SKLD Information Services, a division of SKLD Title Service Inc., has long maintained an extensive image library of publicly recorded real estate documents in-house and online. This comprehensive and accurate library of real estate documents covers 14 front range Colorado counties which contain 85 percent of the state’s population. SKLD opened its doors in 1961 and is known as Colorado’s premier title plant and real estate information provider.
In mid-2012 the company embarked to extend its online database and have documents back to original land patents immediately available to their customers. This scanning project, currently well past its midway point, involves converting more than 100 years of material and more than 42 million pages of publicly recorded documents. SKLD anticipates completing this project near the end of 2013.
“At the onset of the project, the majority of the documents prior to 1989 were stored in our in-house library, on microfilm,” David Floyd, president of SKLD Information Services, said. “There were two problems. First, there was a time delay for our customer while they waited for our scanning team to pull the film, scan it and make it available to them. This didn’t offer the instantaneous response that we would like to provide.
“The second – and ultimately more serious – problem is that microfilm isn’t necessarily permanent and can degrade over time impacting the quality of the copies. With digitization, these documents will be both instantaneously accessible and permanent. This project ensures the preservation of these public records”
Besides the ease of use and having the county documents available on one website, the other major benefit allows individuals and businesses to work from anywhere 24/7. This gives them tremendous efficiencies in reduced time and travel to county offices.
Images not yet scanned are still available by request through SKLD’s internal Scan-On-Demand Department. As the scanning project continues the newly scanned documents are indexed and added to the existing SKLD online document database.
On an ongoing basis the company purchases all newly filed real estate documents from county clerks and subjects the data to a rigorous verification process. Data is double-checked and verified and entered into SKLD’s database. It’s typically available within three days of being released by county clerks.
County sections currently completed – and available on http://www.SKLDoc.com by reception number and year or by book and page – include: Adams County: 1947 to present; Arapahoe County: 1947 to present; Boulder County: 1989 to present; Broomfield County: 2001 (date of county formation) to present; Clear Creek County: 1989 to present; Denver County: 1989 to present; Douglas County: Patent (1864) to present; Eagle County: Patent (1883) to present; Elbert County: 1967 to present; El Paso County: 1989 to present; Jefferson County: Patent (1860) to present; Larimer County: some in 1939 to 1977, 1977 to present; Pueblo County: 1989 to present; Weld County: 98 percent Patent (1864 Book 3) to 1929, 90 percent1929 to 1962, 99 percent 1962 to present.
In addition to website access, SKLD also offers customized reports, information and mailing lists regarding property information and analysis based on the information derived from the database.
Among the reports and lists available are:
(1) New homeowner direct mail lists providing all the new property owners in an area;
(2) The foreclosure package with information from the notice of election and demands, certificate of purchases and public trustee’s confirmation deeds;
(3) Lists of federal, state or mechanic liens issued;
(4) Bankruptcy filings;
(5) The Real Estate Lending Activity report details lender market activity in an area and provides information such as the loan amount volume, number of loans and type of loans during a specified period of time; and
(6) By matching or not matching warranty deed information with trust deed information, SKLD can produce lists which would determine new purchased homes, refinanced mortgages, second mortgages and owner carried mortgages.
The newest service of SKLD benefiting the oil and gas industry is the oil and gas surface lease index report. The report provides information for the landman to search the ownership of surface and mineral rights. The report is indexed by section, township, and range parameters and is available for land in Adams, Arapahoe, Boulder, Denver, Douglas, El Paso, Jefferson, Larimer, Elbert and Pueblo counties. The customized report is ready within 24 to 48 hours and contains embedded links to document images including agreements, contracts, deeds, oil and gas leases, pooling agreements and royalties. The report includes the variations of assignments, assumptions, modifications, releases and ratifications of these documents. These reports have streamlined the process for industry personnel by simplifying the cursory analysis and reducing search time thus saving companies valuable time and money.