Freedom Title’s Knowledgeable and Experienced Team
Raymond Young - President and CEO “Quality and Service is not a thing of the past and we’re proving it!”
Young founded FREEDOM TITLE & ABSTRACT in 1982. He is a graduate of the Woodrow Wilson College of Law, and has been a commercial project title examiner since 1977. While attending law school, Raymond Young became the youngest branch office manager in the history of the Georgia Department of Labor. He then accepted a position with a large Atlanta law firm as a commercial title examiner. In that role he got a hands-on education in the basics of real estate title examination while working on the right of way expansion for Atlanta’s rapid rail transportation system. Next he worked for a small commercial real estate law firm where it was his responsibility to examine and prepare the title, secure a title insurance commitment, attend the closing as the official representative of the title insurance company, and – last but not least – issue the title policy.
What is most remarkable about those early career moves is that they all happened while Young was still a law school student!
After graduation he decided to launch his own title company, and Freedom Title & Abstract Company, Inc. was born. For more than two decades, Freedom Title & Abstract has been Georgia’s most trusted source for titles and title insurance. Now the firm is expanding its presence into Florida, Tennessee and North Carolina, with the same high standards of professional excellence, customer service, and attention to detail.
Young’s business has grown and thrived because he and his team stake their reputation on superior service.
“When I have questions,” Young explains, “I want and expect prompt, correct answers.” The customer service philosophy at Freedom Title & Abstract is rooted in the same idea – that it is essential to treat others as you yourself expect to be treated.
“When clients call our office with questions they get an immediate response and accurate information. We keep our promises when we pledge delivery by a particular deadline, and we always strive to not just meet the expectations of our valued customers but to exceed them.”
Uncompromising standards and personal attention to the needs of customers has earned Young and his company the loyal business of many prominent clients. Those include Atlanta Gas Light Company, Georgia Transmission Corporation, and law firms such as Kumar Pathak LLC., Nelson Mullins, Riley & Scarborough, LLP; and Smith, Gambrell & Russell, LLP.
Young – who is a member of the International Right of Way Association, Dixie Land Title Association, and the Right of Way Consultants Council – is also involved in charity work to give back to the community. As an officer and board member of Missions in Action, Inc., for example, he helps to provide vital shelter, food, basic medical care, and education for people
living in the remote mountainous areas of Honduras. This organization is unique since 100% of workers and overhead are donated. “the volunteers pay their own way to Honduras…..all money donated goes directly to the mountain families and their school.
Young also takes great pleasure in his wood turning hobby whenever he has a little extra time to spend at the lathe, but he considers his marriage to his wonderful and supportive wife to be the most important event of his lifetime. The couple is passionate about travel, and they enjoy sharing a house full of beloved pets.
Lee Ann Estaver - IT Manager “There’s no such thing as can’t!”
who was one of the first people to work on pioneering technology that enabled Windows-based personal computers to communicate seamlessly with the Internet frontier – has been a System Analysis and Programming professional for more than 25 years.
She has over 13 years experience in LAN/WAN technologies, including Wide Area and Local Area Network design and LAN configuration; Remote LAN Node implementation, and desktop support.
Her entrance into the IT universe came about not through
traditional academic channels but because she possessed an unusual talent for computer programming design.
As a college freshman, Estaver interviewed for a programming position at the offices of the Miami Herald. The interview involved a full day of testing and evaluation, and although she did not get the job the employer called to tell her that she ranked in the top 97 percentile out of a field of 36 candidates. They found that remarkable, because the only
people who managed to score higher than Estaver were those with full university degrees and nearly a decade of work experience in the IT field.
Encouraged, she decided to pursue an IT analytical career, leaving college to take a job at Florida Power & Light. There she wrote the system development methodology for Florida Power & Light, based on IBM's systems application architecture.
She was also the only female on the collaborative team that delivered the LinkStackLayer, a groundbreaking technology that enabled continuous access to the Internet via TCP/IP, while running a Windows system on a PC. Being able to communicate with the Internet through Windows without rebooting (by stacking protocol layers on top of one another through LinkStackLayer) proved to be an essential tool in paving the way for revolutionary widespread Internet access by PC users.
Estaver – who has also held IT positions for United Technologies and NBC – specializes in analysis of work habits for more efficient IT design, programming, implementation, documentation, training, and support. She currently works as IT Manager and Program Analyst for Freedom Title & Abstract, one of the leading title insurance companies in the USA.
Estaver resides in No. Palm Beach running her own software company, but is in Atlanta often - “sleep? what sleep! ”
her hobbies and personal interests include travel, green technology and support of the environment, and a love of animals. She also admits that she likes to read technical computer manuals “just for fun.”
Jamie Coleman-Hyde
Jamie Coleman-Hyde, a graduate of Georgia Perimeter College, has been a valued asset to Freedom Title & Abstract Company since 1998. She joined the company as an executive assistant, working primarily as a receptionist and typist while also attending college to earn her degree. After completing her formal education she began an intensive phase of on the job training that covered every aspect of the title insurance business.
She was first promoted to the position of office manager. Being a fast learner she quickly became an indispensable and integral member of the company, and now she personally handles a wide range of responsibilities including data entry, accounts, payrolls, and bookkeeping.
After eight years with the company she began to apprentice with Raymond Young, first learning the intricate details of the record room and then becoming an experienced residential title examiner. She moved onward and upward from there and is now performing small commercial examinations and right-of-way projects.
As the company continues to grow, Coleman-Hyde will take charge of training the next generation of Freedom Title examiners, passing on the mastery she has gained over the past decade to a new group of up-and-coming professionals.
Coleman-Hyde is, above all, a proud mother and she and her husband are affiliated with the Boy Scouts of America through the active participation of their young son Zachery.
Takeybra Starks
Takeybra Starks keeps the Freedom Title & Abstract office going strong; not only performing routine tasks like scheduling examiners but also consistently ensuring that the critical documents she handles and types are error-free.
Starks came to Freedom Title in 2006 and brought with her eight years of prior experience as a mortgage loan processor, so she understands the inner workings of the title industry from a unique and valuable perspective. A working knowledge of various deeds and legal terminology is necessary because sometimes – depending upon which kind of deed it happens to be – information can be accidentally omitted or wrongly recorded. But under Stark’s watchful and experienced eye the company
and its clients can rest assured that everything that leaves her desk has been double-checked and proofread until it is perfect.
Starks, who has three daughters, spends much of her free time working with or contributing to non-profit organizations – especially those that provide support to at-risk youth or promote cancer prevention, treatment, and awareness.
Pete Blue “strive to always do your best.”
Pete Blue has been involved with the title business for more than 35 years, and has worked with Freedom Title for 15 years as a senior title examiner who has traveled extensively to work on right of way and commercial projects. Pete is best known around our office for the fact that he was Freedom Title’s project manager for the largest title project in the history of Georgia.
Blue holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Information Systems from Devry University, and an Associate of Arts degree in Land Title Technology from Vincennes University. He now lives on Tybee Island and assists Freedom Title with our Savannah area projects. Blue’s motto is “If you do not believe in yourself, you cannot expect others to. Strive to always do your best.”
He is an avid reader, writer, painter, and chef – and unlike most of us who are less savvy around electronics, Blue also likes working with computers and technology in his spare time. He loves sharing and enjoying “the island life” with his friends, his wife, and their two grown children.
Susan Roff “do it right the first time, every time.”
Susan Roff is a Senior Title Examiner and a member in good standing of the State Bar of Georgia. She earned her law degree in 1984 from the University of Georgia and after graduation spent a decade as an in-house attorney for several prominent title insurance companies handling claims, underwriting, and litigation.
We were fortunate to have her join the Freedom Title and Abstract team in 2005, where her motto has always been
“do it right the first time, every time.” She has the wisdom and experience to reduce complex and sophisticated problems into practical and effective solutions, and is an outstanding attorney with an incredible depth of knowledge
and expertise related to all facets of title work and property law.
In her spare time Roff is active in her church’s altar guild and theological book club and enjoys spending time with her German shepherd mix rescue dog, Janie.
Scott Ellis
Our man in Miami. Scotty is a former model turned woodworker and is always our golden personality that keeps us laughing. We have never found Scott without a smile but beware, it's a prelude to a huge bearhug greeting!
Additional Members:
Examiners
Melinda Boone, Darlene Byrd, Lorene Fitzgerald and our newest addition in Atlanta, Brian Risler.
Tech Support Team
Michael Sabal and Sheila Knolls.