Posted by Helen Gill on 9/16/08 7:41am
Msg #264327

Realty Transfer Tax Statement of Value form

Good morning! A client asked me to make sure that a Realty Transfer Tax Statement of Value form was done during a reverse mortgage. I was informed that Signing Agents are not to complete this form at all, there's no place for the borrower to sign nor for the agent to sign or notarize. Have any of you done this form before or had the borrower to complete? I was informed that the client is to complete this form. I really believe they are trying to have me to do something that they are responsible for. This is something that's required in PA.

Reply by sue_pa on 9/16/08 8:00am
Msg #264328

Is there a Deed being transferred? Is it fully or partially tax exempt? If not, the form isn't needed. Is it your job to determine the prior questions? Absolutely not. The title company should fill out the form. Many times they come through blank and they fill them in later. If your client insists the borrower sign, they sign at the bottom in the correspondent block. If your borrower is 'saavy', they won't sign. If they're like so many borrowers, they'll sign. 99.99% of the time it won't matter. This form never gets notarized.

The other .01% of the time it will matter. One time I did a loan for two ladies - they were a 'couple' but in PA there is no legal designation or rights for them. One owned the property, they were putting it in both names and refinancing. Title company hadn't filled out the form although it was included. They wanted to know the purpose of the form. I told them it exempted transfer taxes in certain situations. I did not tell them that it didn't apply to them. They wanted more of an answer than I was willing to give so we called the title company. After a pow wow at the title company, they told them to sign it and they would indicate they were sisters, thus exempting the taxes. These ladies were no dummies. One was a gym teacher (no snickering) one was the VP of something or another at a large local business. She called their corporate counsel at home and asked his opinion. Of course his opinion was not to sign the blank form and to insist the title company properly calculate and them pay the appropriate taxes. Although no one ever said anything later, what happened was they missed putting the taxes on the settlement sheet and rather than correct it, they were going to try to work around it. Abolutely no monetary advantage to the title company other than not spending their time correcting a simple error or omission. A few days later I went back with a Deed that had detailed vesting language, a new settlement sheet, and a properly completed Affd. of Value - all had been sent to the one's work where she had her corporate counsel look at them first.

If the client wants it signed and the borrower is willing to sign, as with most situations, none of our concern.

Reply by Helen Gill on 9/16/08 11:58am
Msg #264349

Thanks Sue!