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April 30, 2004
Escrow firms adding staff, working hardTRANSACTIONS HAVE DOUBLED SINCE FEBRUARY, NEARLY THREE TIMES IN THE PAST 12 MONTHS
By DOUG McMURDO Johnson, the transaction manager at Lawyers Title, said there was no advance warning that things were about to pick up in such dramatic fashion. "We didn't see it coming. Real estate agents see it first, but our business has more than doubled the past seven weeks." And it has nearly tripled from this time last year. She said new escrow transactions ranging from commercial loans to home refinancing average 20 a day, and sometimes 30. "A year ago we may have done seven to 10 transactions," she said. Johnson has been at Lawyer's Title since 1996 when Pahrump was experiencing an annual growth rate of roughly 15 percent. She said that pales in comparison to what has occurred the past couple of months. "I've never seen it like this before. Real estate agents tell me there's nothing left to sell anymore, at least buildable land. Everything is moving from land transactions to homes," she said, adding, "We're getting a huge influx from Vegas. They want to do business out here." And Johnson is certain Lawyer's Title isn't the only escrow firm in town experiencing a rush in activity. "I think I can speak for all title companies when I say we're all busy. We're working 14-16 hour days." And more work means an expansion of the workforce. Johnson has hired two new employees in less than two months, a somewhat troubling situation since the future is uncertain. "That means buying them a computer and a desk to put them at, but we don't know how long the growth boom is going to last." But like most everyone else reaping the benefits of the recent burst in population, Johnson remains optimistic. "I think it will continue. I think we're just getting started and that's a wonderful thing. The builders, the lenders and the real estate agents have been so good. "They understand transactions don't happen in two days anymore because we're all equally busy." "In a nutshell it has been extremely busy," said Kim Woldehanna, owner of the Markem and Alliance title companies. "We were busy in 1997 and 1998, but I've never seen what's happened the past several weeks. It's been a tremendous surge." Woldehanna said he has doubled his staff to a total of 16. "Training has been difficult. It takes time." Like Johnson, Woldehanna said finding qualified employees has been a challenge. "I expected this surge to happen when the highway was widened. It didn't happen at that time, but it's happening now." |
