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Saundra Hayman built a reputation over the past several years as a local author, researching and documenting life in the mid-twentieth century Caroline County through story telling. Writer-Saundra followed a long career as researcher and documentarian of a different sort – a title abstractor.
Hayman operated Choptank Abstracts, LLC, since 2009, with over 23 years of experience prior. On Nov. 1, she will retire and pass on the goodwill of the 17-year-old business to Margie Hannawald, operating through her new company, Shore Right Abstracts LLC.
Hannawald shares Hayman’s interest in research and documentation, so it seemed natural that she picks up the mantel of title search and abstracts, recording services, and historical research. She is leveraging 15 years of professional experience with land records and wants to have a positive impact through her knowledge and resources.
When Hannawald departed the Caroline County Clerk of the Court’s office, she looked for a path that would be as rewarding. One phone call with Hayman is all it took. Both women knew each other professionally and often chatted over the years about the work. As is often the case, timelines diverged, and as Hayman seriously considered retirement, Hannawald found herself ready to jump into small business ownership. “To have (Hayman’s) blessing and her encouragement but also have her to lean on during the transition (hers into retirement and mine into abstracting as a full-time job) is a gift that I do not take for granted,” Hannawald said.
“I know many times people say that it’s not what you know, it’s who you know,” Hannawald said. “But in this case, it’s what I know AND who I know. I know I cannot fill her shoes, but I intend to run a successful business just as she has.”
While the work of title abstracts seems transactional, Hayman points out that behind the transactions are circumstances that are either the best times or the worst times for the clients. In her years of being across the table during real estate settlements, she said one of the most gratifying was, “the young woman raising her children alone who worked her way into purchasing a Habitat of Humanity Home.” She shared in the joy of first-time home ownership, or the upward mobility of a family moving into its “dream home.” But she also had to be a witness transactions due to dreadful circumstances: parsing assets due to divorce, selling a family home after the death of the parents, and home or farm foreclosure. Hayman’s most memorable event “occurred at the Caroline County Courthouse - my husband, Chuck, and I met and fell in love in the Land Record vault!”
More time with Chuck, family and friends, is something Hayman is looking forward to in retirement. She won’t exactly stop “working” as her focus will be on writing historical fiction. She has published four books, and there are plenty of more stories. “I have another true event that happened in Caroline County that I have been researching, conducting interviews and developing since spring,” Hayman said. “It is my largest project to date, and I want it to be my best.”
Hannawald sees this new chapter as an opportunity to continue pouring herself into her family and community. She and her husband, Jared, have two young children and being in business for herself affords her more flexibility to work with scheduling demands of family and business. “Being present and available for clients’ needs but also being available for my kids is something that is worth its weight in gold.”
On upstarting a new business with an active family, Hannawald said, “I think the rewards far outweigh the challenges, and any small business owner will tell you the same.”
As for the title abstract work itself, Hannawald looks forward to continuing to learn about the processes from the private sector perspective. “I do believe that the ability to offer services efficiently is incredibly valuable to meeting clients expectations.”
She has seen changes in how technology has improved efficiency for title and land record work. “When I started working in the Clerks office, we still had a numbering and stamping machine that manually assigned book and page numbers. Now it is all automated, and you can even do e-Recording of documents.” But the human touch is still very necessary and relevant. She enjoys leveraging technology with historical significance, such as locating and reading documents from the early 1600s to 1800s. Hannawald says, “the ability to locate records and to research is still a special niche. Not all of it can be done simply by sitting behind a computer.”
Hannawald and Shore Right Abstracts LLC can be reached via email shorerightabstractsllc@gmail.com .
