Press Release - August 1, 2008
Charlottesville, VA: A new company was launched today to address the needs of horse owners and agents in the fast-growing equine industry. HorseClosings.com is the first known “equine closing” company that provides several programs to document the terms of horse sales and leases.
The owners of the company, Krysia Nelson and Tamara Tucker, are lifelong horsewomen and equine attorneys. With all of the recent scrutiny on the horse business and the efforts to bring integrity and transparency to the sales process, Ms. Nelson and Ms. Tucker recognized the need for a neutral company to “close” horse sales much like real estate closing companies finalize home and land sales.
“There has been a big push in the industry and in various state legislatures to clean up the horse sales business. But what everyone is suggesting is that horse trainers should be punished for not doing paperwork the way lawyers think it should be done. That’s not fair —we think that HorseClosings.com is a private sector answer to these problems. It is an easy choice for buyers and sellers alike. And, it gets trainers back in the barn and out of the office,” said Ms. Nelson.
Ms. Tucker stated that, “Over the years, I have seen all types of disputes arise from horse sales that were improperly documented and finalized. Recently I had a client who sent their horse to a reputable professional to be shown and sold. The horse was sold, the buyer paid their money to the professional, and because the professional was in debt, his bank account was frozen with the seller’s money in it. Had the parties used HorseClosings.com, the money would have been paid by the purchaser into an escrow account and disbursed along with the “HorseHUD-1”© and the transfer of ownership. Now, the buyer has a horse that cannot be properly recorded with USEF and the seller may never get her money.”
The HorseHUD-1© is the Horse Uniform Disclosure of Information Form that sets forth the purchase price paid by the buyer, the amount of commissions paid to all agents, the amount to be paid for insurance, other costs, if any, and the net amount to seller. All parties sign off on the HorseHUD-1 so there is complete transparency in the transaction. The money is held by HorseClosings.com in an insured escrow account so that there is no delay in the seller and agents receiving their money. In fact, if all parties are accessible and cooperate, transactions can be closed in one business day.
In today’s world, handshake deals often result in a lawsuit or, worse, criminal prosecution. Using HorseClosings.com can afford buyers, sellers, and agents significant protection and peace of mind. In short, HorseClosings.com just makes good horse sense. |
