Unlocking Real Estate Success: Lydia Craven’s Secrets for Maryland & Virginia

Erika (00:00.878)
Hey everyone, welcome to the Real Estate Pro Show. I’m your host, Erika. And today I’m joined by someone who I’ve been really looking forward to chatting with, Lydia Craven. She’s been making some serious moves in the title and real estate space. Lydia, I’m so glad you’re here.

Lydia Craven (00:22.431)
Oh, it cut out for just a second. I am so excited that I am taking part in this today. So excited.

Erika (00:32.204)
I think our listeners are really going to take something away from how you’ve been scaling operations and keeping that personal touch at Stone Street Title. Let’s dive in. So first off, for those who don’t know you or Stone Street Title, can you give us a little rundown? What’s your main focus these days and what markets are you operating in?

Lydia Craven (00:59.315)
Yeah, so I am in Maryland and Virginia. My home base is in Southern Maryland. So right now we are focusing on short sales. So I just hired a short sale attorney because I see a lot of that coming up. So I just want to make sure that I’m prepared when they start coming in. And my focus is on just making sure that these home buyers are able to afford getting in there.

And I’m doing the best that I can to help everybody get in there as easy as possible.

Erika (01:39.522)
That’s great. What I’m wondering is with working in Maryland and Virginia, how is it navigating both of those markets? What’s been the key to making that all run smoothly?

Lydia Craven (01:55.059)
Well, the software that I use is very helpful. It kind of keeps things a little separated. I have been working in Maryland and Virginia for quite some time now. So Maryland is very kind of like a blanket cookie cutter. Every county is almost the same. Virginia is a little more difficult, you know, because every county is completely different and they’re not as tight knit as Maryland is.

However, just staying organized and keeping things separate and having a good team behind you to make sure that things are going smoothly. That’s just how I keep everything going.

Erika (02:40.18)
And for our listeners here who are growing and looking to build a team, what advice would you give them when it comes to building that team? How do you find the right person?

Lydia Craven (02:52.991)
You that is actually a wonderful question so you from what I see Agents go for the one who tells them everything that they want to hear and that’s not what you want You want someone who’s gonna tell you exactly how it is? Even if it seems difficult in what they’re giving you but you want someone who has great ideas. He’s gonna

give you the resources and isn’t just playing a fairy tale because doing this is not easy. I’m sure that everybody knows that it’s not a nine to five, it’s 24 seven. It’s all the time, it’s in middle of dinner and you need someone who is gonna help bring a bunch of people together who are going to understand and work together.

And just know it’s not going to be easy.

Erika (03:56.376)
So speaking of those difficulties, is there like a common issue that you see with titles and real estate transactions? How do you guys tackle those issues?

Lydia Craven (04:10.207)
So the number one thing that I see are those unreleased deed of trust, you know, back from 20 years ago that they paid off and didn’t even know that it was still open. sometimes it’s easy. It’s just make it a phone call, sending an email or fax to them and just being on it. I find that beating the drum with these people or let me say hounding these people.

So I take the approach of I make a call, I don’t receive anything back from them, I give them a day, and then if I don’t hear anything, I am like three times a day until I get the answer I need, because the squeaky wheel gets the oil. So that’s how I handle those things. The other ones that I see are those HELOCs, just things that haven’t been released yet. And then solar panels, of course.

I like to just make sure that we get a head start on those. And again, just making sure I am just constantly on top of it.

Erika (05:15.672)
Tell us more about the solar panels. That’s really interesting. We have a lot of people who are new in the industry and would probably benefit from learning more.

Lydia Craven (05:24.511)
Yeah, there are, so homeowners think, lots of people think that solar panels are the new thing. They’re awesome, which if you have the money and you buy them outright, you don’t have a lease. They can be very beneficial. I’ve seen people who own solar panels on their home and are paying $17 a month for their electricity, which is absolutely phenomenal because mine is like 600 a month. It’s insane.

However, when homeowners get a solar lease and they’re paying, instead of paying their electrical bill, they’re paying that same amount towards the lease to pay the $17. So they’re still paying the same amount. And then when they go to sell it, they either have to pay off those solar panels completely, or they have to transfer it to the new owner.

and sometimes they don’t want them. And these solar companies are a pain, are a pain, a pain, a pain. So you have to just stay on top of them and…

But I mean, like I said, if you own the solar panels, they’re beneficial for the homeowner. But most of the time it is a lease. And these people who are selling the solar panels, the reps that they have are very aggressive. I have someone actually who sells them on my Facebook. He’s a friend of mine from high school and he sells them and he’s good. I’m like, he makes me want to buy them. And I’m like, I know it’s not a good idea. Cause a lot of

people find it undesirable because then you’re having to get that whole lease, which is probably three to $400 a month.

Erika (07:16.189)
got it, yeah. Yeah, sounds like a good idea, but then when you look into it, for some people it’s not even worth touching.

Erika (07:26.2)
So with all that you’ve been through in the industry, I’m sure you’ve got a story to tell. With all the deals that you’ve done, has there ever been a time that you’ve had to pivot quickly, whether it was for yourself or for a client?

Lydia Craven (07:26.375)
Nope.

Lydia Craven (07:47.515)
yeah. Actually, let me, recently, actually, I had a Virginia file that I just closed, probably, I think on Tuesday of last week. So I’m not sure if this is exactly what you’re looking for, but I had to kind of think on my feet here. So the lender who I have never worked with before,

disclosed fees to them in the beginning. And these were first time home buyers. They’ve never purchased anything before. They have no idea what’s going on. And they disclosed their initial CD to them in the beginning when they got their estimate and there were no title on there at all, nothing. So when we were going through the process, the agent wasn’t

providing them updated fees as I was sending them because I like to give out that settlement statement that you’ve received from the title company. I like to give that out constantly. Every time there’s a change, some title agencies like to hold on to it and they don’t want to give it out until it’s like ready to go. I like to just keep giving it, keep giving it. It’s been updated, here you go. You can see the date. This is when it’s been changed again, just to keep everyone informed. And the agent wasn’t sending it to the…

buyer, which I don’t know if they always do, but in this case, there were lots of differences from what they had originally gotten. while we were anyway at the end, there was a lot of confusion with this buyer. So in the end, we were at the settlement table, well, more like their kitchen, because I drove to their property for them to make it easier since they had some young children and

The lender and I had to get on the phone because it ended up being more than they were bargaining for. And the lender and I put in some, we just put in some credits in there. We had to figure it out to get this thing to close because it was six o’clock at night. The processors at the mortgage company were not there. So the loan officer and I had to make some, you know, last minute decisions to make sure that these buyers would sign, get it closed and get everybody happy.

Lydia Craven (10:13.075)
The next day everything was wrapped up, the buyer was happy, the lender and I still made money on it, but sometimes you gotta do what you have to do as looking out for the buyer and the seller to get the deal closed.

Erika (10:33.1)
Yeah, wow. And I’m sure all the experience that you’ve had over the years was like probably tested right at that kitchen table.

Lydia Craven (10:44.467)
yes, and I had a nice conversation with that lender after the fact because I didn’t realize that they had not disclosed any title fees at all. Because typically they don’t have the exact fees, but they should have a idea of what title charges are going to be.

Erika (11:04.942)
Got it. So with that experience, what advice would you give to someone? Basically, how to prevent something like that from happening.

Lydia Craven (11:18.367)
My advice is to an individual who’s purchasing is to make sure that when you get fees from your lender and they’re giving you an estimate of closing costs in the beginning, I’d go over it with your agent and then so the agent can make sure that there are

know, estimated loan charges and title charges and transfer and recordation. They make sure that all the boxes are checked on that settlement statement or I’m sorry, on the closing disclosure that they receive to make sure that at least the estimates for all of all of those pieces are in there for them instead of anything being missing.

Erika (12:05.358)
Got it, got it. I’m sure someone out there is really gonna benefit from hearing that. Let me ask you this. What are you most… go ahead.

Lydia Craven (12:13.095)
You know, I, I was gonna say, can I add one more thing to that?

Erika (12:19.106)
Yes.

Lydia Craven (12:19.453)
Real quick, I’m so sorry. I just wanted to make also one really good thing to do is to make sure that the buyer is aware that it is only an estimate because it seemed that for this case, they thought that that was gonna be the amount and it wasn’t, know, it’s an estimate, it’s an estimate.

Erika (12:46.05)
Got it, yeah, yeah. An estimate is not the final cost. So what is next on the horizon with a Stone Street title?

Lydia Craven (13:01.437)
Well, next on the horizon is I am hopefully going to be diving into DC and Pennsylvania. I would like to purchase a commercial building. I do have two affiliate brokerages who work with me. And if I purchase a building, then I’d be able to have the title office there and let them be able to have some office space as well.

So we often kind of work together. So I guess the plan is just to get bigger, get bigger, bring more people on, get bigger and just learn, just keep learning.

Erika (13:50.654)
I it. love it. With your goal to scale, how are you planning to maintain the awesome service that your company has always been known for?

Lydia Craven (14:05.917)
Yes, so in order to maintain that, I have to make sure that I have a good team behind me who can handle all of the processing and all of the behind the scenes. And I can make sure that I’m just overseeing everything and checking over it again and speaking to people and being available and just being.

just being available for everybody and making sure that I can answer the questions and review everything. And you just got to make sure that you hire the right people as well. And that’s just what I’ve been doing and it’s been working and just customer service.

Erika (14:57.806)
What are some pointers that you would give to our listeners when it comes to customer service?

Lydia Craven (15:06.987)
I guess the pointers that I would give is just know that not everybody is the same. So one person can be really into your goofy, know, joking and, you know, giddy and type of, you know, interactions and other really want just facts and, you know, just concise information.

and it’s not really any bubbly personality. They just kind of want you to get to the point. So I think that when you are having your initial consult with people and talking to people, kind of get a feel of how they are. Even if you are just a complete bubbly person, some people, you kind of have to pivot how you interact with people, not change yourself.

be yourself, but just pivot how you provide information to people. And because sometimes they perceive things differently, you know, as like the biker guy who’s purchasing a house is fine with some crude, you know, jokes and you know, the, the, the buyer not, or I’m sorry, the seller, not so much.

Erika (16:31.603)
Yeah, that makes a lot of sense. Treat people as the individuals that they are.

Lydia Craven (16:37.502)
Yes.

Erika (16:39.618)
I love that. A lot of people who listen to this podcast, they’re looking to level up in their journey and I think they benefit hearing this from you. When it comes to building relationships and building a network, what’s made the biggest difference for you with your business?

Lydia Craven (17:01.247)
being present and being relevant. I, it, so Facebook is wonderful to social media. Even if you’re not posting, you know, things that are real big or you know, anything of everything’s important that you’re posting. But if something that’s not like big and factual, as long as you’re being relevant and your name is coming up,

and they’re seeing your face and they’re hearing you, you’re coming up. You are staying in their mind. They’re thinking about you. So when they constantly see your name coming up, they’re thinking about you, you are right in front of them. And that’s what you need to do. You need to be right in front of them. I found that the calling some agents that I have relationships with and then asking them about

people that they know who may wanna get together and have lunch and things like that. So I try to have maybe lunch once or twice a week with some of these agents. I try to post twice a day on Facebook. I don’t go crazy with it, just twice a day. Usually in the morning, it’s something factual that’s going on in the business. In the evening, it’s usually something about my garden or things like that.

or we got new mugs or something kind of lighter, but just staying relevant, talking to people, taking them to lunch, dropping by, just little gifts, things like that. People just knowing that they’re being noticed is what I’ve seen has been working.

Erika (18:51.82)
I love that. Before we wrap up, if someone wanted to reach out, connect with you, collaborate, what’s the best way for them to reach out to you in Stone Street Title?

Lydia Craven (19:03.967)
Anyway, so I have everything on my phone everything and it is always near me so you can send me an email You can send me a text. I think I may have given you my My cell phone number text they can call myself and call the office they can fax me If you call the office, even if I’m not in the office somebody will answer or it comes to my phone So I can answer from there as well anyway

I’m very responsive.

Erika (19:36.654)
Awesome Lydia, I appreciate your time, your story, your perspective. We need more people in this space who are doing things the right way. It seems like you got like a really personal touch and you really care about the people with you work with. Thanks for being here.

Lydia Craven (19:55.071)
absolutely do and thank you so much for having me here.

Erika (20:01.203)
And for those of you who are tuning in, if you got value from this, make sure you’re subscribed. We’ve got more conversations coming up with pros like Lydia who are out there building real businesses. We’ll see you on the next episode.

Lydia Craven (20:27.197)
Yeah, it was great.