August 2022

In This Month's Edition

Don’t Let Anchoring Bias Weigh Down Your Judgment
Know Someone Who Needs to Learn Title Industry Fundamentals?
Emails Claiming to Sell TLTA Membership Lists Are a Scam –Don’t Click or Reply
WFG Promotes Suzanne Tinsley to SVP for Southwest, Rocky Mountain and Western Regions
Roland Love Awarded Distinguished Real Estate Attorney Lifetime Achievement Award From State Bar's REPTL Section
New Title Agency Owners, Managers and Everyone Who Needs a Refresher: Are You Doing It Right?

Don’t Let Anchoring Bias Weigh Down Your Judgment

Harvard Business Review | Aug. 30, 2022
It happens just about every time I go to a restaurant with my daughter. I open the menu and scan the options. Then I glance at the children’s menu. Oftentimes, the menu is pretty similar, with the same pasta and tomato sauce. But the items on the children’s menu are usually less expensive, and I’ll think to myself: Wow, good deal.

If I think again for a moment, though, the deal isn’t really a deal. After all, I estimated the cost of the pasta based on the adult menu, not the actual cost of making some bow-tie noodles and serving them with a red-tinted sauce.

My faulty reasoning is the product of anchoring, a cognitive bias that can undermine our critical thinking.

Read More »

Know Someone Who Needs to Learn Title Industry Fundamentals? Our Top-Rated Title 101 Program is Newly Updated and Will Be Presented Live Oct. 17-18 in Plano

TLTA | Aug. 30, 2022
Our TITLE 101 series was created for title employees who are new to the industry or have experience in only one area of title insurance. This comprehensive 12-part series, which will be presented live in Plano Oct 17-18, provides all the basic training and knowledge you need on the fundamental aspects of Texas title insurance.

Presented by TLTA subject-matter experts, this program covers everything from property concepts to post closing issues. If you have less than two years of experience in the title industry or you're a title professional looking to expand your basic industry knowledge, this program is for you!

Emails Claiming to Sell TLTA Membership Lists Are a Scam – Don’t Click or Reply

TLTA | Aug. 22, 2022

Some TLTA members have reported receiving emails that claim to be selling TLTA contact lists (here’s an example):

These emails are a scam. Any links they contain should not be clicked, as they likely open the door to malicious software.

Additionally, these emails should not be replied to. TLTA does not sell members’ contact information, and any info third-parties claim to be TLTA-related is fraudulent.

If you are in the market for B2B marketing help, research vendors by first talking to other industry professionals. Responding to a cold call via email purporting to deliver something that seems too good to be true should be avoided.

As always, if you see something strange that claims to be associated with TLTA, please share it with us, and we’ll be happy to review and advise you regarding its validity.

TLTA Editor's Note: An identical email hit TLTA members' inboxes in April last year, and we shared the warning above in Dateline at that time. We've received new reports in recent weeks that these scammers are currently recirculating the same message. Please share this warning with your team.

WFG Promotes Suzanne Tinsley to SVP for Southwest, Rocky Mountain and Western Regions

ALTA | Aug. 16, 2022
WFG National Title Insurance Co. (WFG) promoted Suzanne Tinsley to senior vice president of the company’s Southwest, Western and Rocky Mountain regions.

Tinsley, who was previously responsible for running the daily agency operations in Arkansas, Colorado, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas as Southwest regional manager, will now expand her role to include leadership of agency operations for all three company regions.

Read More »

TLTA Editor's Note: TLTA is lucky to count Suzanne among our volunteer leaders. In addition to serving as a Local Legislative Liaison, a group of industry volunteers who help us maintain effective lines of communication with the lawmakers who oversee our regulated industry, she also serves on TLTA's Legislative Committee and our Membership Task Force.

Roland Love Awarded Distinguished Real Estate Attorney Lifetime Achievement Award From State Bar's REPTL Section

TLTA | Aug. 26, 2022
The Real Estate, Probate and Trust Law Section of the State Bar of Texas recently awarded Roland Love the Distinguished Real Estate Attorney Lifetime Achievement Award, which recognizes distinguished Texas real estate attorneys who have made significant and sustained contributions to the Texas real estate law bar throughout their careers.

Roland is Vice President, Business Alliance & Field Operations for Independence Title. He has chaired TLTA’s Texas Land Title Institute Committee for over 20 years, and under his leadership the program has grown and become known as one of the premier legal institutes in Texas. Over the years, he has also been a regular speaker at the Land Title School of Texas and other TLTA educational programs. He also currently chairs the TLTA Regulatory Committee, serves on our Legislative Committee, is a former chair and current member of TLTA’s Judiciary Committee, and serves as vice chair of the TLTAPAC Board of Trustees. In 2018, Roland was awarded TLTA’s highest honor, Title Person of the Year, for his many years of service and devotion to TLTA and the title industry.

Learn More About Roland's Award From REPTL »
Read More About Roland's Good Work and History of Service »

TLTA Editor's Note: No, this is not a repeat of the award for which Roland was recognized in the June edition of Downdate. Two months ago we announced that Roland was the 2022 recipient of the Patrick A. Nester Outstanding Achievement in CLE Award from the Texas Bar College. Having benefited from his service and professional insights for many years, it's no surprise to any of us at TLTA that Roland continues to be recognized for his good work.

New Title Agency Owners, Managers and Everyone Who Needs a Refresher: Are You Doing It Right?

TLTA | Aug. 21, 2022
Our popular Owning and Managing program, which includes the latest TDI regulations and satisfies TDI's management personnel training requirements, is newly updated and will be presented live Oct. 17-18 in Plano.

CE HOURS:
8 hrs Escrow, 1 hr Ethics
(pending TDI approval)

Presented by outstanding and experienced title industry professionals, this one-of-a-kind program covers the following topics:

Regulatory Compliance
Accounting
Key Duties and Responsibilities
and More