Iowa became the latest state to enable fully digital closings for mortgage transactions Monday with the passage of its new eNotary law.
Monday, Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds signed SF 475, an act providing for notarial acts, including by providing for the use of electronic media, providing penalties, and including effective date provisions.
The first photo above shows Reynolds signing the bill. In her lap she holds LenderClose Chief Operating Officer Benjamin Rempe’s daughter, who he promised could attend the signing if the bill was passed.
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“My daughters held me accountable to getting this done because I promised them they could attend the bill signing,” Remp [pictured far right in second photo] said. “What an amazing moment to share with them.”
While e-mortgages are making strides in the housing industry, eClosings are still rare, mostly due to state restrictions surrounding eNotaries. However, that is slowly beginning to change.
As electronic notarization provider Notarize noted recently, Iowa becomes the 10th state to pass a remote online notarization bill this year, bringing the nationwide total of states that allow its notaries to perform notarizations nationwide to 18.
Now, Iowa has joined the growing list of states that now allow for remote notarization.
“We moved Iowa forward today,” LenderClose Founder and CEO Omar Jordan [pictured far left in second photo] said. “Not just LenderClose.”