First eRecording Received in Hennepin County, Minn.

January 3, 2012

eRecording Partners Network (ePN) announced it submitted the first electronic real estate documents to Hennepin County, Minn., in December.

The new electronic process offer benefits to both the submitters and to the county, according to Tom Kay, eRecording project manager at Hennepin County. "In addition to the travel and postage savings, our customers can expect to get their recorded copy returned to them electronically in one or two days, as opposed to one or two weeks,” Kay said.

Martin McCormick, the acting recorder/registrar of titles for Hennepin County, is impressed with the office's implementation of eRecording.

"This is just the another step in the Public Records Modernization Program envisioned and initiated by my predecessor, Michael Cunniff, who passed away suddenly in November and also served as chair of the State of Minnesota Electronic Real Estate Recording Commission," McCormick said. To submit the first electronic real estate documents to the Hennepin County Recorder's Office, ePN worked with its client, Old Republic National Title Insurance Co. Linda Larson, division manager for Old Republic, is excited about the new way to do business with Hennepin County and offered the following insight.

"One of the greatest internal challenges for title agents and underwriters today is the timely recording of documents," Larson said. "In our efforts to reduce fraud and minimize claims, eRecording may be the single greatest tool that has become available to our industry in recent years. Hennepin County is considered to be the leader in trends and technology in our local market. We were invited by ePN to be the first live eRecord submitter with Hennepin County and with their assistance we successfully recorded two satisfactions, two mortgages and a subordination agreement through the electronic portal. We are proud to have participated in this historic event.

“ePN and Hennepin County have worked together to make a tremendous product available that will change how business is done in our local markets. There is a large community of talented folks who have dedicated many hours of time and talent to lay the groundwork for the entrance of this technology. We are looking forward to supporting our agents in transitioning and utilizing this technology now available at Hennepin County. The excitement of this event is dampened by the recent loss of our friend and associate, Mike Cunniff, our former long-time Hennepin County recorder. I'm sure he would be very proud of the accomplishments by his dedicated team and partners," Larson continued. Jerry Lewallen, president of ePN, said his company is excited to work with the Hennepin County Recorder's Office to offer electronic recording to their customers.

“Hennepin County has taken a leadership position in providing a service that will improve productivity and reduce the turnaround time for the recording of land records documents," Lewallen said.


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