The law behind it
Federal ESIGN Act
15 U.S.C. 7001 and following. A signature or record cannot be denied legal effect just because it is electronic, as long as the signer agrees to do business electronically and receives the required disclosure first.
California UETA
Civil Code 1633.1 and following. An electronic signature satisfies any law that requires a signature, and it is attributed to the person whose act it was, which can be shown by the security procedure used.
What is not signed here
Documents the law requires to be notarized or wet signed, such as a deed of trust at closing, are handled with a notary. Real estate purchase contracts are signed through the California Association of REALTORS platform.
How signing works
- You get a personal link by emailThe link is unique to you and is stored by us only in scrambled (hashed) form, so it cannot be read back out of our system.
- You read and accept the e-sign disclosureIt explains your right to a paper copy at no charge, your right to withdraw consent, what device you need, and how to update your email. Nothing moves forward until you agree.
- You confirm it is youWe email a 6-digit code that expires in 10 minutes. Wrong guesses are limited, and the document stays locked until the code is confirmed.
- You review and signYou see the full document before you sign. You adopt a signature by typing or drawing it, then select Finish under a clear statement that you intend to sign.
- Everyone gets the same sealed copyWhen the last person signs, we produce one final PDF with the signatures applied, a Certificate of Completion and the full audit trail, and we email it to every party.
What we record for every signer
| Item | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Date and time of every step (opened, consented, code sent, code confirmed, viewed, signed) | Shows the sequence and that consent came before signing |
| IP address, device and browser, approximate location | Connects the signature to the person and device that made it |
| How identity was confirmed | The email address the one-time code went to, and when it was confirmed |
| The signature image adopted and how it was made (typed or drawn) | Shows exactly what was applied to the document |
| A digital fingerprint (SHA-256) of the original and the completed PDF | Proves the document was not changed before or after signing |
Tamper evidence
Fingerprinted documents
We take a SHA-256 fingerprint of the document the moment it is sent and again when it is completed. Change one character and the fingerprint no longer matches.
Chained audit trail
Every event is linked to the one before it with its own fingerprint, so an event cannot be removed or edited without breaking the chain.
Check any copy yourself
Upload a signed PDF on our verify page. Your file is checked inside your own browser and is never uploaded; only its fingerprint is compared with our records.
Verify a documentHow we protect your information
Encrypted in transit
Every page and file is served only over HTTPS with modern TLS encryption.
Encrypted at rest
Documents and records are stored on Cloudflare's infrastructure, which encrypts stored data.
Limited access
Only licensed members of our team with their own individual sender credentials can send documents or see their status. Credentials are stored only in scrambled form and can be switched off individually.
No selling or sharing
We use your information only to complete your document and your transaction with us. We do not sell it.
Kept as the law requires
Completed documents and their audit trails are kept for as long as the laws that govern our mortgage and real estate licenses require.
Your copy, always
You receive the completed document by email, and you may ask for a paper copy at no charge at any time.
Questions or a paper copy
Email broker@1stchoicehometeam.com or write to us at 8880 Rio San Diego Drive, Suite 800, San Diego, CA 92108.