re-sending the documents to be printed out, etc. And the HUD Settlement Statement would have to be revised, because my name was on it, including my fee. In short, it would have been a lot of extra work. You do everything you can to be a team player and put yourself in other people's position. There's no place for selfishness in this business.
Fortunately I didn't have any appointments that I would have been late for. But if I did, I would have had no choice but to leave Pueblo and return later.
One thing that I always do is make it a point to give the borrowers my cell phone number so that they can call me if there will be any problems. Things happen that are beyond our control -- both for the notary signing agent, and the borrower.

Finally, Great News For Renters

People who choose to rent do so for many reasons. For some it is a need, as they may have a career that requires them to travel a few months at a time to work in one city for a few months, then another for a few more months. For others, it is because they want the luxury of living in a house versus an apartment but they are just not ready to buy a home of their own yet. Whatever the reason, rents do not have the responsibilities of being a home owner. Yet in many cases they are being forced to deal with the responsibilities of a mortgage.
For many years, renters have dealt with immediate evictions from the homes they are renting - and not because they didn't pay their rent. Countless renters have been put out on the street at only a moment's notice because the owner of the home they rent from has not paid the mortgage and is in foreclosure. Once in foreclosure, the bank that holds the mortgage takes over ownership of the home. The new ownership changes the rules, including that of the renter. But no more.
Thanks to Title VII - Protecting Tenants at Foreclosing Act, tenants no longer have to worry about 'get out now' notices. They are now given a 90-day period to make other living arrangements. This is great news! Although this has always gone on, with the mortgage crisis in this country countless renters have found themselves out in the street with nowhere to go, scratching their heads. Many had faithfully paid their rent and had no idea an eviction was coming. Many have lost some of the rent money they paid as some of these home owners in foreclosure just pocketed the money. But those days are over.
While renters may or may not be able to get any rent money back, the fact that they will no longer be kicked out into the streets without notice is a reason for all to stand up and cheer. Many renters are full families with infants and other children. It's not just the adults affected in these cases. School children have had to change schools immediately, causing great emotional and psychological damage. The adults have had to change jobs and/or move in with and impose on other family or friends. It has been a snowball effect that has been nothing but negative.
APAT Real Estate Settlement Services, a progressive mobile notary company of signing agents, including eSigning Notaries, works hard to keep clients and consumers informed of industry news and trends. You can view of copy of Title VII - Protecting Tenants at Foreclosing Act online.