About

Homie is a consumer real estate company that guides buyers and sellers from when they go under contract on their home through their closing. Homie created direct-to-consumer programs such as Homie Loans, Homie Insurance, and Homie Title with the mission to save homebuyers money and streamline the closing process. We sat down with Wendy Jeffery, Senior Director of Title and Escrow for Homie Title, to discuss their transition to Qualia.

Challenge

Jeffery and her team at Homie Title were initially overwhelmed by the idea of transitioning software systems. When they first began evaluating Qualia, Homie Title was using a combination of 3 systems: a title production software, an online file system, and software provided by their underwriter. These siloed systems produced a clunky workflow that hindered productivity. “Before Qualia, we were using several different systems. It wasn’t very efficient, and it took a long time to complete tasks,” Jeffery said. Given the perceived complexity and disruption for their team involved in re-platforming, the Homie team did not prioritize making a switch. That changed, however, when a ransomware attack compromised Homie Title’s previous system and required them to take action to keep business operations moving forward.

Before Qualia, we were using several different systems. It wasn’t very efficient and it took a long time to complete tasks.

Wendy Jeffery, Senior Director of Title and Escrow for Homie Title

Solution

Homie Title quickly decided to make the transition to Qualia and ultimately began closings within 24 hours of starting the onboarding process. To avoid losing even more precious time to a ransomware attack, Homie Title moved data from their previous systems into Qualia. “What’s great about Qualia is that it’s web-based and turnkey. We were able to grab information from all three systems and drop it into Qualia, so we got up and running right away. It literally saved us,” Jeffery said.

After switching to Qualia, Homie Title solved several challenges. For starters, the move to Quaila solved the urgent need to keep business going. Home Title also went from using 3 different systems to 1. That helped Jeffery and her team to save hours of time each week previously spent jumping between software systems. Additionally, Jeffery attributes her team’s efficiency gains to Qualia’s Dynamic Workflows, tasks, and Qualia Connect, which helped automate many of her team’s previously manual processes.

With Qualia, we save at least 10 minutes when preparing a document package because we are able to stay within the Core platform. Along with the other efficiency gains Qualia has helped us make, we now save hours of time per file.

Wendy Jeffery, Senior Director of Title and Escrow for Homie Title

Dynamic Workflows and Tasks

Qualia’s Dynamic Workflows and tasks take the guesswork out of day-to-day operations. Admin-level users can design workflows for each part of the closing transaction with automation built-in. These tools support Homie Title’s daily operations by enabling them to design custom workflows, reduce human error, and automate tasks. With Dynamic Workflows, Jeffery’s team has been able to maximize efficiency.

We created a whole new escrow process. We have assistants who specialize in different areas and Qualia has made it so easy with the tasks. We can now have someone specialize exclusively in different parts of the file (payoffs, recording, etc.). This really helps to streamline our process.

Wendy Jeffery, Senior Director of Title and Escrow for Homie Title

Qualia Connect

Qualia Connect powers client relationships with communication and document sharing tools. Wendy shared, “It all goes back to communication. With Connect, we are able to automatically send introduction emails right from the get-go. It’s huge when you can make that first touch so quickly.”

The key to title is communication with all parties, and Connect makes that so simple for us.

Wendy Jeffery, Senior Director of Title and Escrow for Homie Title

Jeffery explained how pivotal Connect is to their business because it acts as a self-service portal for her clients. Clients have access to real-time updates on their transaction, open lines of communication with their title agent and realtor, and long-term access to their closing documents. “We don’t get half as many clients calling with questions about their file as we did before Connect,' Jeffery said.

Results

The ability to get a complex title operation up and running on Qualia in 24 hours ensured Homie Title could keep its operations running. In the time since switching to Qualia, Jeffery’s team is reaping the additional benefits of a flexible infrastructure. Instead of using several siloed systems, Homie Title now uses Qualia as an all-in-one solution. The team harnesses Qualia’s automation capabilities and Dynamic Workflows to boost processing speeds. Meanwhile, time spent answering clients’ questions has been cut in half. As a result, Jeffery’s team now saves several hours on each file and is able to spend more time focusing on their clients’ experiences.