Valerie Velotta
Vice President of Escrow Operations
Valerie’s 30 years of successfully closing escrows is just the beginning. Since 1980 our business has dealt with 3 major real estate and mortgage slumps. She is one of the true “possibility thinkers” who can bring everyone involved in a real estate transaction together and facilitate a successful closing under the most difficult circumstances. Valerie is skilled and knowledgeable in all aspects of escrow including commercial, residential, income, and in structuring and coordinating 1031 exchanges.
Known in the industry as a wonderful trainer, Valerie has a knack for teaching good escrow practice to anyone willing to learn. Her instincts as a mother to six children have served her well as a supervisor, office manager, and now owner. Her grace and mercy shine through every day whether she is helping one of her employees or a client dealing with the natural stress of buying or selling a home.
Knowledge, experience, and service are great words to describe an escrow officer, but along with possessing all three of those, Valerie combines an attitude of gratitude that comes from her heart and soul.
Bob Fox
Vice President of Sales and Marketing
As the VP of Sales and Marketing, Bob draws on a lifetime of experience, including his years living in St. Andrews, Scotland where he served as Director of Marketing for Slotline Golf Europe. Bob brings a different perspective to the escrow industry.
Understanding the needs and desires of a client and customer is where it all begins. With 24 years in the escrow business, Bob understands that insight and the ability to help a customer realize what he or she needs is very important. As an agent looking to grow their business, Bob brings a wealth of experience to the table and loves to study, observe, and share techniques that work.
Bob’s frank approach and ability to get to the heart of the matter is refreshing. His ability to see solutions combined with an attitude of gratitude ring through in the motto of the company brought to life by Robert Greenleaf, “Good Leaders must first become Good Servants!”
Kay Wheelock
Escrow Officer
Kay has been in the Escrow Industry for over 35 years. She learned escrow from the ground up, spending her first two years as an assistant. Kay fell in love with her job and has never looked back. Her kind demeanor, and ability to mentor others made her a perfect management candidate. Of her 35+ years in escrow, 26 years have been spent as Escrow Officer and Manager.
Kay handles all types of real estate transactions, including residential resale, commercial sales, 1031 Exchanges, short sales, A.I.T.D’s, refinances and reverse mortgages. She takes pride in her ability to always be one step ahead in all areas of the transaction so as to provide a smooth and timely closing.
In her downtime Kay enjoys spending time with her husband of 31 years, two children and her dog “Jack”. She is also a practicing Yogi, and also loves Pilates and gardening!
Lisa McKeown
Escrow Officer
Lisa prides herself in being proactive, not reactive. She stays in constant communication with her clients and strives to keep her files one step ahead. Lisa’s natural desire to be very detailed and extremely thorough has proven invaluable. Lisa takes ownership of her transactions and communicates very well with all parties to the escrow every step of the way.
Lisa has lived in Southern Orange County for 40 years and has worked in the escrow industry for over 20 years. She began her escrow career working as an assistant for Valerie Velotta and believes that she was trained by the best.
Prior to entering the world of escrow, Lisa worked in the title insurance industry for 7 years. Understanding the inner workings of the title business gives her an upper hand in quickly and effectively solving title issues which may arise during a transaction.
Jill Escalante
Escrow Officer
Jill Escalante has been in the escrow industry since 1981. Starting her career as a receptionist and moving up the ranks quickly. Within two years, Jill became an Escrow Officer, and has worked as an escrow officer in the South Orange County area for over 32 years.
Jill joined the team at Escrow Leaders in 2007. She takes tremendous pride in her relationship with her customers. Jill is happily married to her husband Frank and she is a dedicated mother to her wonderfully talented son, a very accomplished pianist!
Tami Wyrick
Escrow Officer
Tami Wyrick is determined to close escrows! From the time the escrow opens, Tami is focused on closing, constantly working to meet all conditions. Her goal is to be prepared to close the escrow as early as possible, giving the agents and their clients the freedom to close early or on time.
Born in the City of Mission Viejo, Tami began her escrow career in 1989. Tami has an impressive resume which includes handling escrows for new home tracts, split parcels, standard sales and refinances. Tami’s #1 asset is her enthusiasm and willingness to get the job done. Her knowledge combined with a joyful heart makes working with Tami a genuine pleasure!
Candee Erwin
Escrow Officer
Providing excellent service through consistent communication and close attention to detail comes naturally to Candee! Her 30 plus years of success in closing escrows has provided her with a wealth of knowledge and experience in all types of transactions.
Candee handles all types of Sale transactions and Refinances including Reverse Mortgages. Her knowledge, professionalism, and pro-active communication make for a winning combination.
Candee enjoys spending time with her grandchildren, but is easily lured to the golf course to enjoy a round with her husband and friends.
Karin Nielson
Escrow Officer
“I’ve found my escrow officer!” This is truly a common response Karin’s customers give after using her to do their escrows for the first time.
Karin has extensive resale & refinance escrow expertise which includes: residential properties, 1031 tax-deferred exchanges, commercial properties, and vacant land. She loves to help people through the escrow process and gets a genuine thrill out of closing escrows for the buyer and seller.
She enjoys spending time with her husband and daughter, especially on family camping expeditions. Karin has a joyful spirit and an attitude of gratitude that you can hear through the phone!
Rosie Christensen
Escrow Officer
The personal touch is the best way to describe Rosie’s service to her clients. Rosie loves it when her clients come in to have documents personally notarized by her. She enjoys explaining the documents and ensuring that everything is handled and that the customer has a full understanding of the transaction. Her real estate agents know that their customer is in good hands when they refer them to Rosie.
Starting in the escrow business back in 1977 with Bank of America, Rosie handles every type of transaction including Residential Resale, Refinances, REO, Short Sales, Commercial and Manufactured home sales.
She has earned the professional designation of Certified Senior Escrow Officer through the California Escrow Association. Rosie is a wonderful asset to Escrow Leaders and looks forward to handling your next escrow!
Kristin Kaylor
Escrow Officer
Kristin has been in the escrow industry for over ten years. She began her escrow career as a receptionist and has definitely earned the title of escrow officer. Kristin’s attention to detail, self-discipline, and willingness to learn is serving her well. As a “tech-savvy” professional who prides herself on responsiveness, Kristin is well respected by her clients and truly enjoys her work.
In her current position at Escrow Leaders, Kristin handles all types of escrows inclusive of both Residential and Commercial sales, short sales, REO’s and refinance’s. Kristin strongly believes in providing the best service possible with integrity, enthusiasm, and a positive and caring attitude. She considers herself fortunate to have worked with and gained experience through her support of respected and knowledgeable escrow officers.
Kristin also has her own pet sitting business and loves animals, especially elephants!
Julie Ruddocks
Escrow Officer
As a former Navy veteran, Julie began her escrow career in 1987 as an escrow assistant and became an escrow officer in 1991. Julie’s self-discipline is serving her well and she has become very well respected by her clients and enjoys her work.
In her current position at Escrow Leaders, Julie handles all types of escrows inclusive of both Residential and Commercial resale and refinance transactions. Julie strongly believes in providing the best service possible with integrity, enthusiasm, and a positive and caring attitude. She considers herself fortunate to have worked with many respected and knowledgeable escrow officers to gain the vast experience needed to perform her duties in the field of escrow.
Kelly Robinson
Escrow Officer
Kelly started her escrow career as a receptionist in 1999 and moved up to escrow officer within 2 years. She has over 18 years of experience and handles all types of transactions including refinances, REO’s, residential and commercial resales and short sales. Kelly takes pride in being organized and truly enjoys working with all her clients.
On the weekends, Kelly spends time running to and from soccer and softball fields with her 2 children. Kelly also likes to spend time with her family at their house on the river for fun in the sun on the boat.
Holly Major
Business Development
Being the daughter of a Marine Col has helped Holly develop discipline and the ability to adapt quickly. Holly has spent her life traveling and meeting people from all over the world. With an enthusiasm for life and people, her ability to connect with individuals comes easily and is a driving force for her.
Holly sees herself more as a consultant, rather than a salesperson. She stays abreast of current real estate marketing trends and is always searching for the best and most effective and efficient tools for her agents. Earning a degree in Merchandising and utilizing her trained eye, she is able to pass along her experience with regards to branding and marketing. Her perspectives that she is a team player and her goals of assisting each of her clients grow their business have helped her gain the trust of those clients.
She has spent the last twelve years working in Escrow, Title and Notary aspects of our industry honing and developing her knowledge and skills. Holly looks forward to each day with a positive and open-minded attitude and looks forward to meeting you and assisting you with your business.
Elle Daniels
Business Development
When you meet Elle Daniels, you will quickly understand her heart for service. Service to others and of course, service to her clients whom she becomes genuine friends with.
Elle’s passion for people and love for building long-lasting relationships is clear on the surface and at her core. She has earned “Volunteer of the Year” from Orange County Realtors, but she not only serves our Real Estate Industry, Elle has been volunteering at her local soup kitchen for over 15 years. She loves to give back to her community, loves animals (she recently lost her cat Java after 21 years) and enjoys calling herself a foodie.“
I LOVE food and live for my next meal. I love to shop, enjoy red wine and my friends because none of it means anything without them.”
With 20 plus years in sales, she was the director of admissions for a private for-profit university and ran a sales team of 20. Elle has experience in B2B sales, construction, and commercial sales.
