June 04 2012
RE Technology usually tries to keep product reviews simple, focusing only on a single product from a single company at one time. However, we are deviating from our usual routine for this review with very good reason: the suite of products from Instanet Solutions integrate so seamlessly that to try to cover each separately would be doing a disservice to readers and to the product. Still, it's important to note that each of the products mentioned in this review can be purchased separately, if you so choose.
To make this as easy to visualize and understand as possible, we will first walk through some of the most basic tasks related to a new transaction.
We'll begin in TransactionDesk, Instanet's transaction management solution. There are several ways to create a transaction:
Whether you're using the one-click transaction option or creating a transaction manually, Instanet will automatically load the property information, the parties involved (including contact information, in many cases), and the forms necessary to complete the transaction.
Now, here are a few things about forms and documents to keep in mind. One of our first questions was: "Where are these automatically-populated forms coming from?" The answer is that forms may come from one or several sources, depending on your unique case. Generally, they'll come from your broker, your MLS, and/or your local or State Association of REALTORS®. In addition to forms, there will also be a list of documents you need. (Yes, forms and documents are different – forms are incomplete, whereas documents are completed forms and, of course, documents that were never forms, like an inspection report.)
Forms are automatically populated with the property details that were added when you created the transaction. The team at Instanet informs me that these forms will work on Mac, PC, and even on smartphones and iPads. When you're finished editing the form, you can fax or email it to someone to be reviewed and signed electronically (with Authentisign, which we'll talk about next).
Authentisign, Instanet's electronic signature solution, is integrated with the forms, transaction management and document management products from Instanet, creating a smoother experience. I'm not going to get too heavily into the details of Authentisign's functionality – basically, it offers the robust features you'd expect from a well-engineered electronic signature solution. Here are a few examples; you can:
Thanks to that handy dandy integration from your MLS, Association, or broker, most forms don't require you to add the fields for signatures and initials with the time consuming drag and drop tool. However, those tools are available to you should you need them.
Once a document has been signed with Authentisign, it is automatically routed into the associated transaction file in DocBox and TransactionDesk.
DocBox is the other member of the Instanet product suite, and a review wouldn't be complete without at least a mention. This document management solution allows users to perform all the typical document management functions (saving, sharing, etc.) but also allows them to merge documents, change documents from .pdf to Word and vice versa, as well as edit and markup documents.
Within DocBox, you can also store documents that are unrelated to specific real estate transactions. For example, you can create new folders for things like logos, templates, reports, and articles. You can then share those folders with other members of your team.
You can subscribe to DocBox on a standalone basis or along with any other module and is included with a TransactionDesk subscription.
Here are several things we saw that stood out to us:
If Instanet is available in your market, you would be remiss not to take advantage of your access to the product. Be sure to leave a note below if you are a fan of Instanet, or you have any problems with the solution. Other agents will appreciate your comments.