Land Title urges "Buy Local"

Land Title Guarantee Co., one of the last remaining independent and locally owned title insurers in Colorado, is kicking off a “Buy Local” initiative Thursday during the Realtor Rally at the Colorado Convention Center.

As part of the initiative, Land Title is recognizing 10 other locally owned businesses, including First Bank.

The title industry has undergone a huge shift in the Denver area, said Brian Hamilton, a senior vice president at Land Title. He noted that late last year, Fidelity National of Jacksonville, Fla., acquired the Mercury family of title companies in Colorado. Mercury had sold about a third of all title insurance policies in the Denver area through its subsidiaries Security Title, First American Heritage Title, Title America and United Title.

“In just nine months, the title insurance industry in Colorado underwent a major reversal. Then, 75 percent of all title insurance policies were sold and managed by locally owned agencies; now national firms control 75 percent of the market,” Hamilton said.  “This can commoditize a highly personal service in the real estate transaction process, curtail competitive service and pricing in the market, and reduce local employment and community support.

“Land Title employees live and work in the city where title insurance is produced and have better knowledge of the title work, location and parties to the transaction.”

Land Title’s new program encompasses the company’s four key focuses: community investment, financial stability, a reputation of ethics, and local ownership and service.

Local independent businesses return more money to the local economy – 60 cents of every dollar spent — Hamilton said.

He said there are a number of reasons to support local companies:

– They give two to three times greater support to nonprofits. Land Title, for example, is a longtime member of the 2% Club and has supported more than 1,500 Colorado charities over the past 10 years.

– Nonprofit organizations receive an average 350 percent greater support from local business owners than they do from non-locally owned businesses, according to ColoradoLocalFirst.com.

– Research has shown that 86 percent of consumers say that when price and quality are equal, they will reward companies that support a cause,” Hamilton said.

In addition, local companies provide employment for area residents and generate the largest share of net new jobs each year, he said. Land Title has 40 offices throughout Colorado and 500 employees.

Hamilton also believes local companies are better positioned to respond to the special needs of their industry and community.

Ray Baker, co-founder of the Gold Crown Foundation, said Land Title has been a big supporter of the foundation.

“Without Land Title, the Gold Crown Foundation would not be able to serve over 36,000 at-risk children in our community,” Baker said. “They provide us an ongoing, long-term commitment and invest their resources and energies where their support helps us create the most impact.”