After implementing policies and procedures designed to meet the ALTA Best Practices standards, your company is ready to undergo an assessment. Refer to the assessment option that best fits your company's needs.

Self Assessment

A self assessment requires companies to internally review and test their policies and procedures to determine whether they meet the Best Practices standards. Use the tools below to conduct your self assessment and embark on the road towards compliance!

• New: ALTA Best Practices Framework: Title Insurance and Settlement Company Best Practice (Version 4.0)
  

  Version 4.0: Publication 01-23-23 | Effective 05-23-23)

• NEW: ALTA Best Practices Framework - Version 4.0 Overview Presentation
• New: ALTA Best Practices Framework: Assessment Procedures (Version 4.0)
• New: ALTA Best Practices Framework: Internal Assessment Report and Letter (Version 4.0) [M] [C] [A]
• New: ALTA Best Practices Framework: Third-Party Assessment Report (Version 4.0) [M] [C] [A]
• Assessment Readiness Guides for Pillars 1 - 7 (v. 3.0)
• Title Insurance and Settlement Company Best Practices Framework V 3.0 (10-17-2019)
  

  This is the ALTA Best Practices Framework version 3.0

• ALTA Best Practices Framework - Assessment Procedures V3.0 (07-08-2020)
  

  Utilize these ALTA Best Practices Assessment Procedures to determine compliance with the ALTA Best Practices.

  • For Assessment Procedures with no defined sample size or tolerance, 100% compliance with each Assessment Procedure tested is required to be considered “Optimized.”  For Assessment Procedures with defined sample sizes and tolerance levels, results must be within the tolerance level to be considered “Optimized.”
  • If all Assessment Procedure results are “Optimized,” then agent is fully compliant with the ALTA Best Practices.
  • If results are not “Optimized” for any Assessment Procedure, refer to the ALTA Best Practices Maturity Model to develop a progress plan.
• Assessment Guide & FAQ Resource (v 3.0)
• Best Practices - Policy and Procedure Creation Guidance (v 3.0) [M]
  

  The Policy and Procedure Creation Guidance includes detailed instructions and tips on how to draft procedures that fit a company's practices, an example of what written policies and procedures should look like, as well as a template to provide a standard format for recording policies and procedures.

• Best Practices 3.0 - Implementation Process Overview - Flowchart (Single Page, 12-23-2021 v1.9)
  

  Implementation Process overview document.  Some hyperlinked documents can only be accessed by logged-in ALTA members.  Holding down "Ctrl" while clicking on a link opens the link in a new window.

• Best Practices Compliance Management Report (v 3.0) [M]
  

  The Compliance Management Report is a high level report that companies complete to provide the results of a self assessment to lenders or other third parties. Users must first complete a self assessment using the Assessment Readiness Guides before completing this Report. The Report also allows a company to attest that it meets all of the Best Practices standards.

• Maturity Model Explainer (v 3.0)
  

  This document provides detailed information about what the Maturity Model is and how to use this new assessment reporting tool.

• Sample Outline/Table of Contents for Best Practices Policy and Procedure (v 3.0) [M] [C] [A]
  

  The Sample Outline provides an example of items a final policy and procedure should include.

• Template for Best Practices Policy and Procedure (v 3.0) [M]
  

  The Template provides a standard format for companies to use when drafting their policy and procedures. After drafting their policies and procedures, companies can combine these Templates into a Best Practices Manual.

Assessment Readiness Guides

The Assessment Readiness Guides help companies self-assess their compliance with each pillar of ALTA's Best Practices. Each guide contains a series of simple yes/no questions about a company's practices and series of simple testing standards based on the Assessment Procedures for a specific pillar. The guides also allow companies to attach documents that evidence their compliance with Best Practices.

• Pillar 1 - Licensing: Assessment Readiness Guide (v 3.0) [M] [A]

• Pillar 2 - Escrow Trust Accounting: Assessment Readiness Guide (v 3.0) [M] [A]

• Pillar 3 - Protecting NPI: Assessment Readiness Guide (v 3.0) [M] [A]

• Pillar 4 - Settlement Processes: Assessment Readiness Guide (v 3.0) [M] [A]

• Pillar 5 - Policy Production: Assessment Readiness Guide (v 3.0) [M] [A]

• Pillar 6 - Insurance Coverage: Assessment Readiness Guide (v 3.0) [M] [A]

• Pillar 7 - Consumer Complaints: Assessment Readiness Guide (v 3.0) [M] [A]

Resources for Certification Specialists

Using the tools below, a certification specialist may also perform an assessment of a company's policies and procedures to help determine whether the company meets the Best Practices standards.

• New: ALTA Best Practices Framework: Title Insurance and Settlement Company Best Practice (Version 4.0)
  

  Version 4.0: Publication 01-23-23 | Effective 05-23-23)

• NEW: ALTA Best Practices Framework - Version 4.0 Overview Presentation
• New: ALTA Best Practices Framework: Assessment Procedures (Version 4.0)
• New: ALTA Best Practices Framework: Internal Assessment Report and Letter (Version 4.0) [M] [C] [A]
• New: ALTA Best Practices Framework: Third-Party Assessment Report (Version 4.0) [M] [C] [A]
• Assessment Readiness Guides for Pillars 1 - 7 (v. 3.0)
• Title Insurance and Settlement Company Best Practices Framework V 3.0 (10-17-2019)
  

  This is the ALTA Best Practices Framework version 3.0

• ALTA Best Practices Framework - Assessment Procedures V3.0 (07-08-2020)
  

  Utilize these ALTA Best Practices Assessment Procedures to determine compliance with the ALTA Best Practices.

  • For Assessment Procedures with no defined sample size or tolerance, 100% compliance with each Assessment Procedure tested is required to be considered “Optimized.”  For Assessment Procedures with defined sample sizes and tolerance levels, results must be within the tolerance level to be considered “Optimized.”
  • If all Assessment Procedure results are “Optimized,” then agent is fully compliant with the ALTA Best Practices.
  • If results are not “Optimized” for any Assessment Procedure, refer to the ALTA Best Practices Maturity Model to develop a progress plan.
• Assessment Guide & FAQ Resource (v 3.0)
• Best Practices - Policy and Procedure Creation Guidance (v 3.0) [M]
  

  The Policy and Procedure Creation Guidance includes detailed instructions and tips on how to draft procedures that fit a company's practices, an example of what written policies and procedures should look like, as well as a template to provide a standard format for recording policies and procedures.

• Best Practices 3.0 - Implementation Process Overview - Flowchart (Single Page, 12-23-2021 v1.9)
  

  Implementation Process overview document.  Some hyperlinked documents can only be accessed by logged-in ALTA members.  Holding down "Ctrl" while clicking on a link opens the link in a new window.

• Best Practices Compliance Management Report (v 3.0) [M]
  

  The Compliance Management Report is a high level report that companies complete to provide the results of a self assessment to lenders or other third parties. Users must first complete a self assessment using the Assessment Readiness Guides before completing this Report. The Report also allows a company to attest that it meets all of the Best Practices standards.

• Maturity Model Explainer (v 3.0)
  

  This document provides detailed information about what the Maturity Model is and how to use this new assessment reporting tool.

• Sample Outline/Table of Contents for Best Practices Policy and Procedure (v 3.0) [M] [C] [A]
  

  The Sample Outline provides an example of items a final policy and procedure should include.

• Template for Best Practices Policy and Procedure (v 3.0) [M]
  

  The Template provides a standard format for companies to use when drafting their policy and procedures. After drafting their policies and procedures, companies can combine these Templates into a Best Practices Manual.

• AICPA Guidance
  CPAs may refer to Technical Questions and Answers produced by the AICPA to help guide any Best Practices engagements.

Key Documents

Some of these documents are only available to ALTA Members and Full Best Practices Subscribers (marked [M]), Assessment Readiness Guide Subscribers (marked [A]) and Compliance Management Report Subscribers (marked [C]).

If you are not an ALTA member and would like to purchase a Best Practices Subscription, please visit our Publications Page and select the Best Practices Subscription that best suits the needs of your company.

If you are a member or subscriber, Please Log In.

• Announcement 1/23/2023: Best Practices 4.0 Published on 1/23/2023| Effective 5/23/2023
• New: ALTA Best Practices Framework: Title Insurance and Settlement Company Best Practice (Version 4.0)
• NEW: ALTA Best Practices Framework - Version 4.0 Overview Presentation
• New: ALTA Best Practices Framework: Assessment Procedures (Version 4.0)
• New: ALTA Best Practices Framework: Internal Assessment Report and Letter (Version 4.0) [M] [C] [A]
• New: ALTA Best Practices Framework: Third-Party Assessment Report (Version 4.0) [M] [C] [A]
• Title Insurance and Settlement Company Best Practices Framework V 3.0 (10-17-2019)
• ALTA Best Practices Framework - Assessment Procedures V3.0 (07-08-2020)
• Best Practices 3.0 - Implementation Process Overview - Flowchart (Single Page, 12-23-2021 v1.9)

FAQ Portal

To help ensure industry receives consistent guidance about the Best Practices, ALTA will be publishing answers to frequently asked questions on its FAQ Portal. If you do not see an answer to your question, you can fill out the FAQ Question Form below.

Go To the Portal

Need Help?

Check out ALTA's Elite Providers that can assist with Best Practices implementation, compliance, and assessments.