Silicon Valley Real Estate Guide

My usual routine in the morning is to get up, let the dog out of her kennel and then check my e-mail.  This morning my e-mail had a shocker.  I received an e-mail from one of the Account Managers at the Los Altos Branch of Financial Title Company indicating that Financial Title Company was closing its doors effective immediately.  Not just the Los Altos branch, but the whole company.  Go to their website and you get this.

My first thought was “here we go again” because the Campbell based Alliance Title company had just shut it’s doors in December 2007.  Financial Title had a great office in Los Altos and was the largest title company in Silicon Valley.   The two escrow officers (and their assistants) who I have worked with over the years were very good and had a sarcastic bent to them, which I enjoyed.  It’s really sad to see the office close especially when you know the people involved so well.

Anyone who has an escrow with Financial Title will now have that escrow transferred to the First American Title office located at 161 South San Antonio Road.  Their phone number is 650 941-3523.  Note: First American Title has been the underwriter for all of Financial Title’s escrows.  An e-mail late today gives more information for those of you who have escrows with Financial Title:

• First American Title has secured the trust funds from all of the Financial Title Escrows
• There is a First American representative today in each of the local Financial Title offices.  They are going through each of the open escrow files and if the escrow has trust funds that have been deposited, they are contacting the clients to let them know the status of the trust funds.  They will also be finding out it the client’s want to keep the escrow with First American Title or move it to a different title company.
• First American has set up a general information number at (925) 249-2819 for general questions.  However, at this time, they do not have information about specific escrows.  Questions about specific escrows should be available in a few days.

Stay tuned.