E-signatures, remote online notarization, and fully digital closings are transforming the title industry. Learn how Pruitt Title is embracing technology to make closings faster and more convenient.
Real Estate Closings Are Getting Digital — Here's Where Things Stand
If you closed on a home five years ago, you remember the experience: a stack of paper two inches thick, a conference room table, multiple pens, and an hour of signing your name so many times it stopped feeling like your name.
That experience is changing. Here's where the technology stands today.
The Spectrum of Digital Closings
"Digital closing" isn't a single thing — it's a spectrum:
Hybrid closings: Most of the closing package is signed electronically, but certain documents still require wet signatures and in-person notarization. This is currently the most common form of "digital" closing and is widely available in Virginia, Maryland, and DC.
Remote Online Notarization (RON): The notary and signer connect via video, the signer uses a webcam and digital signature tools, and the notary notarizes electronically. No in-person meeting required.
Fully Digital/eClosing: The entire package, including all notarized documents, is executed digitally. End-to-end paperless.
Virginia: A RON Leader
Virginia was one of the first states to authorize Remote Online Notarization, passing its RON statute in 2012. Virginia notaries can perform RON closings, and title companies doing Virginia closings increasingly offer fully remote options.
For buyers and sellers who would otherwise need to travel to a closing, RON-enabled closings in Virginia offer real flexibility.
Maryland and DC: Progressing
Maryland enacted a Remote Online Notarization law that expanded options for lenders and title companies. DC authorizes RON closings, with the attorney oversight requirement applying equally.
What's Actually Working Today
The most commonly available digital options in the DMV right now:
- eSign closing documents (non-notarized): Most title companies can deliver the bulk of the closing package electronically for e-signature.
- RON for refinances: Mortgage refinances have adopted RON widely.
- Hybrid purchase closings: Most purchases still involve some in-person element, but the package is significantly reduced.
Benefits and Limitations
Benefits of digital closings:
- Schedule flexibility — no need to coordinate a room where five parties can all be present
- Faster turnaround on some transactions
- Better experience for remote buyers, sellers, or parties with mobility limitations
Limitations:
- Not every lender accepts RON-notarized documents
- Some title underwriters have additional requirements for RON-notarized documents
- Technology accessibility — not every client is equally comfortable with digital platforms
What This Means for Agents and Lenders
If you're working with out-of-state buyers or relocating clients, ask your title company about RON options early in the transaction. Not every situation qualifies, but many do — and the experience for your client is meaningfully better.
DMV Title Guy's Approach
We offer hybrid and RON closings for qualifying transactions in Virginia, Maryland, and DC. We'll tell you clearly what's possible and what the requirements are for your specific transaction.
The future of closing is digital. We're already doing it.
Ready to Get a Title Quote?
Pruitt Title serves buyers, sellers, and lenders across Virginia, Maryland, and Washington, DC. We make closing simple.
