First American vs DVC Title & Escrow for small contract

[jolynne28]

We used Cammy with DVC Title & Escrow for our first contract, everything went smoothly. We're about to buy a smaller second contract, and the broker told me that we could save nearly $200 by using First American on the smaller contract. I know they had a cyber attack in December, so looking for advice on if it's worth the savings.

edited by Mod to add links:
https://www.dvcclosings.com/
https://www.firstam.com/

 

[JackosinDIS]

I’ve not used them previously, but same thing here… have been told they are nearly $200 cheaper for a small contract… so going to give them a go!

 

[jolynne28]

I asked if they allowed the $7,500 max on cc for deposit, so if so I guess we will try them as well.

 

[JackosinDIS]

I asked if they allowed the $7,500 max on cc for deposit, so if so I guess we will try them as well.

They only allow $2500 unfortunately

 

[jolynne28]

ah ok thanks. Broker just emailed and said DVC Title only allows up to $5,000 now, so the difference in cc points earned is negligible.

 

[CastAStone]

First American is I believe the largest company that has institutional knowledge of DVC title. But they are known to be slower than other title agencies.

I had an absolutely awful experience with them as a home warranty provider a decade ago so they’re on my never do business with due to petty grudges list, but I’m fairly sure that the timeshare title portion of the company probably has different employees and that’s just me holding a grudge.

 

[stuartsong]

DVC Title used to be fast. Now with their online notary, it take between 10-15 days before the closing occurs. With lower cost at First American and potentially being faster than DVC Title, I may switch all my business over to First American.

 

[Jimmy Geppetto]

For small contracts I’d use TRCS Inc.

edited by Mod to add link :https://www.trcsinc.com/

 

[HyperspaceMountainPilot]

If you haven’t already, check out the Closing Time thread. I haven’t bought a resale contract since last year, but back when I watched it more carefully, there were horror stories about certain title companies taking more than 30 days from ROFR passing to close. If your contract is stripped until 2026, I’d recommend the cheapest one that is reliable, but if you are approaching a booking window or banking window, it’s not worth saving a few hundred bucks to risk missing a deadline (of course, anything can happen, but you should get a sense of what is likely to happen looking at the closing time thread).

 

[jolynne28]

The 11 month window would be early July, so 9 weeks out. That’s 20 extra days from when I got my points loaded onto our first DVC contract. Should I be worried that First American https://www.firstam.com/title/vacation can’t get it done in that time frame?

 

[CarolMN]

Please remember to include a link to any business you wish to discuss. This thread is pinned near the top of the DVC Forums. Thank you.

PLEASE post a link to any business or site you wish to mention or discuss​

 

[jolynne28]

Please remember to include a link to any business you wish to discuss. This thread is pinned near the top of the DVC Forums. Thank you.

PLEASE post a link to any business or site you wish to mention or discuss​

Apologies, I didn't realize since we were discussing title companies and not brokers that it mattered.

 

[DisMomNCM]

We just used them for a contract purchased in March / closed in April. No complaints here! They got us our closing documents the day after we passed ROFR I believe, and finished closing our contract the day after the sellers sent back their closing docs (including recording the deed the same day).

 

[Johtull12]

DVC Title used to be fast. Now with their online notary, it take between 10-15 days before the closing occurs. With lower cost at First American and potentially being faster than DVC Title, I may switch all my business over to First American.

Although with a small contract they are likely paying cash and would negate the need for a notary.

 

[Jimmy Geppetto]

Although with a small contract they are likely paying cash and would negate the need for a notary.

Sellers always need a notary. Buyers need a notary when financing the purchase. PP was likely inferring the closing could take longer because the seller would need to visit a notary for the closing documents.

 

[stuartsong]

I was just told by my broker on the closing cost between the two companies. Wow, a big difference.

Purchase: $4,900

• First American -$445
• DVC Title –$623

Puchase: $7,350

• First American - $465
• DVC Title - $644