On January 1, real estate professionals bid farewell to a whirlwind 2020 and welcomed what is forecast to be another record-setting year for the housing market. At SoftPro, we know many title companies are handling their highest volume of property transactions... ever. With the demands on real estate professionals only expected to grow, now is a great time to take stock of where you are and follow some simple steps to ensure you’re starting the year off right!

1.  Take a moment to set goals and huddle with your team.

We know you’re busy, but don’t skip the process of meeting with your team to share and identify goals for the new year. Kicking off 2021 with measurable, actionable steps to push your title company forward will make all the difference, especially in a year that could come with its fair share of surprises. With many companies permanently extending their remote work opportunities, setting goals where data can be broken into smaller steps in order to benchmark progress will make your team more likely to achieve the results you’re envisioning. The start of a new year also is a great time to consider new technologies and innovations for your title company to adopt. Industry analysts say embracing Remote Online Notarization (RON) and other digital tools should be in the New Year’s mix for title firms across the country. Many innovations that gained traction over the past year are becoming permanent fixtures in how title companies do business. Staying ahead of the curve will keep your firm a competitive option!

2.  Stay up-to-date with your 1099-S forms.

Ringing in the new year is all fun and games until you hit tax filing deadlines. Here’s a reality check for you: The deadline to submit your 2020 1099-S filings is fast approaching. Mark your calendars for February 28 as the paper filing deadline and March 31 as the electronic filing deadline. At SoftPro, we recommend staying on top of the forms and other information you will need to complete your filings throughout the year. That way when you go to file, it’s a seamless, worry-free process.

No matter the preparation, we know 1099-S filings is an undertaking! SoftPro has compiled resources for all the information you need for successful 1099-S submissions! Our recent blog post provides you with the important dates and tips you need to know before filing. We also go over how SoftPro’s Pro1099 product can make filing even easier and faster with electronic submission through your SoftPro software.

Read more key information about 1099-S filing and deadlines:

3.  Harness SoftPro 360 to save time and money on ordering your title services.

Fostering connections within the real estate industry to save our customers time and money is a top priority for SoftPro. Our free SoftPro 360 business exchange portal allows our users to leverage third-party contacts for various services, such as e-Recording, title searches, notary services, Remote Online Notarization (RON), shipping and more! SoftPro 360 creates synergies for our customers by allowing them to access vendors and place orders for services directly within SoftPro, instead of having to go vendor by vendor to get the job done. And yes, SoftPro 360 is absolutely free with all editions of SoftPro software. Excited to get started? If you’re a current SoftPro customer, contact our sales team at 800-848-0143, ext. 1 or sales@softprocorp.com, and we will walk you through the process.

Check out our full list of SoftPro 360 vendors and the products and services available to you!

4.  Take advantage of free webinars.

With all the changes in the industry, investing in your professional development is a must. From staying apprised of new federal and state policies to adopting paperless environments and handling virtual meetings with ease, SoftPro is dedicated to sharing the newest trends and ideas shaping the industry with you.

We offer two types of free webinars:

• Free monthly training webinars
  Monthly trainings designed to provide tips and tricks on SoftPro products and services, as well as how to maximize your software, FAQs and more! If you’d like to receive an email notification once a month whenever this page is updated with new webinar offerings, you can subscribe to email notifications. View our available webinars and register here:

• Saved You a Seat webinars
  Our Saved You a Seat series launched in early 2020 as a way to stay connected as a title and closing services community while working remotely. The series covers a range of topics from industry updates, technology trends, best practices for working remotely, featured industry speakers - and beyond! Register for our next Saved You a Seat episode here:
  Never miss an episode! Subscribe to Saved You a Seat to receive a notification each time a new webinar is available for registration. Lastly, don’t forget to check out all of our previous episode recaps. Each episode is recorded, so if you can’t join us live, you can catch up on anything you missed on your own time. View our Saved You a Seat recaps.

Is your title firm launching a new endeavor or using SoftPro products in a new way to enhance your workflow? We’d love to hear from you! Reach out to us at marketing@softprocorp.com.