Immediate Release
August 13, 2010
Batavia, Ohio. “There are lots of exciting things going on in our office, with the goal of making this branch of county government more user-friendly,” said Clermont County Recorder Debbie Clepper. Her office, located on the first floor of the Clermont County Administration Building (101 E. Main Street in Batavia) is tasked with keeping vital records pertaining to ownership in county real estate (land) and to all encumbrances or liens upon it. “The most frequent users of our office are title examiners and people who are doing historical or property research; in fact some of them are here so often, someone may think they’re part of our staff!” said Clepper.
She is especially proud of the new look for the Recorder’s Web site, www.recorder.ClermontCountyOhio.gov; more information has been added, there’s an opportunity to file documents online (instead of mailing or hand delivering them), fee schedules are posted, and there are tips on how to file different types of documents. “You can even sign up for e-mail alerts that can be transmitted to your computer and cell phone,” said Clepper. “This free service is a great way to update our frequent users of new policies, or if inclement weather, like we had last winter, forces us to close the office for the day.” Clepper is also pooling resources with the Auditor’s Office by sharing computer space set aside for individuals who come into the office to do research.
While e-recording information is still in its infancy locally, she is seeing more and more people rely on it. “It’s safe and secure, and even though the company that manages the site for us charges a fee, it is faster and less costly than paying someone to deliver the documents,” she said. “If there is a problem with a document filed electronically, we can send it back to the person who sent it to us for changes, right away. They can make the changes and the filing is complete within a short period of time. A lot of our bigger customers really like this feature.”
Clepper says her staff has adapted well to the office upgrades. “It has will cut down on the amount of paper we have to handle,” she said. “Citizens who use our services are giving us great feedback on the upgrades. What’s really great is that the services are being upgraded without costing taxpayers additional dollars.”
Pictured above: Numerous individuals use the Recorder’s Office computers to access title and land information; they can also search the Auditor’s Office database.
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For additional information about this or other county news, contact Clermont County Communications Director Kathy Lehr at (513) 732-7597 or by e-mail, klehr@co.clermont.oh.us.