Walker’s Wholesale Houses

I have started using a 3rd party service that enables me to get legal electronic signatures on my paperwork.  I have been using their service and my customers find it very convenient.

Over 500,000 other companies around the world use this electronic service. 

How it works for me

When I cannot visit a seller in person, for example — they are out of state — this provides an excellent paperless service. 

I prepare my agreement as a Doc or PDF, upload it to the service and then it is emailed to the seller for signature.

My seller opens the document, signs it by typing their initials, and an electronically initialed copy is sent to both parties.  (If a physical signature is still required, they can print it out, and fax it to the number provided by the service so that it stays secure.)

I have found the following benefits:

• No faxes.  My fax machine is finicky in that not every transmission is successful.  Sellers don’t have to try 7 times to fax something or find a office supply store to fax it.
• Original PDF copies — no 7th generation faxes.
• My sellers find it easy and cost free.
• I don’t have get copies back to seller — its automatic.  Saves me time

I find that using this service saves me time, and headaches, and facilitates my transaction.

You can even use it to collect signatures from mobile phones and iPhones for those who get their email that way.

Are Electronic Signatures legal?

The Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act (“E-Signature Act”) became effective in the US on October 1, 2000.  Since then, online electronic signatures on commercial transactions and most other agreements have a legal status equivalent to a written signature.   US state law modeled on the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act (UETA) also provides a legal framework for electronic transactions. It gives signatures and records the same validity and enforceability as manual signatures and paper-based transactions. This UETA was adopted by the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws (NCCUSL) in 1999. (from the company’s website).

How do you start?

Try Echosign’s free trial. 

That will give you 5 documents for free.

Simply create an account and get started.  No credit card required.

According to the 12/11/2008 Richmond Times Dispatch

Foreclosures in Virginia continue to rise from a year ago, but the rate here is better than it is nationally.

One in every 567 Virginia households, or a total of 5,694, received a foreclosure filing in November, according to a RealtyTrac report released today. By comparison, one in every 488 U.S. households receiving a filing. Filings include notices of default, trustee sales and foreclosure sales, according to the online database.

Filings here rose 121 percent last month from November 2007, while nationally they increased 28 percent, according to the report.

This number shows the market in pre-foreclosures is still very active.  What this report doesn’t reveal is how many of these are upside down, or how many can have a deal made from them.