On January 1, CA Senate Bill 696, which streamlines the acceptance of notarizations performed remotely by notaries commissioned outside California, took effect in the state. Proof, the nation's leading online notarization platform, which has digitally closed $374B worth of real estate transactions, is poised to bring full digital closings to California.
BOSTON, Jan. 5, 2024 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Proof (formerly Notarize), the nation's leading online notarization platform, has digitally closed $374B worth of real estate transactions, including new mortgages, purchase transactions, and refinances. This has been powered by the Notarize Network, the nation's largest network of remote online notaries, which is specially trained to handle real estate closings. With advanced fraud and compliance capabilities embedded as part of the solution, Proof is the trusted platform for digital transactions and is now poised to bring full digital closings to California.
On January 1, 2024, CA Senate Bill 696, which streamlines the acceptance of notarizations performed remotely by notaries commissioned outside California, took effect in the state. Proof is ready to help California's 40 million residents - 12% of the U.S. population and the nation's largest real estate market - participate in online notarization and electronic signatures for real estate transactions.
With the passage of SB 696, California joined 43 other states who have passed online notarization laws, significantly easing the process of buying and selling property. Because the law now clarifies and affirms that notarizations performed in other states are valid in California, the three key stakeholders in a real estate transaction - title insurance underwriters, mortgage investors and county recorders - can now unambiguously trust that online notarizations are valid and enforceable. Not only is the process more accessible, but remote online notarization is more secure than traditional notarization. With enhanced digital identity verification required as part of the process, online notarization offers inherent defenses against the seller identification fraud that has plagued real estate for years. Real property transactions using remote online notarizations are more convenient, quicker, more cost-effective, and safer.
"California has much to gain from making remote online notarization available to its residents. Notarization is critically important for many of life's most important moments, including buying a home, and residents of the nation's largest real estate market can now take advantage of a much improved process through remote closings," said Pat Kinsel, founder and CEO of Proof. "As the enabler of a record number of the nation's online notarizations across real estate, auto, insurance, equipment leasing, and financial services, Proof is prepared and equipped to help ease the home selling and buying process for millions of Californians."
As California continues to work on the necessary infrastructure and technology for onboarding in-state remote notaries, Proof will continue to collaborate with state government officials to ensure preparedness and to make its services available to notaries as soon as feasible.
About Proof
Proof (formerly Notarize) is helping to secure the digital economy. As more critical commerce shifts from in-person to online, companies need to be able to trust who is behind every digital interaction. As a pioneer of remote online notarization, Proof has built the largest network of professional notaries. The Notarize Network has thousands of compliant and approved notaries. The average wait time for a notary is less than a second. Every year, millions of customers in all 50 states trust the Notarize Network to notarize important documents or to verify their identity. With industry-leading compliance and built-in fraud prevention tools, Proof secures trust at every customer touchpoint using a transaction platform that cryptographically binds verified legal identity to signatures, documents, and data. Over $374B worth of real estate has been secured with Proof through its partnerships with major title companies and mortgage lenders in the US. Proof is also trusted by more than 7,000 organizations, from some of the largest brands in financial services to small businesses. Proof’s platform serves a wide range of industries, from estate planning to property management, retirement, health care, construction, legal, credit unions, small business lending, and government. For more information, visit https://www.proof.com.
Media Contact
Gayle Weiswasser, Proof, 1 202-271-3914, [email protected], www.proof.com
SOURCE Proof
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