(5.1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to computer programs and, more specifically to a method and apparatus for processing escrow transactions and a method of doing business in escrow transactions using computers and computer network technology. More particularly, the present invention relates to a computerized method and apparatus for escrow transactions and a method of doing business in escrow transaction management, preferably using the Internet.
(5.2) Description of Related Art
(5.2.1) Glossary
The following terms and definitions are provided for the convenience of the reader; no limitation on the scope of the invention is intended by this GLOSSARY nor should any be implied therefrom.
“Client-Server”: A model of interaction in a distributed computer network system in which a program at one site sends a request to another site and then waits for a response. The requesting program is called the “client,” and the program which responds to the request is called the “server.” In the context of the World Wide Web (“www” or “web” defined hereinafter), the client is a “browser;” i.e., a program which runs on a computer of an end-user. A program and network computer which responds to a browser request by serving web pages and the like, is referred to as a “server.” Specialized servers, such as dedicated electronic mail (defined hereinafter) servers are also known in the art.
“Electronic Mail” (“e-mail”): The process and software for sending and receiving of textual information and attachments thereto between end-users over a distributed computer network such as the internet; internet access providers often include e-mail service to its customers as part of the access software that allows the end user to dial into the internet.
“Hypertext Mark-up Language” (“HTML”): A standard coding convention and set of codes for attaching presentation and linking attributes to informational content within documents; the primary standard used for generating web documents. During a document authoring stage, the HTML codes (referred to as “tags”) are embedded within the informational content of the document; when the document is subsequently transferred from a server to a client, the codes are interpreted by the browser and used to parse and display the document. In specifying how the browser is to display the document, HTML tags can be used to create hyperlinks to other web documents.
“HyperText Transport Protocol” (“HTTP”): The standard Internet (infra) client-server protocol used for the exchange of information such as HTML documents and client requests for such documents between a browser and the server. HTTP—or HML or the like—includes a number of different types of messages which can be sent from the client to the server to request different types of server actions. For example, a “get” message which has the format GET<URL> (defined hereinafter) causes the server to return the document or file located at the specified URL.
“Internet”: A generic term for a collection of distributed, interconnected networks (ARPANET, DARPANET, World Wide Web, or the like) that are linked together by a set of industry standard protocols and the like to form a global, distributed network.
Web “Site”: A computer system that serves informational content over a network using standard protocols of the web. Typically, a web site corresponds to a particular internet domain name, such as WIDGET.COM”, and includes the content associated with a particular organization such as Widget Company. The term is generally intended to encompass both (1) the hardware/software server components that serve the informational content over the network, and (2) the “back-end” hardware-software components, including any non-standard or specialized components that interact with the server component to perform service for web site users.
“World Wide Web” (WWW or simply “web”): Refers generally to both (1) a distributed collection of interlinked, user-viewable hypertext documents (“web documents” or “web pages”) that are accessible via the internet, and (2) the client and server software components which provide user access to such documents using standardized internet protocols. Currently, the primary standard protocol for allowing applications to locate and acquire web documents is HTTP, and the web pages are encoded using HTML. However, the terms “web” and WWW or “world wide web” as used herein are intended to encompass future mark-up languages and transport protocols which may be used.
(5.2.2.) Background of the Invention
In the main, an escrow is a third party to a transaction between a seller and a buyer (the buyer and seller are collectively referred to as the “principals”). A deed, a bond, money, a piece of property, or other valuable, is delivered to the third party—hereinafter referred to as the “escrow officer”—to be delivered by the officer to the grantee only upon the fulfillment of all the conditions precedent which are imposed upon the principals and are usually of the express terms and conditions of a purchase and sale agreement (also referred to more simply as the “sales contract” hereinafter). In essence, the property is placed in trust in an escrow account.
Escrow transactions can be for both personal and real property. Some states (e.g. California) provide for the use of licensed escrow agents when a sale of real estate is being transacted. For the purpose of describing the present invention, an exemplary escrow transaction for real estate is considered; no limitation on the scope of the invention is intended by the inventor nor should any be implied therefrom.
While computers are important tools for the buyers and sellers of a valuable property (jointly referred to as the “principals”), in the main, the use of actual purchase agreements, escrow services and associated contracts, such as loan agreements, are handled manually since the true identity of the principals and their agreement by signatur on the assorted contracts and documents involved is a critical, personal factor. Notarization on the more important documents is often required. The coordination of the various entities involved with the transfer of a real estate property—namely the principals, agents, real estate brokers, attorneys, lending institutions such as banks or other mortgage related institutions, insurance companies, government and quasi-governmental entities (such as county clerk offices, local real estate boards, state deed recording and tax departments, and the like), vendors (e.g., title companies, property inspectors, property assessors, home owners associations, and the like), and any and all other entities involved in the transaction to be escrowed, is assigned to a licensed escrow agent. In turn, the escrow agent usually must involve the aid of administrative assistants to track all of the required paperwork and transfer of funds necessary to complete the transaction. As can be imagined, the number of such real estate transactions in a single California county on a daily basis is enormous. Moreover, commercial realty transactions involve even more complex service involving even more service providers.
With the advent of the so-called computer age, lending institution have devised methods and apparatus for processing mortgages and other loans. Mortgages and other transactions involving banks and credit-loan associations have been the subject of computerization for many years. See, e.g., U.S. Pat. Nos.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,876,648, SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR IMPLEMENTING AND ADMINISTERING A MORTGAGE PLAN;
U.S. Pat. No. 5,924,084, NEGOTIATED MATCHING SYSTEM;
U.S. Pat. No. 5,930,776, LENDER DIRECT CREDIT EVALUATION AND LOAN PROCESSING SYSTEM;
U.S. Pat. No. 5,940,811, CLOSED LOOP FINANCIAL TRANSACTION METHOD AND APPARATUS;
U.S. Pat. No. 5,983,206, COMPUTER SYSTEM AND COMPUTER-IMPLEMENTED PROCESS FOR IMPLEMENTING A MORTGAGE PARTNERSHIP;
U.S. Pat. No. 5,966,699, SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR CONDUCTING LOAN AUCTION OVER COMPUTER NETWORK;
U.S. Pat. No. 5,991,745, REVERSE MORTGAGE LOAN CALCULATION SYSTEM AND PROCESS;
U.S. Pat. No. 5,995,947, INTERACTIVE MORTGAGE AND LOAN INFORMATION AND REAL-TIME TRADING SYSTEM;
U.S. Pat. No. 6,012,047, REVERSE MORTGAGE PROCESSING SYSTEM;
U.S. Pat. No. 6,016,482, ENHANCED COLLATERALIZED FUNDING PROCESSOR; and
U.S. Pat. No. 6,029,149, LENDER DIRECT CREDIT EVALUATION AND LOAN PROCESSING SYSTEM.
Buyers are often “pre-qualified” by a lending institution for a particular loan amount even before seeking the right property. As a result, one of the problems of the marketplace is that the cause of delays experienced in valuable property exchange escrow transactions have shifted from the lending institution to the escrow agent. In some states, e.g., California, real estate transactions are regularly conducted via an escrow.
With the establishment of the internet, the world wide web, and the like, the emergence of e-commerce has generated a need for a computerized method and apparatus for processing escrow transactions and a method of managing escrows using such tools.