Title Insurance Agency promotes Charity Murow, makes two strategic hires for new CRE team

Proper Title, LLC, a full-service title insurance agency primarily serving the Midwest, has announced the launch of its national commercial services division through the promotion of Charity Murow from senior underwriting counsel to director of underwriting and compliance, and the addition of Cullen Marshall as national commercial underwriting counsel and Dolores Saavedra as senior national construction escrow manager.

“As the number of our commercial real estate closings has risen in recent years, and the awareness that Proper Title can also assist our local clients on a national level, we knew the best way to meet market demand was to expand our services with a dedicated national team,” said Kathy Kwak, COO of Proper Title. “Charity Murrow has done a fantastic job handling our local and national commercial transactions to date, but as word spread across our clients how well we handle their national deals with the same attention to client service as their local deals, that’s when our national commercial business really took off.”

In addition to providing title insurance and underwriting for commercial real estate transactions nationally, Proper Title has an in-house construction escrow team that manages the distribution of funds on construction projects.

“Construction escrow capabilities is a niche specialty of ours, and clients appreciate this one-stop shop approach,” Kwak said. “We provide clients with peace of mind that the construction escrow side is handled professionally and timely – keeping their project on track. With rapid growth in both our commercial closings and construction escrow services, we quickly realized we needed more support to better serve our rising client base.”

Murow will lead the underwriting charge of the newly formed division, which officially launched in January 2024, following Proper Title’s biggest year ever for commercial real estate transactions. In 2023, the title insurance agency closed more than 80 national commercial real estate deals, but with the addition of Marshall and Saavedra, the team could see that number easily reach triple digits. According to Kwak, the majority of last year’s commercial closings originated from attorneys pleased with Proper Title’s handling of local commercial deals and turned to the firm for support in other states.

“One of our biggest goals is to make the closing process as smooth and efficient as possible for all parties, which includes attorneys,” said Kwak. “As a real estate lawyer myself, I know how complex commercial closings can be and the value of working with someone you can trust who understands your business, so I’m thrilled we can offer our title insurance, underwriting and construction escrow capabilities to clients whether they’re near or far. This is especially important in today’s real estate market with so many local developers and construction firms working on projects outside of the Midwest. We can continue to work with them no matter their location.”

One of the new hires to Proper Title’s National Commercial Services team is Cullen Marshall who joined the firm in January as national commercial underwriting counsel. Marshall most recently served as vice president and regional underwriting counsel for Title Resources Guaranty Company in St. Louis, where he was the lead underwriting contact for title agents across a multi-state division. Prior to that, he served as vice president and division underwriting counsel for Old Republic National Title Insurance Company in St. Louis. A licensed attorney in Illinois and Missouri, Marshall began his career a decade ago as a junior associate attorney for Kodner, Watkins & Kloecker, LC, where he assisted senior attorneys with corporate entity formations, real estate closings, settlement negations and foreclosure proceedings.

“Cullen’s experience in establishing and growing underwriter/agency relationships in new regional markets is an excellent fit for our growing national commercial services division,” Kwak said.

A 23-year veteran of construction escrow, Dolores Saavedra also joined Proper Title in January as senior national construction escrow manager. Most recently, she was vice president – construction escrow manager at Near North Title Group in Chicago. Prior to that, she spent 18 years at First American Title Insurance Co. in Chicago as a senior construction escrow officer.

“Managing construction escrow requires diligence and meticulous attention to detail to provide for the secure and reliable distribution of funds on a construction project,” Kwak said. “Dolores is one of the best in the industry at doing just that, and we’re so lucky to have her on the team.”

To date, Proper Title has handled a wide variety of commercial real estate transactions, ranging from multi-unit buildings and car dealerships to condominium deconversions, student housing, medical office buildings and farmland.

“Guiding commercial real estate clients through all aspects of title insurance and the underwriting process in multiple states requires a top-notch team,” Kwak said. “With the promotion of Charity to director as well as bringing on Cullen and Dolores, we’re well-positioned for national growth.”

About Proper Title, LLC:

Chicago-based Proper Title, LLC, is a full-service title insurance agency serving the residential and commercial real estate industries. Since its founding in 2013, Proper Title has substantially grown its transaction volume in just a few years with its commitment to servicing the needs of its clients and was named Fidelity National Finance Family of Companies #1 Issuing Agent in Illinois for 2020. The firm has earned the “Rising Star / Excellence in Action” award by FNF for the past six years in a row and was awarded Crain’s Chicago Business “Best Places to Work” in 2019 and 2020. Proper Title was also named one of Forbes America’s Best Startup Employers of 2021. For more information, visit propertitle.com.