We paid over $2,000 expecting competent service. Instead, we got a complete failure from Lori Endo and her team during one of the most time-sensitive and important moments of our lives. Our closing was scheduled for Friday, June 20, but because they missed a critical same-day processing deadline and didn't communicate clearly, the transaction didn't close. That delay ruined our carefully planned move and caused real financial and emotional stress: * We had to cancel a non-refundable moving truck * We had just gotten married and couldn't take more time off work * We're now at risk of losing rental income due to delayed tenant move-in The worst part? The lack of ownership. No apology, no solution, just a generic email (that didn't even use my name) blaming the county -- even though this could have been prevented with better coordination. We did everything right. Old Republic Berkeley did not. And we're the ones stuck dealing with the consequences. I would not recommend this office to anyone. Choose a title company that respects your time, money, and life circumstances. This one clearly doesn't. read more

Do not use this company at least not the Berkeley branch maybe. If you see the name Lori Endo on any of the emails you need to run in the other direction. She completely screwed us over with her lack of communication and when I come to see the reviews here I saw her name mentioned MULTIPLE times. We ended up having to live out of boxes for multiple days and cancel movers due to her neglect. She failed to mention to anyone that there is a 10:30 AM deadline. Her upper management while not as helpful as least was not so RUDE as she was. Unfortunately titiling is a business that just gets handed to them but I strongly urge sellers and buyers to avoid this company at ALL COSTS. read more

I never imagined I'd be a homeowner! The anxiety I had from hearing horror stories was enough to put me off of home buying, this is not considering that at the moment we have skyrocketing housing and inflation driven extremely high interest rates. Thanks to Old Republic Title company and Alexis Williams and her team, I was able to overcome my anxiety. And with Alexis and her team's help, I was able to understand and navigate through the home buying process. My home buying journey was very unique: buying a home with the seller stuck overseas due to covid lockdown is a tale to tell your grandchildren over dinner parties. But it happened to me. Throughout the whole process, Alexis and her team kept me updated and helped me land at the best decisions. Speaking to Alexis was always insightful and that helped me to understand behind the scenes processes, which helped me manage my anxiety. The humor, diligence, and honestly of team has been wonderful. I'm so glad I worked with Alexis and her team during my home ownership journey. I highly recommend them. read more

Old Republic Title Company - Got my keys to my American dream - Real Estate Services Near Me - Berkeley, California

Alexis at Old Republic Title Company gave us excellent guidance on a deed transfer and helped us determine the most efficient way to resolve the paperwork. She was responsive, efficient, and kind. I highly recommend her and this branch of Old Republic Title Company. read more

They handled my refi and Alexis was friendly and thorough. The person at the front desk is very courteous. Zero complaints. 100% satisfaction. read more

Old Republic Title Company - On the second floor - Real Estate Services Near Me - Berkeley, California

I wanted to give a big shout-out to the team at Old Republic Title Company, Berkeley. I have used ORTC for many of my real estate transactions and can not say enough great things about their attention to service. My escrows are handled professionally and I am updated with important benchmarks throughout the entire escrow process. In particular, Alexis Williams and Barbara Barnes have always made sure my escrow needs are taken care of in a timely manner. Michael Penner-PennerHomes Real Estate BRE 01343811 read more

Old Republic Title company is irresponsible and negligent beyond imagination. Here's our experience in two separate transactions: 1. They made a typo in the APN number when they recorded our purchase with the county, so we accidentally "owned" a different house. They agreed to fix it and claimed it was all fixed with the county. However when we tried to buy another house later we had issues with our loan application because of the mistake they made, the bank thought we owned a different house than the one we've bought. 2. As I mentioned above, we tried to buy another house and still used Old Republic Title company because it was the seller's agent's choice. After my mortgage process completed and the bank was ready to fund, Old Republic emailed me a confirmation of my appointment to sign four days later and they also sent me a list of closing costs including title insurances that totaled $5000. After receiving that confirmation we packed up all of our household belongings and got rid of a bunch of furniture. Right before the date we were supposed to sign and close, Lori suddenly notified us that we couldn't sign because the title is unclean. Aren't they supposed to make sure the title is clean before offering the title insurance? We ended up not getting the house and now are unpacking and buying back furniture. Have we even gotten an apology from Old Republic for either of those derelict mistakes? NO read more

Old Republic Title on Colusa Avenue in Berkeley is a great Escrow and Title company. Specifically Alexis Williams. Alexis has been handling my transactions for the past few years. I am a Relator, and I have worked with several title companies on both ends, as a seller's agent and as a buyer's agent. Alexis is by far the best escrow officer I have worked with. Alexis is diligent, courteous, quick to respond to emails and phone calls. She gets ready well in advance for every single transaction. She communicates beautifully. My sellers are always very satisfied. My buyers always comment on how efficient and thorough she is. Hey, nobody is 100% perfect, but Alexis and Old Republic Title are as good as they get!!! I strongly recommend Alexis Williams for your escrow needs. Excellent work!! read more

Just wanted to write a very positive review for this company, especially Alexis Williams and her team. They are incredibly responsive and helpful in every step of the title process. We couldn't have asked for a better and more organized experience. Thank you, Alexis! read more

After over 20 years of happy ownership, I signed over the Albany House on Friday November 13. Lori Endo in the Old Republic Office led me through the process with skill and efficiency. It was a bittersweet moment, and with best wishes to the family who are moving into a great home, neighborhood, and community. read more

Had what was initially a decent experience turn into a constant source of frustration. Lori Endo over email initially was ok, she replied, not always at length or quickly, but not too bad. We met in person to sign the loan and she was great in-person. We had some laughs during the process and thought highly of her. It's after where things went south. First of all, this company's main purpose in the home-buying process is to be sure everyone is charged/paid appropriately. We had our appraisal paid directly to our lender, and mysteriously, the day I get the final cost sheet and refund check, I happen to notice the appraisal fee was put back on as a charge for us. I told them this is wrong, we already paid that $495 so we should get that refunded. This is where Lori's lack of organization and focus really started to.... shine? Anyway, we spent literally 22 DAYS of frustrating, back and forth emails, waiting for the new check, only to see it never come, or be the wrong amount again, before I lost it and called her boss. Ernie helped me out (as she should have) by simply cutting me my god damn check once and for all and driving it to drop in our mailbox. Lori seems too busy to focus. Ask your agent to use another company or cross your fingers. read more

My first time buying a home, so realize that I don't have the best perspective to compare to other firms. ORTC were not communicative at all, I felt that I (or my realtor) were constantly having to track down info, send reminders repeatedly, and stay on top of escrow to make sure it was moving. In the end, they still missed dates and deadlines, and failed to return calls or emails several times. read more

Abysmal customer service, and many errors in the title process when I bought a house. I wish I had listened to the other reviews and avoided! I bought a house in Berkeley in September '12 - it was my first time buying a home, and I admit I didn't shop around for a title company. Things appeared to go smoothly and we closed very near our date - and then, once I moved in, I started examining the paperwork more closely. Numerous errors abounded - there was NO legal description attached to my title at the county and the vesting was incorrect and not what I requested. People at ORTC tried to pass the blame around - to me, to the county, everywhere except the people that actually made the error and never caught or corrected it themselves. When I alerted them to the error, with the help of my attorney, they first told me it wasn't a big deal. They then suggested and even sent me a draft of a "solution" that would have led to another defective title. After much pushing, many phone calls and emails, they relented and said they would fix it - only to then cease all communication and not return my future emails or phone calls checking on on the status of my title. My attorney and I escalated to corporate and finally got a minimal response, before the Berkeley branch and Lori Endo ceased communication once again. It finally got escalated to the legal branch of the title insurance company, where I will admit they fixed it right away, within a few days - the lawyer realized that this was a HUGE liability and couldn't believe the Berkeley Branch had mismanaged it until this point. This was more than 7 months after the initial transaction, and three months after I alerted them to the defective title. In short, I experienced some of the most unprofessional customer service I've ever received, anywhere. Complete incompetence and lack of understanding of the importance of legality in transactions. Terrible public relations - no one from anywhere up or down the chain has ever even apologized to me as a customer, by phone or by email, much less offered to pay MY attorney fees in solving THEIR problem. There are many title companies in Berkeley and the Bay Area - any one of them would do better than ORTC. read more

They get one star because the sale closed on time. Even though I and our lawyer explained what was wrong to Lori Endo, she didn't correct the forms with the correct name, so we are still (13 days after close of sale) trying to get it fixed. It's been a stressful nightmare. I've worked with another title company twice and never had such a lack of response or so many critical errors. The initial online forms on DocuSign were wrong and after repeated requests, while she said they were "working on it" they actually did nothing. We finally printed and manually crossed out the errors and scanned and sent them back, even then, their final forms had the wrong name/tax ID which we are still fixing. Note their offices aren't open for signing, so there is an additional fee for a traveling notary. Suggest you use anyone else for a better experience! read more

They're not great, but they're not horrible. That's what three stars means right? The reason that they're not 5 stars is because they messed up our home insurance line item in our closing documentation (greater than $1000 difference between the actual cost and the estimate). We pointed this out to them before closing and our notary also pointed it out to them when they got some paperwork fixed. While Old Republic did fix this issue immediately when I pointed it out, they had to cancel the check sent to our insurance company and reissue the check to them and us. This cost us another $10 penalty for a returned check fee from our insurance company. I didn't find this out until weeks after the close of escrow when the insurance company sent a letter saying we still owed money or else they would cancel our policy. Yes, it's only $10 in the perspective of how much it costs to purchase a home. But after jumping through so many hoops to close escrow, it's just the final thing that was the most annoying because someone at Old Republic overlooked it. To be fair, I was all out of fight by the end of the process and did not ask for the $10 refund from Old Republic or our insurance company. There are some things that Old Republic did right: -Responsive over the phone and e-mail. -Convenient location -Fixes mistakes immediately Comparing to my friends' experiences, the overall escrow process was pretty smooth. But I'm thinking it's more due to our great buying team (Redfin - Jennifer Cord and Anna Hayashi, RPM Mortgage: Stew Sweet and Daina Sciutti). read more

BOTTOMLINE AT THE TOP: What took me over two months to try and resolve with Old Republic, I had solved in two days with another title company just down the block. They either don't know what they are doing or just don't care. No one ever tells you that selling a house is just as stressful as trying to buy one. That's why, after months and months of getting our home market ready, I was so happy that we had found a buyer. But, just when you think the hard part is over, enter Old Republic Title Co. Full disclosure, there were some extenuating circumstances around this house as I was acting for a family member to finalize the sale. When my realtor told me the folks at Old Republic needed some extra paperwork to prove I had authority I thought 'great, they're just doing their due diligence' and complied. But after submitting the documents, I received no reply for over a week (we had a 10-day escrow!) When reached back out, they told me I needed more documentation; again I complied. After no follow up after that, I set up an appointment to meet with them in person to determine what was really going on. They were very friendly in the meeting saying the understood my situation and they would double check with their underwriters because 'they were the holdup.' Days pass with no response, even after both I and my realtor reached back out several times Finally, they said they didn't feel comfortable with the situation and... that was it. They didn't offer any possible solutions or options but didn't want to cancel the sale either. They just seemed content to sit it out and hope it went away. Upon a recommendation, I inquired at a different title company just down the street and, after explaining the situation, they said knew an easy fix they said they'd be happy to help. I cancelled the title contract with Old Republic and close escrow with the new title company a week later. I just had to have a document notarized, THAT WAS IT! I don't know if the staff down there are overworked. lazy, or just like to play favorites, but at no point did they ever make an effort to proactively assist me and my family and I was always having to follow up with them to even get a reply to an email or phone call. Even my realtor, a 35-year vet in the industry, said she'd never seen such unprofessionalism. You may not know until it's too late, but if you ever get Old Republic as your title company, save yourself the stress and cancel your escrow and go with a more reputable and client-focused organization. What a joke. read more

I have been working with Shelly Parker for years and she is always on point! When you have a problem you want these guys on your side. That is what makes a good escrow officer. Staying cool under pressure and preparing docs correctly. Shelly is my go to person at ORTC! Disclosure: I am a Realtor... read more

Stay away. This title company is absolutely terrible. Even though we submitted a voided check with our title paperwork, the title agent wired the money to the wrong account. When we caught the error (after calling our bank), the title agent barely communicated with us. She said she was working on the correction without explaining whether that the money had not been wired to someone else's account, or whether we had lost our entire savings. It was on a Friday, close to the close of business and she left at exactly 5:00 p.m. with providing only the vaguest voicemail that would address the matter on Monday morning. Do not use this company. If your real estate chooses them, ask them to pick someone else. read more

Lori and her team were responsive to my questions and requests. Excellent service!

So, I sent a certified letter to the CEO of the Western Division of Old Republic Title. I got an email response to my "case". For my trouble I got a tax bill with my name on it this time(hooray!), but still the wrong address and the wrong amount. I still do not have the deed. I did get a final email from 'Pam', who I guess is a person: "This case is closed". The email directed me to "open a new case" if I still have questions. Of course, there are no directions on how to "open a new case." Strikes me Old Republic does NOT wish to help. So, now I have to go to the Assessor's office and do the work I paid them a NOT small sum to do. read more

Here is what you can expect from this company: Calls never returned, emails never replied to, missed deadlines, "forgotten" forms to be signed one day before closing, conflicting information, inability to answer questions other than "well, that's a standard form". read more

Jennifer and Carol took care of us through our first home purchase and were both a pleasure to work with. Very knowledgeable and trustworthy! What more could you ask for? Jennifer walked us through the seemingly endless forms throughout the process perfectly. Highly recommended to work with her. read more

Lori Endo and her assistant Yvonne were our Escrow officers from Old Republic Title Company. During signing appointment with Yvonne, I found miscalculation in escrow. An extra amount of money had to be transferred on our behalf after closing date. Yvonne checked the corrected amount and confirmed that they will send us a check with this amount of money. More than a month passed and now after several calls and letters I received an answer that "we held PITI for only 2 days in escrow" so there is no money to release that check! Check that was verified and confirmed to be sent by Yvonne in the written at the day of a signing appointment. Don't use Lori and Yvonne service if you don't want to lose money. read more

Sold a house and had escrow through Old Republic in Berkeley. I've dealt with a number of escrow officers in the Bay Area over the years and this was by far the worst experience. Lori Endo was unresponsive (wouldn't return calls, or respond to email), unprofessional and her staff was deceitful and evasive. Only after I escalated my queries to her manager did I even receive a response from Lori. Definitely avoid this branch if you want to have a stress-free escrow experience. I wish I could give it 0 stars. read more

Our family worked with Old Republic for escrow as first time home buyers based on the suggestion of our realtor. I must admit that I was alarmed when I saw some of the reviews here. My experience was very positive. Everything was processed quickly and professionally. Lori Endo did a great job of walking through the process and everything that had to be signed. She was very knowledgeable and answered all of our questions. With the stress of everything to be done for a home purchase, it was nice to get such great support from Old Republic Title. read more

On 8/2016, they closed my escrow. As a brand named title company, can you believed they can put in the wrong name on the Quitclaim Deed document. As a brand named title company, will you expect your county office of Assessor send you a letter(after closing and recording) saying that the title company submitted a wrong legal description of your property,with different State lot and parcel number? Unless you want someone else house become yours... I do not know how they are going to fix it, I will updated later. By the way, I am wondering did they ever checking the title record or ends up checking the incorrect property address for me... read more

They were abysmally unprofessional. Had to have documents by 2:00 pm but everyone was out to lunch when the docs were delivered at our extra effort and expense. Didn't close on our loan on time although they had all docs three days prior to close because they tried to file an undated deed of trust. Had they read the docs, they would have noticed and had that fixed. Never again will I use this lousy excuse for a title company. Next time Chicago Title. read more

Our experience was poor. There were missing documents and we had to go back. It seemed very unprofessional. Can't recommend these guys.

Stay away! This company has terrible service. I did not hear from the escrow officer once during my entire loan process. I had to call for payment instructions and errors found on loan docs. Shelly Parker does not help at all. Her tone sounds like "why are you bothering me?" Do not let your title/escrow be handled by these people if you want a stress free transaction. read more

Amber and Lori are great! My paperwork was challenging and they remained calm and got it done under a tight deadline. I had no idea the feat that was accomplished until after the sale was recorded. The ladies have nerves of steel... read more

I've probably used them 10 times or so for buying, selling and refinancing and how always found them to be friendly and helpful. When there have been delays it was usually the fault of institutions actually making the loans. read more

I had to visit their office several times and found myself standing at the front counter for about five minutes (probably longer) before anyone asked if I needed help. This was a minor annoyance but I was excited about buying a new house and was more tolerant than I might be otherwise. My biggest issue is that they made a mistake with our closing which delayed the closing by a week. It wouldn't have been so bad but they assured us we were on schedule. Based on their assurances, I took time off from work and scheduled a mover. On the day we were supposed to receive keys for our new house, they told us that the closing would be delayed by a week. I give them credit for acknowledging their mistake but when I called to ask if there was any way to expedite the closing, they were downright rude. I went out of my way to be understanding but they were short with me from the second I was on the phone. If I buy another home, I will not be using this company. Rude, rude, rude. read more