Buying a home is the most significant – and complex – financial transaction most of us will ever close in our lifetimes. That complexity makes it necessary to turn to experts who have the knowledge and integrity to guide us through steps, unfamiliar terms, and figures that seem to grow more fluid every day.
Fortunately, Rosemary Calcese at Transformation Title & Escrow is two of those experts. As a title and escrow officer and an attorney, she not only understands the home-buying process, she can also draft necessary legal documents in-house.
“Real estate has always been a legal transaction, and every closing has a lawyer on the list,” Calcese said.
At the heart of Transformation Title & Escrow however, is Rosemary’s zeal to protect clients and families from being misled or overwhelmed while they look forward to being handed the keys to their new home or place of business.
A heart for service
At just 17 years old, Rosemary enlisted in the Navy, earning a bachelor’s and master’s degree while on active duty. When she left the Navy, she married an Army Nightstalker, now CW4 Philip Calcese, and worked for a real estate developer in Texas. She soon moved to a tier one law firm, where she worked as a paralegal and was encouraged to go to law school.
“It was unusual to do so at 35,” she says. “But with the experience I already had, when I graduated I began working on commercial and real estate transactions for Fortune 500 companies.”
When working at her Nashville firm, she heard about negative experiences friends and colleagues had in the real estate world.
“So many people bought a house and just didn’t understand what happened. They were never sure if or where they may have been overcharged, or they were just never clear about where their money went,” Rosemary said.
She began spending time and working on weekends to help people fix their problems. “I still get very emotional about it because in the 160th, our husbands are deployed with little or no notice and no communications. Sometimes, the family might be in the middle of buying a house and they are suddenly told they can’t. I’m here to tell them yes they can; they just need to do the work.”
Serving those who served
Rosemary finally opened her own title company, which she leads with a servant’s heart.
“Everyone is an exception in some way, and there is no difference in the way I serve the people at a Fortune 500 or in the house next door,” she said. “It starts and ends with answering every question about the closing process.”
She adds that everyone in a real estate transaction – buyer, seller, agent, and lender – is the client, and she is committed to protecting everyone. “It is my job now to make sure the deal closes and my clients understand what is happening and what they’ve done. I don’t take that lightly, and it should get the respect it deserves. It means I slow down for every one and work with focus.”
Apart from the pack
Rosemary’s law firm runs parallel to her title company, so she can provide a full plate of legal solutions.
As a boutique agency owned by a title agent who is also the attorney, Transformation’s success is not based on volume. “Everyone here is an expert on what they do,” Rosemary said. “Every closing needs a title officer and an attorney, but with me you get both. My law firm is parallel with the title company, so everything we do is in-house, and we look at every piece of paper without the high cost that comes with having outside attorneys move paper around.”
She reminded buyers that they are able to choose any title company they want for a home or commercial purchase.
“There is always the potential for a title conflict, which, for many title companies, means outsourcing to an expensive outside attorney. That can break the bank because the attorney has no interest in closing the deal quickly, and buyers should not have to spend more of their down payments funds to afford the legal solution or switch to a new company mid-stream.”
For more, go to the Transformation Title & Escrow website, call 931-343-8188, or visit them in their new location at 25 Jefferson St., Suite T1.