I’d met many professionals at various title insurance companies over the years, so I expected the conversation to be relatively formulaic. Title insurance professionals are the folks who show up toward the end of the real estate transaction to make sure all the “t’s” are crossed and “i’s” are dotted–or something like that. Right?
Shown (from left) are: Sangmi Park, Bill Barrus, Henry Shih, Bekim Kalici, Tracie Hamersley, Dorian Lam, Jason Hudson, Shawna-Lei Tamayose and Elizabeth Hamersley.
Shown in back (from left) are: Eric Brody, Jarrod Guy Randolph, Jason Hudson, and Sean McGinley. Shown in front (from left) are: Elisabeth Verstraeten, Robert Schlesinger, Dorian Lam, Lindsey (instructor), Kristine Wolf, James Chou, Silvia Carrillo, Jason Yuen, Harvey Luk, Michael Smith, Ray Gu, and Jonathan Shapiro.
“Our ‘Real Estate Warriors’ series connects real estate executives, professionals and influencers for an opportunity to sweat, network and refuel. We need to focus more on optimal wellness for mind and body.” said Dorian Lam, executive vice president of Cornerstone Land Abstract.
I wasn’t exactly sure what was going on, but I was not expecting a discussion on wellness to be part of my meeting with a title insurance company.
Founded in 2008, Cornerstone has established an impressive industry record with 12,000+ deals successfully closed and more than $8 billion in closed transactions. They have navigated high profile residential and commercial transactions with some of the world’s largest underwriters. The company has four in-house attorneys with over 150 years’ combined underwriting clearance experience and their range of services includes research and advice, due diligence, escrow, closing and recording services. The Cornerstone team frequently finds solutions to title issues that other companies cannot and have saved clients’ money by structuring deals in unique and optimal ways.
Cornerstone Land Abstract is breaking the “title industry stigma” by focusing their efforts and their team in a completely new way – by connecting with the industry and the community, through innovative seminars, wellness initiatives and the creation of educational or research-oriented content that engages their clients even before a real estate transaction begins.
“Our company is advisory-oriented,” said Jason Hudson, CEO of Cornerstone, “People assume we title guys show up for a part of the transaction. What they don’t realize is that we are a constant part of their real estate process. We can help our clients assemble a team that takes them through their transaction from beginning to end–from broker to closing.”
In addition to their day-to-day services, the Cornerstone team has also created inventive, educational content through seminars like “The Cornerstone Labs Thinktank” Series that includes in-depth video sessions focused on topics like the “Due Diligence Process” and the “Real Estate Buyer’s Blueprint.” The series draws insights from cross-industry professionals to highlight challenges and opportunities within the real estate process. Additionally, chief counsel, Peter Carrozzo, Esq., contributes a monthly blog that focuses on unique industry challenges and offers simple solutions for people in the industry. Some of his topics have touched on issues like “Ancient Mortgages” and “Joint-Ownership Challenges.”
The company’s core values focus heavily on education, innovation (finding ways to accelerate and simplify the title process) and adding value (the Cornerstone team ensures a closing happens when it is supposed to happen).
In the news recently, an individual secretly created a series of fake deeds to transfer ownership for up to a half-dozen hotels. This year, the team will launch “The Cornerstone Report,” one of the most valuable resources created for people in the real estate industry. This handy compendium of information will become a staple to anyone looking to purchase real estate and will completely revolutionize the due diligence process. The report will provide insights to help avoid challenges that often pop up in real estate transactions when least expected.
The team is also heavily focused on diversity and philanthropic initiatives. In November, VP of business development, Danielle Volpe, will launch the “Women in Real Estate” series, fully sponsored by Cornerstone. This series of events will draw women real estate leaders to discuss trending topics and create opportunities for women in the industry. Under the “Real Estate Warriors” umbrella, business development executive, Douglas Morgen, will use Cornerstone’s workout series to benefit several non-profits and will focus on fitness and wellness initiatives in association with local gyms and fitness clubs in the city.
Through cutting-edge content, mindfulness and health, technological advances in education and advisory and community programs, Cornerstone Land Abstract is breaking the mold of what is considered “just another title insurance company.” At the end of the day, however, their efforts to provide the best title insurance services to their clients remains their priority. “After all, what good is a deal that doesn’t close?” said Lam.
Written by Karen Gamba, CEO and founder of Ellipsis, LLC, New York, N.Y.