Real Merge - user manual

I. REALMERGE OVERVIEW

RealMerge ("RM") automates the preparation of standard conveyancing documents and calculations associated with those documents.

For example, a legal description for a sale or purchase property appears in many document locations. RM presents you with a dialog box to fill-in the legal description once, RM saves the description in a "client card", and when you "assemble" documents, RM "merges" the description wherever appropriate into your documents. RM minimizes the tedium of searching, scrolling, deleting and replacing, and calculating.

RM tells you when it has finished its work. You are left with completed documents in a normal Word editing window, and you may edit, print and save the documents as you wish.

If you find that information entered into a card needs changes, or additional information becomes available that should be included in the card, RM offers the "edit" function, which allows you to make and save changes to your card file.

Precedent documents are located in the “\Rmword\precedents” folder on the root directory or folder of the “c:\” drive (or the shared drive for a network version). The document file precedents are named as indicated in Appendix "B".

The text in documents may be modified, and individual documents may be added to an existing document.

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*Word and Windows are registered trademarks Microsoft Corporation

*RealMerge is a registered tradename of Reckon Software, a division of Reckon, Inc.

II. OPERATING INSTRUCTIONS

A. STARTING REALMERGE

1. Open the Word document “RM for Word”.

2. A button will appear among the menu icons named “Project.RM.MAIN”. Click it.

NOTES

The file “RM for Word” is a Word template, and will open a window named “Document 1” if you have opened it as your first new document in the current session of Word.

RM is generally installed with a shortcut on the desktop, which provides easy access to the program. If you start you session of Word by opening the RM shortcut, the program will always run from “Document 1”, for easy reference and return after you have assembled many documents during the course of your work.

For even easier access, you may wish to copy the shortcut to the startup folder in your Windows Program menu.

The button “Project.RM.MAIN” should always appear when you open “RM for Word”. If it doesn’t, see Topic IV, “Troubleshooting RealMerge”

B. CREATING A CLIENT CARD

This is your first step with a new file. You should have a title search, tax search, and conveyancing instructions with a contract.

RealMerge organizes information in "fields", and a dialog box presents you with an entry blank to type in the information for each field in the client card.

From the Main Menu:

1. Select "Create a New Card File?"

2. In the "Card Creation" dialog box, type a (maximum) eight character, DOS type filename, no extension. This filename may be the same as your office filename or number, or it may be different.

3. Identify the file type, 1 or 2 for vendor's, 3 or 4 for purchaser's, 5 for mortgage refinance, by selecting the corresponding radio button. Check the “Condominium” box if appropriate. Select OK.

4. You will see the dialog box for the file and type of client card you have selected. REFER TO APPENDIX C FOR EXAMPLES OF A COMPLETED CARD. After you have finished with a dialog box, select OK. RM will present a second page dialog box for you to fill in with vendor's and purchaser's cards. Select OK when you have completed the second page dialog box. If you wish to return to the first page, select Back.

5. After you've finished with a new client card, RM saves the information you've entered, and you will be presented with a "Main Assembly Menu". See the instructions under "Assembling Documents".

LOOKUPS

This feature allows you to store frequently used names and addresses for later retrieval during card creation.

Besides certain entry field descriptions, you will note a check box. Select this control, and the “Open” dialog will result. Initially, only the "sample" file will appear in the folder. Double click on the "sample" file, and its contents will appear in the entry field beneath the check box you selected.

When you lookup an address, as opposed to a name, for a given firm, bank, or realtor, RM will fill in both the address and the corresponding name of that firm, bank or realtor.

You may also add, as lookups, text files that contain information you wish to store and retrieve. First, type in the information, then click the check box. A “Save As” dialog will appear, and you may then type in a filename and click "Save". Use a descriptive filename. The text files will automatically be saved and remain available for retrieval in the following folders:

bank names in "\Rmword\lookups\banks\"

bank names and addresses in "\Rmword\lookups\bankaddr\"

client names in "\Rmword\lookups\clients\"

law firm names in "\Rmword\lookups\firms\"

law firm names and addresses in "\Rmword\lookups\firmaddr\"

lawyers' names in "\Rmword\lookups\lawyers\"

realty firm names in "\Rmword\lookups\realtors\"

realty firm names and addresses in "\Rmword\lookups\realaddr\"

condominium management company names and addresses in "\Rmword\lookups\condoaddr \"

Lookups for addresses are saved in the same format as they are retrieved, that is, with both the name and the address.

Over time, you will develop a database of frequently used names and addresses for law firms, banks, and realtors, plus the lawyers in your firm.

NOTES

If you don't have information for a certain field, leave the entry blank. You can go back later and fill in the field using Edit. If you wish to leave the card creation routine, select Cancel or press the function key Escape.

You may place hard returns in a multi-line field only, such as the field for an address or a full legal description. If you press Enter while the cursor is in a single-line field, you will also select OK.

To modify or add to the contents of a client card, see "Editing a Client Card".

You may also add text files for lookups by simply creating and saving a file using Word itself, without RM running. Use the folders indicated above. The text files for the address fields may contain hard returns.

C. ASSEMBLING DOCUMENTS

From the Main Menu:

1. Select "Assemble Documents?"

2. Enter the filename previously entered by you when you created a client card. Do not enter a pathname or an extension. Or, use the Browse command to select (Open) an existing client card file from the "\Rmword\cards” folder. A double-click on the card name will also work.

3. You will see a Main Assembly Menu. Select a document for assembly. When a document is selected, specialized dialog boxes will appear for adjustments, account and trust. See detail heading below.

4. When document assembly is complete, RM will display a completion message. Click OK, and you will return to the Main Menu, and you may then exit RM by selecting "Word" to go to your merged documents, which appear in a normal Word editing window.

CALCULATIONS

The dialog boxes for calculations provide rows of entry blanks for descriptions and amounts. Commonly-used entries will appear as defaults. Rows should always be completed, or a warning will result.

When your entries are complete, select OK.

The Statement of Adjustments/Shortfall dialogs for a vendor's and purchaser’s files include information entered in the client card. This information (e.g. the deposit amount) may be changed for the current calculation, but a change made in the Adjustments dialog will not result in a change in the client card for that file. Such a change must be completed in Edit.

NOTES

If you wish to exit RM during assembly or calculation select Cancel.

RM defaults to a document assembly menu after card creation or editing. You may return to the Main Menu by selecting Cancel.

If you wish to practice assembly prior to use with a real file, use "testv2" for a vendor’s mortgage payout file, or "testp2" for a purchase with new mortgage card.

D. EDITING A CLIENT CARD

From the Main Menu:

1. Select "Edit or view an existing card file?".

2. Enter for a client card previously created by you. Do not enter a pathname or an extension. Or, use the Browse button as described in C.2 above.

3. A "filled-in" dialog box will appear with the information previously entered by you for this client card. Tab through or click on the fields in the dialog box and edit as many as you wish. After you have finished with a dialog box, select OK. RM will present a second page dialog box for you to add card information.

4. To complete editing and save your changes, select OK when you have completed the second page dialog box. If you wish to return to the first page, select Back. If you wish to leave the edit function without saving your changes, select Cancel.

NOTES

If you wish to practice a card edit prior to use with a real file, use "testv2" for a vendor’s mortgage payout file, or "testp2" for a purchase with new mortgage card.

E. CLOSING A CLIENT CARD

After a period of extended use, you may wish to erase client cards for closed files. Use the "close file?" option from the Main Menu, and select the file you wish to close. You may find it easier to delete multiple closed files directly in the folder “\Rmword\cards”. Simply select and delete the cards like any file in Windows. Or, you may wish to move old card files to an “archive” folder.

III. CUSTOMIZING REALMERGE

RM works entirely within Word. As a result, you may modify your document precedents, all of which are located in the "\Rmword\precedents" folder with the ".doc" filename extension. Appendix B lists the precedent file names as installed.

Since all documents are saved as normal Word text files, RM gives you the ability to edit the .doc files, and even add to the precedent document set.

All modifications and additions as described below are completed in a normal Word editing screen, while RM is not running.

To modify the precedents (which are described by Word as Main Documents with the Mail Merge tool), open the relevant .doc file, edit the text with the usual Word procedures, and resave the .doc file using the original filename.

When you open a .doc file, you will see the Mail Merge toolbar, which you can use to insert a Merge Field or Fields when editing (or even Word Fields, which are programming commands, to be used with caution and a backup of the original precedent file).

For example, should you wish to modify the wording in a trust letter, open the .doc file in which the current letter appears. Edit the text as you see fit, and resave. The modifications will carry forward to all future merges.

CAUTION: if you edit a file with calculated contents (all statements of adjustments, account and trust), do not erase or move the bookmarks embedded in the text. If you do, the calculated results may not appear in the correct place or at all. To locate the bookmarks, with the precedent open, select Tools, Options, the View tab, and make sure “Bookmarks” is selected.

To add to the precedents (such as the “user docs”, for example, “vusedoc1.doc”), open the appropriate .doc file (again, see Appendix B), and add your new document with field codes corresponding to the RM field codes for vendor's, purchaser's or mortgage documents. If you don’t want to create a separate new precedent, add the new document as a new page in the existing precedent, between hard page codes. Once you have completed the addition, resave. If you wish to create a separate new precedent, see “Editing the Assembly Menus Using the Menu Editor” below.

See Appendix A for the correct Merge Field numbers.

For general information on merge fields and Main Documents see the Word for Windows Reference topic, "Mail Merge".

EDITING THE ASSEMBLY MENUS USING THE MENU EDITOR

When you add new precedents to RM, you want the additions to appear as a choice on your assembly menu. To this end, RM comes with a program called Menu Editor that is included with the “RM for Word” template that you open to start. Select Tools, Macro, Macros. Run the macro "EDITOR” and you will be presented with the ability to change the choices on your assembly menus and even the file names used by your selection.

Refer to the screenshot in Appendix C. You will note that the menu descriptions (such as “Opening letter and notes to client”) and filenames (such as “vopenlet.doc”) are available in text edit boxes. The descriptions and filenames must correspond in the menu editor columns; for example, if you want the selection of “Opening letter and notes to client” to assemble an opening letter, use precedent file “vopenlet.doc”.

If you change or add a precedent, please note that this Word file must reside in the “\Rmword\precedents” folder and appear in the editor with the correct filename as well as the corresponding description. If the indicated filename does not appear in the “\Rmword\precedents” folder, you will receive an error message and you will not be permitted to edit the menu. For this reason, we suggest you begin by editing the description of a menu item only for the filenames “vusedoc[1-6].doc”, “pusedoc[1-6].doc”, or “musedoc[1-6].doc”, to which you have added contents.

Refer to Appendix B for the originally installed precedent filenames and descriptions.

NOTE
Assembly menus for the network version are edited for each user, that is, the changes on an individual workstation apply to that workstation only and do not apply to all copies of RM installed on the network.

EDITING THE ASSEMBLY MENUS USING THE ACCOUNT EDITOR

Just as the assembly menus may be edited, you may also customize the account menus presets (defaults) for each file type. You may preset account item descriptions, amounts, or both. For example, if you have a standard fee for a sale with mortgage payout, you may set this amount so it always appears when you choose to calculate a statement of account from the assembly menu for a vendor’s file with mortgage payout.

To this end, RM comes with a program called Account Editor that is included with the “RM for Word” template that you open to start. Select Tools, Macro, Macros. Run the macro "EditAcct” and you will be presented with the ability to change the presets for account calculation.

For an illustration of how the Account Editor appears, refer to the screenshot in Appendix C.

NOTE
Like the Assembly Menu Editor, the Account Editor works locally, that is, your edits apply only to the copy of RM installed on the workstation where you have run the Account Editor.

IV. TROUBLESHOOTING REALMERGE

RealMerge won't start

Open “RM for Word”, then try the following:

1. Select Tools, Macro, Macros.

2. Run the macro "RM.MAIN", which should appear on the list when you select “RM for Word” in the drop-down list “Macros in:”.

RealMerge can't find a .doc file in document assembly

Write down the name of the missing “.doc” file from the error message. Copy the missing file into the "\Rmword\precedents" folder, from the "Rmword\originals" folder. Or, try and find the modified .doc file that was misnamed after a modification, and rename it properly, and make sure it is located in the proper ("\Rmword\precedents") folder.

RealMerge won't calculate

A calculations marker is missing from a .doc file which uses calculations. Copy the original .doc file for the calculation into the "\Rmword\precedents" folder as described in “Can’t Find” above.

RealMerge can't find a client card file

You may be trying to enter a filename with a path or an extension. Try again using the Browse button, or, leave RM and check the "\rmword\cards" folder to see if the card file really exists. If it dosen't, you may have to recreate it.

"Out of Memory" error

You have opened too many document windows. Exit RM, close at least one Word window (and perhaps, close another open application), and restart RM.

RM won't respond

Warm reboot (Control-Alt-Delete) and select Microsoft Word from the Close Program dialog.

V. Appendices

APPENDIX A: REALMERGE FIELD NUMBERS AND DESCRIPTIONS

* denotes multi-line input availability

VENDOR'S FIELDS

Field
# Description

2 client #1 name from title

3 client #2 name from title

4 client #3 name from title

5 client #4 name from title/dower spouse

6 client address from title

7 name of the lawyer responsible

8 initial mailing address of the client*

9 mailing address of the client after the sale*

10 full legal description from title (including a minerals exception, if any)*

11 one-line legal description

12 one-line address of the subject property

13 either NORTH or SOUTH for the LTO registration district

14 date of the acceptance of the Offer

15 possession and adjustment date

16 kill date for trust letter

17 Purchaser names

18 name of the Purchaser's lawyer

19 name of the Purchaser's law firm

20 salutation of Purchaser's lawyer

21 Purchaser's file reference

22 address of the Purchaser's law firm*

23 consideration for the transfer in words

24 interest on overdue cash to close

25 consideration for the transfer in numerals

26 deposit in numerals

27 tax adjustment amount in numerals

28 tax adjustment year in numerals

29 name of encumbrancer #1 for the payout or assumption (if vendor assumption) of a mortgage or charge against land

30 address of the mortgagee or encumbrancer for payout or assumption*

31 LTO description of the encumbrance #1 for discharge or assumption

32 name of encumbrancer #2 for the payout of a mortgage or charge against land

33 address of the mortgagee or encumbrancer*

34 LTO description of the encumbrance #2 for discharge

35 name of encumbrancer #3 for the payout of mortgage or charge against land

36 address of the mortgagee or encumbrancer*

37 LTO description of the encumbrance #3 for discharge

NOTE: ALTERNATE FIELDS 35 – 37 INCLUSIVE APPEAR IF CONDOMINIUM DESIGNATED IN VENDOR CARD CREATION

35 name of condominium management company

36 address of the condominium management company*

37 contact person for the condominium management company

38 company name of the realtor

39 outstanding amount of realtor's commission, numerals

40 full address of the realtor*

48 operator's initials

49 full file name or number (NOTE this may differ from the card name entered upon card creation)

PURCHASER'S FIELDS

NOTE: FIELDS 28 – 47 INCLUSIVE ONLY APPEAR WITH NEW MORTGAGE CARDS

Field
# Description

2 client #1 name from title

3 client #2 name from title

4 client #3 name from title

5 client #4 name from title/dower spouse

6 interest designation, joint tenants or in common, if any

7 name of the lawyer responsible

8 initial mailing address of the client*

9 mailing address of the client after the sale*

10 full legal description from title (including a minerals exception, if any)*

11 one-line legal description

12 one-line address of the subject property

13 either NORTH or SOUTH for the LTO registration district

14 date of the acceptance of the Offer

15 possession and adjustment date

16 purchaser address if non-residential subject property

17 Name(s)of the vendor(s)

18 name of the Vendor's lawyer

19 name of the Vendor's law firm

20 salutation of the Vendor's lawyer

21 Vendor's lawyer’s file reference

22 address of the Vendor's lawyer’s law firm*

23 consideration words

24 interest on overdue cash to close

25 name of the mortgagee/lender

26 mailing address of the mortgagee/lender*

27 address of mortgage for registration OR LTO description(s) of the encumbrance(s) for assumption

28 mortgage amount numerals

29 mortgage amount words

30 interest amount numerals

31 interest amount words

32 monthly payment numerals

33 monthly payment words

34 adjustment date

35 first payment date

36 last payment date

37 lender/mortgagee reference number

38 CMHC reference number

39 CMHC premium number

40 Mortgage term

41 Municipality name

42 tax roll number

43 taxes paid until date

44 insurer/agent names

45 insurance policy number

46 insurance amount number

47 insurance expiry date

48 operator's initials

49 full file name or number

MORTGAGE REFINANCE FIELDS

Field
# Description

2 mortgagor #1 name from title

3 mortgagor #2 name from title

4 mortgagor #3 name from title

5 mortgagor #4 name from title/dower spouse

6 interest designation, joint tenants or in common, if any

7 name of the lawyer responsible

8 initial mailing address of the mortgagor *

9 mailing address of the mortgagor after the sale*

10 full legal description from title (including a minerals exception, if any)*

11 one-line legal description

12 one-line address of the remortgage property

13 either NORTH or SOUTH for the LTO registration district

14 mortgage funding date

15 name of encumbrancer #1 for the payout of a mortgage or charge against land

16 address of the mortgagee or encumbrancer for payout

17 LTO description of the encumbrance #1 for discharge

18 name of encumbrancer #2 for the payout of a mortgage or charge against land

19 address of the mortgagee or encumbrancer*

20 LTO description of the encumbrance #2 for discharge

25 name of the mortgagee/lender

26 mailing address of the mortgagee/lender*

27 address of mortgage for registration

28 mortgage amount numerals

29 mortgage amount words

30 interest amount numerals

31 interest amount words

32 monthly payment numerals

33 monthly payment words

34 adjustment date

35 first payment date

36 last payment date

37 lender/mortgagee reference number

38 CMHC reference number

39 CMHC premium number

40 Mortgage term

41 Municipality name

42 tax roll number

43 taxes paid until date

44 insurer/agent names

45 insurance policy number

46 insurance amount number

47 insurance expiry date

48 operator's initials

49 full file name or number

APPENDIX B: OUTLINE OF REALMERGE PRECEDENT(“.DOC”)FILES

VENDOR’S FILES

Filename Description

. "vopenlet.doc" Opening correspondence and notes to client
. "vcav.doc" Vendor's Caveat and Discharge
. "vdesclet.doc" Letter to Purchaser's lawyer requesting description
. "vpayreq1.doc" Letter to lender #1 requesting mortgage payout Statement
. "vpayreq2.doc" Letter to lender #2 requesting mortgage payout Statement
. "vpayreq3.doc" Letter to lender #3 requesting mortgage payout Statement
. "vassmreq.doc" Letter to bank requesting Mortgage Assumption Statement
. "vcompreq.doc" Compliance request letter
. "vtrans.doc" Transfer of Land
. "vtrustcc.doc" Trust letter - clear title, cash purchase
. "vtrustcm.doc" Trust letter - clear title, mortgage purchase
. "vtrustmc.doc" Trust letter - mortgage payout, cash purchase
. "vtrustmm.doc" Trust letter - mortgage payout, mortgage purchase
. "vtrusttor.doc" Trust letter – Torrens protocol
. "vcrtxmpt.doc" Certificate of Exempt Supply of Real Property
. "vdirpayc.doc" Direction to Pay, clear title
. "vdirpaym.doc" Direction to Pay, mortgage payout
. "vstatdec.doc" Statutory Declaration re survey
. "vstatadj.doc" Statement of Sale and Adjustments
. "vreal.doc" Letter to realtor paying out and releasing commissions
. "vactrstc.doc" Trust Account and Statement of Account, clear title
. "vactrstm.doc" Trust Account and Statement of Account, mortgage payout

. "vrepletc.doc" Report letter to client, clear title
. "vrepletm.doc" Report letter to client, mortgage payout
. "vpaymtg1.doc" Letter to lender #1 paying out existing mortgage #1
. "vpaymtg2.doc" Letter to lender #2 paying out existing mortgage #2
. "vpaymtg3.doc" Letter to lender #3 paying out existing mortgage #3
. "vundletc.doc" Letter to Purchaser's lawyer fulfilling undertakings, clear title
. "vundletm.doc" Letter to Purchaser's lawyer fulfilling undertakings,mortgage payout
. "vtxcncl.doc” Letter to municipality canceling monthly tax payment
. "vtxsrch.doc” Letter to to municipality requesting tax search NOTE also appears with Purchaser’s assembly menus
. "vusedoc1-6.doc" blank documents

PURCHASER’S FILES

. "popenlet.doc" Opening correspondence to client and Notes to client
. "pdesclet.doc" Letter to Vendor's lawyer enclosing our client's description
. "passmreq.doc" Letter to bank requesting a Mortgage Assumption Statement
. "ptrans.doc" Transfer Back
. "pnoncon.doc" Non-conflict letter to both the bank/mortgagee and mortgagor
. "ptenwill.doc" Tenancy-At-Will
. "ptenwillreq.doc" request to vendor’s solicitor for Tenancy-At-Will
. "pcovres.doc" Covenant to Restore Title
. "pdirpay.doc" Direction to Pay
. "pdirpaya.doc" Direction to Pay and Assignment of Mortgage Proceeds
. "pfrgnown.doc” Foreign Ownership Declaration
. "pstatdec.doc" Statutory Declaration re survey
. "pstatadj.doc" Purchaser's Shortfall calculation including estimated Statement of Adjustments
. "pshort.doc" Letter to Vendor's lawyer enclosing the shortfall
. "pctoc.doc" Letter to Vendor's lawyer enclosing the cash to close
. "pundlet.doc" Letter to Vendor's lawyer requesting fulfillment of their undertakings
. "pmtgreq.doc" Covering Letter to bank requesting mortgage advance
. "prepletc.doc" Report letter to client, cash purchase
. "prepletm.doc" Report letter to client, purchase with mortgage
. "pactrstc.doc" Trust Account and Statement of Account, cash purchase
. "pactrstm.doc" Trust Account and Statement of Account, purchase with mortgage
. "pmtgfin.doc" Letter to bank covering final report
. "pusedoc1-6.doc" blank documents

MORTGAGE REFINANCE FILES

. "mpayreq1.doc" Letter to lender #1 requesting mortgage payout Statement
. "mpayreq2.doc" Letter to lender #2 requesting mortgage payout Statement
. "vcompreq.doc" Compliance request letter
. "vtxsrch.doc” Letter to to municipality requesting tax search NOTE also appears with Purchaser’s assembly menus
. "pnoncon.doc" Non-conflict letter to both the bank/mortgagee and mortgagor
. "mdirpay.doc" Direction to Pay
. "pstatdec.doc" Statutory Declaration re survey
. "mmtgreq.doc" Covering Letter to bank requesting mortgage advance
. "mpaymtg1.doc" Letter to lender #1 paying out existing mortgage #1
. "mpaymtg2.doc" Letter to lender #2 paying out existing mortgage #2
. "mreplet.doc" Report letter to client, mortgage refinance
. "mactrst.doc" Trust Account and Statement of Account, mortgage refinance
. "pmtgfin.doc" Letter to bank covering final report
. "musedoc1-6.doc" blank documents