Maria Salazar Blouin, Settlement Officer at Lakeside, is wonderful to work with. She is always…read moreavailable, very knowledgeable, and takes great care of my clients with no drama. Lakeside is also an excellent company. Their attorney, Raina, has saved deals for me when other title companies didn't want to handle escrow agreements and a few other tricky situations. They have been a strong partner for my business. If you are a Realtor looking for a solid settlement team, I recommend Maria and Lakeside. Buyers will be in good hands with them as well.

From the owner: Lakeside Title Company has been in the real estate settlement and escrow business for over 25…read moreyears! We remain one of the most well-respected title companies, with over 16 office locations and online services to provide industry-leading services and technology. The company is woman-owned, and Yvonne Deardorff, President and CEO, has built a team of over 100 title industry professionals who complete over 8,000 real estate transactions annually. Our Hollywood, MD team is committed to providing value to our customers. With our on-site legal team, title industry experts, resources, underwriter relationships, extensive fraud protection, and a diverse and knowledgeable team, we deliver the closing you expect and your clients deserve.

WOW!!! This best way how I can define the services we recieved from Mrs Taylor is WOW!!! Buying a…read morehouse has never been easier! We were scared and unsure of this process, but Mrs Taylor made this all too easy. We couldn't make up our minds which house we liked and Belinda kept tirelessly sending us listing after listing until we got the perfect house. My wife and I made a deal to "take our time" and pick the one that was the best. Belinda listened to us and matched our wants up with the houses she showed us. We felt she treated us like family. Took her time with us and moved at our pace, no pressure. The ENTIRE transaction was smooth and flawless. It felt like we were supposed to meet her now. If the time comes that we need to sell, Mrs Taylor will be the ONLY person I would trust to handle this for us. Thank you!!!

Belinda is incredible. She is honest, knowledgeable, and dedicated to her clients. From day one I…read moreknew her energy was perfect for what she does and what I needed to sell my home. She was responsive, timely, thorough, and so encouraging! She stepped in and did what needed to be done and then went above and beyond. She exemplifies amazing quality client care and there is a perfect blend of tenacity and passion for what she does and how she does it. I would certainly recommend her!! Thank you, Belinda!

Recently bought a home and used Interstate Title & Escrow. Some observations:…read more Communication: we felt that there was insufficient communication from the team, and this resulted in missed opportunities as well as a poor impression. Two key examples: We were not asked whose names should be on the title. This is my 4th home closing, and each time before, we have been asked this question, and the proper names have been put on the title. Due to this failure, only one name was put on the title, and now we will have to use additional time and money to get this corrected. Guidance was not provided by the team on when to process the wire transfer. It was as if they expected me to know this automatically. Luckily I thought to call two days before closing to check up on this major detail. Customer service: our interactions with the team gave the impression that customer service was low priority. The most clear example was when I reached out to ask about wiring the money, and one of the staff members responded, "You should have received wire instructions with your welcome packet, but I've attached them here for your convenience." This gave the impression that 1) Customer interaction was completed when the welcome packet was sent (about a month previous to that email) and customer should figure things out from there, and 2) it is unusual for a customer to expect guidance about the wire transfer around closing. I did go over the welcome packet, and did not observe any directions about when the money should be wired. Staff didn't seem to have the interest in sharing that expectation with me either. As mentioned earlier, this is my fourth closing, and the experience was quite different than the other three. During those, a friendly team of professionals communicated expectations as appropriate and provided timely guidance when action was needed. In those instances, I felt that my money was earned and appreciated. When it's home buying time, definitely shop around, and if service is a priority, Interstate Title and Escrow might not be the best choice.

Horrible experience with this unprofessional company and its CEO. They never contacted me to…read moreintroduce themselves or prepare me for closing until 2 days before closing when I reached out to ask for wire instructions. They sent me incorrect documents with errors and were clearly unfamiliar with my file. They failed to handle the outstanding water bill or inform the water company that the property was sold as required and noted in the closing disclosure. Stay far away. I have no idea how they still exist or why anyone with sense does business with them.

Have used their services for several properties that I have owned over the years, to include a…read moreBoundary Line Adjustment as well as to mark out a property's lines and locate the survey. Always very professional and reasonably priced! Enjoy!

We recently purchased a rural property. Paper survey was provided but the property corners and…read morelines were not defined at the time of purchase. The neighbors seemed to have good ideas where the real boundaries were, but I wanted to be sure before I started making improvements to the property. Quote received very quickly and we were able to get on the schedule fairly quickly. Price point felt fair for the work. All hard pins found but one that had likely been damaged or removed from old farming on the land. The survey map and pins helped to find the missing corner. Flags posted to identify the lines and highlight the new found corner. Turns out one neighbor had given us more ground than what was actually ours. Feel very confident now where the barn and other improvements can go.

Let me tell you....Ray was amazing! We contacted a few surveyors as we are having a fence built…read morearound our property..we got some denials, then we had one who said they'd contact us back and NEVER did (mind you, those people came highly recommended) Well by the grace of God we found Ray! I sent him a message through Yelp, he answered back very quickly and it wasn't 3 days later he was out at our property and finished. We don't live there full time so we weren't able to be there so he sent loads of photos and told us to call him if we had any questions when we were there, it was exactly what we needed. We don't have to push back our fence install (for the third time) thanks to Ray. Very reasonably priced, a breeze to work with, and super personable and friendly. We couldn't be happier. Thank you so very much, Ray!

Sheri and our realtor were against a clock getting some missed information from over a decade ago…read moreand they made it all happen!

From the owner: Coastal Title & Settlement, LLC offers Title Services to include:…read more100% Mobile Closings, always at the convenience of the client Residential Investment Commercial New Construction 1031 Exchanges Title Services Title Insurance Title Commitment Underwriting Closing Document Preparation 100 % Mobile Notary Signings

After agreeing to work with me, Robin Errington of Century21 New Millenuim, told me that she did…read morenot know how to price my home. She focused only on an incomplete appraisal of $430K, one where the appraiser spent less than 10 minutes in my home. She ignored the Zillow estimate at $527K, the BrightMLS estimate at $513K, and my mortgage company's estimate (Caliber Home Loans) at $577K. Importantly, she did not show or review any neighborhood or local comps with me. In addition to not knowing HOW to price the home, Robin told me that it was not her job TO price the home. She said that it was my job. I priced the home at $450K based on her 'expert' advice of $430K. Robin did not discuss with me how much I paid for the house, how much money I put into it, or what I wanted to make. She did not discuss pricing strategies with me such as putting it on the market at one amount and then reducing it after certain period of time. When I asked her about being able to accept multiple offers, she discouraged me. I asked her for help staging the home and she told me just to continue doing what I was doing. I did not realize what support I should have expected from Robin or how much the house likely could have sold for until after I had already signed a contract on the house and there was no recourse for me to get out of the contract, except for expensive attorney fees. I regret working with Robin. At best, her incompetence was due to laziness. At worst, she was unethical.

Where do I begin... we were blessed with the Devine and…read moreglorious and beautifully sculpted agent of none other than James Barnes! Ladies (or some gentlemen) beware of being sucked into his gaze but don't fret his honesty and swagger are not just a show! He is the real deal! And a firefighter to boot so when he isn't rescuing the unfortunate from the ashes! He is there for you on your schedule! Even when my wife and I didn't know a single thing of what we wanted there was not a hint of an eye roll or a disappointing sigh! The realtor who cares! The realtor you can trust ! An agent to guide you home! A smart move with a smart agent! A cut above the rest! Save 15% or more by switching to Geico! He doesn't have a catch phrase because there isn't one single exclamation point that can sum up Gods gift to real estate, he embodies them all! I mean he knows what causes structural damage in houses and he would probably feel really bad if he found a house that was a fire hazard and had to pull you out of a house he helped you find! But he would because he is that type of awesome! Did I mention his looks? Geez! I have to admit that I thought all firefighters were muscle bound and simple minded but this guy is not only brawn but brain as well! Flipping a home...James Barnes Finding a second home...James Barnes Turn key home...James Barnes Wasting time just looking at homes with no intention of buying...James Barnes Supporting first responders...James Barnes Did I mention James Barnes? JAMES BARNES Remember James Barnes for your next home! Not only will he help you find a home but the time you spend with him will even want to make you sign up for a gym membership so you can have a new body and lifestyle to go with your new home and life!

So I started out thinking this company was honestly awesome. On 04/13 They came out and gave a…read morethorough inspection of a foreclosure we were projecting to buy. They recommended a septic pump in order to get a full tank inspection which we agreed and paid and they fully documented they performed everything and listed all the things that need to be done and were recommended to be done. They discovered there were septic roots that needed to be removed. Documented and photographed on report that the roots needed to be removed and quoted us $1800. Realtor tells us we get to actually save if we go back to the company since we got it pumped with them. We had to wait for closing and finally the day came on 07/02. This house has been empty and the water had been off due to a bill not being paid so turned off entirely. Called back to schedule the root removal. Due to it being passed 30 days they quoted $2200 for a separate pump and then the root removal. When we explained repeatedly that it had been pumped and no one has been using the water at all as its been shut off the entire time they said they charge up front for it just in case but if it was unnecessary they will refund it. We schedule and they come out on 04/10 to do the root removal. They have to call us to come out and turn the water on so they can do what they need to. We get the invoice and they kept on the pump. They have photographed every stage of the process to show what they have been doing. They photo documented the root removal but nothing about the need to pump. We spend the next few days trying to get answers. The communication is poor to the point that they were claiming they are having trouble contacting the pump guy until today 07/15 where the pump guy says the tank was 3/4 of the way full of water and needed to be pumped. Zero documentation zero pictures no evidence no anything just a confirmation that they were there and it needed to happen. I call and speak with the staff trying to get answers. Lady on the phone says she has no idea about the pump stuff. Claims that a 1500 gallon tank can fill up overnight even with the water off. Talking over me as im trying to express that I am not computing how its possible. I ask for a manager and she does exactly the same thing waffles on the phone about how they don't know about the septic because they arent out there and they will get Phil the owner to call me up and talk with me to hopefully get some answers. I finally get a call from Phil who seems chipper and I explain the situation and Phil starts going on about how he was there and it was 3/4ths full and it needed to be pumped because his guys are going to have to get in the tank. (So I guess dont get the recommended initial septic pump as they HAVE to do another if there is any water in the tank (remember it can fill up overnight and Phil also confirms it doesnt take long to fill up.)) So I ask Phil then if he can provide photographed documentation of the job he did and service that was needed so we can just put this to rest and I will just accept the fact I got worked over by the system. And Phil say "no I can't provide that." He outright refused to show anything about the one job that we were almost positive didn't need to happen. Phil gets rude and starts telling me how he has done this for 20 years and knows better than me and realtor companies and plays off the fact that he knows that neither of us can confirm no one was in that house between the dates of 04/13 - 07/10 so if a house sits for 3 months he KNOWS it will need a pump. He basically just ends it with thats how it is and he's not into measuring out whos thing is bigger and he doesn't screw anyone with the sincerity of a loan shark. Refusing to provide documented photos of a job that they have documented prior when we had it completed shows me all I needed from this company and the owner Phil. This was over $400 and they are so fervent on screwing you out of every last cent they can, and even when you have a legitimate ask for proof the OWNER OF THE COMPANY REFUSED. That's how they operate.