Patriot Day 2012

We are very proud and excited to be a sponsor of the upcoming Patriot Day 2012, hosted by No One Left Behind, part of the Friends of Freedom organization.  Friends of Freedom has spent the past decade working to promote public awareness of veterans’ issues.  The goal of NOLB is to publicize the issue of mounting veterans’ needs, and find and implement solutions.

We hope you’ll join us for two great days, Friday September 7^th and Saturday, September 8^th, 2012, at the Hyatt At Gainey Ranch and Gainey Golf Club for the 4^th Annual Patriot Day Celebration, with the Miami Dolphins 1972 Perfect Team. 

On Friday, the Pairing Party will get underway at 5:30PM at Gainey Golf Club. Activities will include the celebrity SINK OR SWIM competition, pre-registration of players and sponsors, landing and takeoff of Blackhawk and Apache Longbow helicopters, a lovely buffet and cocktails in the ballroom, and a live celebrity auction for partner players, with guest speaker Paul Warfield, former NFL player and Pro Football Hall of Famer.  In 1999, Paul was ranked number 60 on The Sporting News’ list of the 100 Greatest Football Players.

Saturday’s events start with registration at 10:15AM, as well as Pro lessons, 10:15 – 11:30AM.  This will be followed by Honor Guard; Ranger/Golden Knight, double-amputee Dana Bowman parachute landing; the National Anthem by Chuck Taylor; program announcements and thank you’s; and a shot gun tee time of 12:45PM. Following a great day of golf, at 6:00PM we’ll cap the day with a silent auction at Gainey Golf Club plus food, beer and wine. We’ll also have  inspirational speaker Dana Bowman and keynote speaker CSM Max Butler of AZ Army National Guard.  We’ll close with an 8:30-8:55PM Fallen Soldiers Project presentation.  

It will be a fun-filled two days, and all for such a worthy cause – our Vets!  For more information on sponsorship or player sign ups, contact your Fidelity rep, or Michael Venezia @ 602.690.5187, Michael@friendsoffreedom.us. 

Meet Amy Schaupeter, Our New Scottsdale Ridge Branch Manager

Please mark your calendars to join us August 15^th, 4:00 – 6:00p for our Scottsdale Ridge open house.  Come meet our newly appointed Branch Manager, Amy Schaupeter, and mingle with her great team, while enjoying cocktails and hor d’oeuvres. 

Born in Grosse Pointe, Michigan, Amy moved with her family to Denver while she was still in elementary school.  Amy is a “middle child”, with an older and a younger brother.  She says they are very close, even though they do not live close to one another. Her younger brother lives in Colorado and her older brother lives in St. Louis.

Amy went to college at the University of Colorado - Boulder (Go Buffaloes!), but while in college, she got the “acting bug” and took some time out to move to New York City to pursue an acting career. With completing a year in acting school in New York, Amy got a job in the theater – weekends were spent doing children’s theater projects, as well.  Amy had four different bartender jobs to help with finances while in New York City and soon realized that the theater was not the life she wanted, so she traveled in Europe on her own for a couple of months before returning to college in Colorado where she completed her degree in communications and theater.

Amy fell into “escrow land” by answering a job ad in Grand Junction, CO for a company called CPR Title. She thought the job sounded interesting and was up for a challenge (little did she know, right?). While she lived in California she worked for Brighton Escrow. Feeling the need for a change of scenery, Amy moved to Arizona in July of 2005 and continued to further her escrow career.

Some interesting facts about Amy and some of her “favorites”: She has two dogs, Maggie and Faith, and two cats, Rex and Daisy – all are rescued animals. Amy found Rex as a kitten while Amy was white water rafting with friends in California. Amy really enjoys all the water sports, but her exercise of choice is either running or hiking. She is an avid reader of fiction and mysteries. Cooking and entertaining family and friends is high on her list of favorite things to do, too. Her special apple pie is always requested and she makes a “mean” lasagna, she says. Amy also enjoys trying ethnic foods like Indian and Greek. Italy is one of her most favorite places to visit.

When asked what she likes about working for Fidelity, Amy did not hesitate with her response. “I like working for a company that really cares about its people”, Amy offered. “The resources, support teams, the great store of knowledge and accessibility to that knowledge are such a benefit.” 

As to sharing a little “life advice” with us, Amy says that being a cancer survivor has taught her to never take anything for granted and to be grateful for everything we have. Amy has been “cancer-free” for over two years now.

Melissa Shapiro's Market Update

Melissa Shapiro, VP of Sales and Marketing for Fidelity Phoenix, gives a market update and busts 5 misconceptions about the Phoenix housing market.

Pat Baldwin's Highlights

Please check out Fidelity National Title's VP of Escrow, Pat Baldwin's review of the highlights of her monthly publication.  

Melissa's Market Update

Player by BombBomb

Market Update

We each have our own reasons for loving Arizona living, and given the multitude of recent news and real estate industry reports, citing Phoenix real estate as doing better and better, we now have one more reason – or at minimum, more hope!   There aren’t many of us haven’t been affected by the huge downturn in the real estate market of the past several years.  A negative impact for many, who took a huge hit in the equity of their homes, or worse, lost them.

However, there seems to be light at the end of that dark tunnel, if all the ‘experts’ are to be believed.   While Arizona still hasn't fully recovered from the recession, the state seems to be making promising headway, especially in housing markets. 

Robert Dye, chief economist at Dallas-based Comerica Bank, which has 18 banking centers in Arizona stated, “According to our index, the Arizona economy reached its highest level since December 2008 in April.  Job growth in Arizona is outpacing that of the nation, and the Phoenix housing market has seen home-price increases in each of the last six months.”   

In a report released this week by Trulia, Phoenix was cited as being the metro with the biggest yearly gain in asking prices, up 18.9%.  Great news, but tempered with some caution from Trulia’s Chief Economist, Jed Kolko, who predicts the gains will shrink some as backlogged foreclosures hit the market.  

Echoing that sentiment is a report released by Arizona State University, authoried by Michael Orr who stated, “The notable price gains have been primarily induced by an equally notable drop in inventory, causing a decline in home sales and generating an increasingly competitive buyer’s market.”

Short sales are diminishing as those prices rise and the local economy improves.  Short sales listings in ARMLS were down 28% from last year, and down 48% from two years ago. 

Sources:  Russ Wiles, The Republic | azcentral.com; Trulia; Kristena Hansen, Phoenix Business Journal 

Teresa Floyd Named June 2012 Employee in the Spotlight

How many Arizona natives do you know? You can add a new person to your list. Our June 2012 Employee in the Spotlight is Teresa Floyd – born and raised in Arizona. Teresa grew up in the 35th Avenue and Cactus area and attended Moon Valley High School.  After completing her high school education, Teresa married Trent, the love of her life. Recently, Trent and Teresa celebrated 20 years together. Three wonderful children complete the Floyd Family – Taylor, 17, Abby, 15 and Jared, 12.
 
In 1999, Teresa was an Assistant Branch Manager for Wells Fargo, but left that position to become a stay-at-home mom.  Returning to the work force in 2005, Teresa found herself working as a contract notary signer for Shannon Graham who, at the time, was managing Fidelity National Title’s Gateway branch. Even though she had a banking background, Teresa learned the escrow business from the ground up under Shannon’s mentorship. Today, Teresa is an escrow officer at our Scottsdale Seville branch.
              
If you ask Teresa what life accomplishment she is most proud of, she will answer that, without a doubt, it is the family that she and Trent have together. She is very proud of her children and their talents. Taylor is enjoying her first job at a Harkins Theater, where she has already received a promotion and a raise. Abby is excellent at the piano, having taken lessons since she was five years old. And Jared’s current passion is soccer. He plays Club Soccer and has aspirations of being a professional. Both of the girls have their sights set on working in the health care arena.

Reading mystery books ranks toward the top of things Teresa likes to do in her leisure time. But most importantly, she loves the family activities. The Floyd Family enjoys swimming, camping, fishing, and riding quads in the White Mountains near Big Lake and Happy Jack. Attending Jared’s soccer games and tournaments are never-missed events, as well.

The life lessons Teresa is sharing with us (and what she tries to instill in her children) are to be nice to everyone; no one is better than another; direct compassion and kindness  towards those who need help; be aware of how we treat others; and finally, love to laugh (and we know she does!).

Congratulations, Teresa, on being chosen the FNTA- Maricopa June 2012 Employee in the Spotlight. Your cheerful disposition and drive to learn new things has served you well, and your team spirit is so admirable.  Thank you for your daily contribution to the Team at Scottsdale Seville and to our Fidelity Family. We are grateful for all you do.

Sincerely,
Mary Lou Paulk
President/County Manager
Maricopa County Operations
FIDELITY NATIONAL TITLE INSURANCE COMPANY

Note:  If you would like to suggest an FNT co-worker to be profiled in our Employee Spotlight of the Month feature, please contact Barbara Groeger with your suggestions at Barbara.groeger@fnf.com