Recently, title & escrow professionals from across the country came together outside of Dallas, Texas for the 21st annual RamQuest User Group (RQUG) Conference. The RQUG is a dedicated community of RamQuest users who coordinate their own conference to network, learn, and grow together. Following the announcement of the strategic partnership between Old Republic Title and Qualia on January 28, 2025, executives from both companies—including RamQuest President Paula Maurstad, Old Republic Title Tech President Brooks Yeager, Qualia Co-Founder & CEO Nate Baker, VP of Product and Design Charlotte Brown, and VP of Customer Success Brian Thome—came to the RQUG Conference to share their perspectives on what the partnership means for the industry and, most importantly, RamQuest customers.
Here are five takeaways from the event.
1. Old Republic Title and Qualia share a vision for the future of title
The conference kicked off with a panel featuring leaders from RamQuest, Old Republic Title, and Qualia, who openly discussed this new partnership, Qualia’s acquisition of the RamQuest platform, and how this move will benefit Old Republic Title (ORT), its agents, and existing customers of RamQuest products. The panel included Paula Maurstad, Brooks Yeager, Nate Baker, and Brian Thome and was moderated by Marc Hall, SVP of Business Development at Qualia.
Panelists discussed how the partnership represents a shared vision for the future of technology in real estate and how much the landscape for technology has changed in the last few years. In particular, they spoke about recent advancements in artificial intelligence (AI), the rise of more sophisticated fraud, and the ability to automate workflows. Yeager shared that the ORT team felt the best way to support its customers going forward was to combine forces with a company whose sole focus was to deliver cutting-edge, modern real estate closing technology. ORT chose Qualia to provide software to their network of agents and transition their direct business to the Qualia platform.
“When [Old Republic National Title CEO] Carolyn Monroe first approached me about this partnership, her number one priority was the experience of the agent and a smooth transition. We share this priority; it is the foundation of who we are as a company. We are the most customer-obsessed software platform on the market and are dedicated to supporting each and every customer as they make the choice to switch to one of Qualia’s title production systems.”
Nate Baker, Co-Founder & CEO, Qualia
Baker and the panelists went on to highlight the benefits of the partnership for agents and customers, including access to industry-leading technology at a compelling price point, best-in-class service, and a commitment to business continuity during the transition period and beyond.
2. RamQuest & Qualia emphasized a joint dedication to a successful transition
We all know that change is hard. Leaders from both RamQuest and Qualia emphasized their commitment to supporting agents during the transition process to ensure their continued success. Brian Thome, VP of Customer Success at Qualia, outlined how these teams are approaching the transition with an emphasis on business continuity to limit disruption during the evaluation and transition processes for all agents. Current RamQuest customers will continue to receive support on their existing platform until they switch systems with transparent and frequent updates along the way.
Thome also shared how companies can thoroughly evaluate Qualia’s product offerings in order to make the best decision to meet their business needs with insights into the onboarding process and a commitment to providing access to historical data. He emphasized the mutually-agreed-upon transition timeline for RamQuest platforms and encouraged customers to ask questions, evaluate, and make decisions on a timeline that is most comfortable for them.
3. The next wave of artificial intelligence is just beginning
One of the highlights of the conference was Charlotte Brown’s keynote presentation, “The Future of Technology in Title & Escrow,” which highlighted the evolution of software in the industry and applauded the forward-thinking nature of real estate professionals.
“Many people mistakenly believe that title & escrow professionals are slow to adopt new technologies. Our industry’s history proves otherwise. We started using software in the ‘80s, well before other industries. Title companies are always looking for opportunities to deliver more value to their clients and the end consumer, and technology is a crucial element of that.”
Charlotte Brown, VP of Product & Design, Qualia
Brown highlighted a recent Qualia survey which indicated that 90% of title & escrow professionals already use artificial intelligence (AI) in their work and over 50% of title & escrow professionals are optimistic about the impact of AI on the future of industry. The introduction of new technologies actually creates new job opportunities, as opposed to replacing them, and Brown emphasized Qualia’s commitment to building technology—including AI-powered tools—to help people work more efficiently and deliver exceptional client experiences.
AI was a topic of conversation throughout the conference, including in breakout sessions such as “Demystifying AI” and Tuesday evening’s “Pop a Top Table Talks” roundtable discussion. Attendees at both sessions discussed how they are using AI in their business today and their plans to create policies and processes to safely use more AI in the future.
4. Customers’ data privacy questions were answered
In today’s digital era, wire fraud and other security risks are top of mind for title & escrow leaders. The biggest thing a title & escrow company can do to protect themselves—and their clients—is to foster a culture of data protection, security, and privacy which is essential to building trust and supporting a business’ success. Several conference sessions addressed this topic. Glen Armes, Old Republic Insurance Group’s Chief Information Security Officer hosted a “Cybersecurity Essentials” session and discussed ways that title executives can create systems and processes to protect themselves against cyber threats. Qualia Trust and Security leaders Sean Hanley, Associate General Counsel, and Alex Hamlin, Head of Information Security spoke about Qualia’s approach to data security. They ended their session with a Q&A panel hosted by Paula Maurstad and also featuring Qualia’s Charlotte Brown.
Hanley and Hamlin discussed the concept of creating a culture of privacy and security where leaders, teams, and all employees handle data following strict data security standards. They stressed that companies need to equip their employees with the knowledge and resources to protect nonpublic information (NPI), design processes that don’t expose sensitive data, and use software that is designed to protect data and detect fraud. Hanley and Hamlin highlighted that Qualia regularly undergoes rigorous security reviews and is SOC 2 Type II accessed and ISO 27001 certified.
The concept of security was also discussed in the opening panel with Qualia CEO Nate Baker, who answered an audience question of ‘who owns my data.’
“You own your data, and our contracts are clear on that. We [Qualia] are committed to maintaining high standards of data integrity and are proud to employ industry-leading security practices.”
Nate Baker, Co-Founder & CEO, Qualia
5. The future is bright
As the conference progressed, RamQuest customers learned more about Qualia. Many attendees viewed live demos or visited the Genius Bar to speak with industry representatives and product experts about Qualia’s capabilities. While there are some differences between the RamQuest and Qualia systems, many attendees were encouraged to see familiar functionality and excited by some of the automations and capabilities Qualia offers across its product suite.
Many in attendance believe that this period of transition presents an opportunity to assess current processes, identify opportunities for improvement, and implement new ways of working. Some also found comfort in the fact that RamQuest and Qualia have provided a transition timeline that gives agents the opportunity to assess their options and make the choice that is right for them at the time that is appropriate for their business.
At the closing breakfast, Max Lamb, VP of Strategic Partnerships at Qualia, shared customer stories and reinforced Qualia’s dedication to supporting agents during the transition. He encouraged those in attendance to reach out to their RamQuest support teams for answers to their questions and to see tailored demos of Qualia’s product offering.
The 21st RQUG conference was capped with a slideshow highlighting some of the best moments over the conference’s 20-year history, showcasing the strength of the community in attendance. As the attendees left, many expressed a desire to keep the community together during the transition. RamQuest and Qualia leaders committed to continued access to opportunities for networking, learning, and growing together.
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