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The Title Report Print Edition
May 28, 2012
In this edition, we look at consumer-direct strategies for title agents. There are plenty of reasons why consumer business isn’t a huge part of the industry’s battle plan, and we acknowledge all of those factors but put them aside for this cover story. Instead, let’s examine the possibilities and the opportunity as it currently exists. What business can be gained, and how? Inside the edition, we have a feature on the newest regional underwriter planting its flag in the Lone Star state and saying it will go after independent agents currently working with the nationals. Also we have a Title Talk with Stewart’s newest N.J. agency manager Michael Frederick, and information the new title agent vetting process within eLynx’s Electronic Closing Network. |
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 Title365 team discusses transparent, consumer-friendly features in software update
Posted Date: Tuesday, May 29, 2012
One company not shying away from title insurance transparency is
Advantage Title. We featured the company’s Title365 transaction platform
for a cover story on communication innovation, and the recent update to
the interface has several features that incorporate more consumer
education and interaction.
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Editor's note: Consider the future of consumer business
Posted Date: Tuesday, May 29, 2012
I’ve heard plenty of reasons why going after consumers is both an
ill-fated waste of time and resources and why it’s the wave of the
future. Here is the stat that I find the most important to think about
though: 90 percent of people believe they are smarter than average. Why
is it important? Read on for the rest of my thoughts.
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Consumer-direct battle plan: How title agents can influence homebuyer decisions
Posted Date: Tuesday, May 29, 2012
Let’s get them all out of the way now:
- Consumers don’t know what we do
- There isn’t repeat business
- It’s too much work for too little return
- They don’t shop for title insurance and don’t care about shopping
- Did we mention they don’t know what we do?
Those
are (most of) the reasons title professionals have for not targeting
consumers in any marketing or sales efforts. This isn’t meant to
trivialize those reasons because they are al
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Stewart appoints title manager of Arkansas
Posted Date: Tuesday, May 15, 2012
Stewart Title Co. announced the appointment of a title manager of
Stewart Title of Arkansas LLC. Read on for more about the announcement.
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Nationstar Mortgage looks to acquire assets from Ally Financial subsidiary after Chapter 11 filing
Posted Date: Tuesday, May 15, 2012
Nationstar Mortgage Holdings Inc. has agreed to acquire portions of
Residential Capital LLC — the mortgage subsidiary of Ally Financial — in
connection with Residential’s asset sale resulting from its Chapter 11
filing. Then, pending the completion of the deal, Newcastle Investment
Corp. has signed a definitive agreement to acquire up to a 65 percent
interest in excess mortgage servicing rights from Nationstar. Read on
for all of the details from this complex mortgage world transaction.
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Homebuilder confidence jumps 5 more points
Posted Date: Tuesday, May 15, 2012
Builder confidence in the market for newly built, single-family homes
gained five points in May from a downwardly revised reading in the
previous month to reach the highest level in the National Association of
Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index since May 2007.
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Magness moves to EVP for Old Republic National Title
Posted Date: Tuesday, May 15, 2012
John Magness, president of Old Republic Title’s Central Title Group, was
elected executive vice president of the Old Republic National Title
Insurance Co. at a recent Old Republic International board of directors’
meeting.
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Build a better website: Quick tips for grabbing more customers online
Posted Date: Monday, May 14, 2012
Websites are often called the new “front door” for your company because
that’s how customers first enter your business today. Where that analogy
falls way short is the website is much more than a door. A website is
the door, the room, the file folders, the customer service staff, the
sales and marketing team — everything but the coffee pot and donuts (so
far). With so much business being done online, you need to make sure
your title agency’s site is ready to serve and attract today’s
customers. Read on for
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Title Talk: Stewart agency manager discusses problems for agents in N.J. market
Posted Date: Monday, May 14, 2012
Michael Frederick, a title professional for more than 20 years, was
appointed by Stewart Title Guaranty Co. as the vice president and agency
services manager for the state of New Jersey. We contacted him to chat
about the problems facing agents in New Jersey, the challenges of his
position and his favorite parts of the title insurance industry.
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LPS data show slight uptick in home prices
Posted Date: Friday, May 11, 2012
The Applied Analytics Division of Lender Processing Services updated its
home price index with residential sales concluded during February 2012,
and it is showing an increase in seasonally adjusted prices for the
first time since March 2010 — and only the third time in five years.
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Homebuilder excitement growing for older demographic
Posted Date: Friday, May 11, 2012
Looking for a growth market? How about the 55-plus homebuyer? According
to the latest data from the National Association of Home Builders,
builders are getting excited about this older demographic.
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The CFPB is coming! Shapiro to speak at 2012 Summit
Posted Date: Friday, May 11, 2012
Erica Meyer, owner and publisher of October Research, LLC, announced today that Barton Shapiro,
senior advisor for Small Business, Community Banks and Credit Unions at
the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), will speak at the 2012
National Settlement Services and Compliance Summit, to take place in
Cleveland, Ohio, June 12-13.
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Indecomm boosts servicing marks from GSEs
Posted Date: Thursday, May 10, 2012
Indecomm Global Services, a business process outsourcing company,
announced that through its collaboration with AmeriCU Credit Union, the
credit union consistently achieves top marks in mortgage servicing from
Freddie Mac.
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Doug Bello announces retirement
Posted Date: Thursday, May 10, 2012
D. Bello Associates has announced the forthcoming retirement of its founder, Doug Bello, effective later this year.
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Government business drags down mortgage applications this week
Posted Date: Thursday, May 10, 2012
According to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association, mortgage
applications slightly rose from last week, but the results were dragged
down mostly by decreases in the government portion of the applications.
Read on for more.
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Closing agents vetted to meet higher standards in vendor list
Posted Date: Thursday, May 10, 2012
As the top story today illustrates, mindsets in the lending industry are
starting to change and standards in the closing process are under the
microscope. Lenders want to reduce the risk (real or perceived)
presented by title and closing agents. To that end, eLynx announced
specific enhancements to its Electronic Closing Network that are meant
to more closely vet the registered users using a more robust profile and
verifying underwriter standing.
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March pending home sales rise, market recovering
Posted Date: Thursday, May 10, 2012
Pending home sales increased in March and are well above a year ago,
another signal the housing market is recovering, according to the
National Association of Realtors (NAR). Read on for more from the
report.
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Fidelity receives upgrade from Fitch Ratings
Posted Date: Wednesday, May 09, 2012
Fidelity National Financial (FNF) has been rated below the other top
title insurers by Fitch Ratings for a while, but according to a report
from Fitch, that’s changed. Read on to see the national underwriter’s
new rating and for the rationale behind Fitch’s decision.
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Improving U.S. markets now sits at 100
Posted Date: Tuesday, May 08, 2012
The list of housing markets showing measurable and sustained improvement
held virtually unchanged in May at 100, down from 101 in April,
according to the National Association of Home Builders/First American
Improving Markets Index (IMI).
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Investors Title shows 10 percent premium increase in Q1 earnings
Posted Date: Tuesday, May 08, 2012
Investors Title Co. announced increases in revenues and net income in
its results for the first quarter of 2012. Read on for all of the
numbers from the report, including a substantial increase in its
provision for claims.
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Stewart people news: Chief legal officer, Houston sales manager
Posted Date: Tuesday, May 08, 2012
Stewart Information Services Corp. and Stewart National Title Services
both made personnel announcements about their chief legal officer and
Houston sales manager positions, respectively. Read on for more about
each.
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ServiceLink ramps up HARP 2.0 closing process
Posted Date: Tuesday, May 08, 2012
ServiceLink has expanded the availability of its HARP 2.0 solutions to
lenders nationwide, including regional and smaller national lending
institutions which stand to benefit most from this enhanced government
program, according to the company. Read on for details about its system,
including its title commitment process.
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WFG moves into Pennsylvania
Posted Date: Tuesday, May 08, 2012
WFG National Title Insurance Co. has been granted the right to issue
title insurance in the state of Pennsylvania, increasing its geographic
coverage, and hired a vice president and state manager to lead the
charge. Read on for more information.
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Trends, storylines from the Big Four earnings reports
Posted Date: Monday, May 07, 2012
Now that the financial reports for the first quarter are out, we thought
we’d comb through some of the data and conference calls for some quick
takeaways. Topics we cover include comparisons of commercial work, the
HARP 2.0 buzz, claims losses and what’s going on with Fidelity and LPS.
Read on for more.
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Arizona hits e-recording milestone
Posted Date: Friday, May 04, 2012
Arizona has become the second multi-jurisdictional state in which 100
percent of its counties are e-recording. Read on for more about this
achievement.
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RamQuest achieves "select" designation with UPS
Posted Date: Friday, May 04, 2012
RamQuest Inc., a provider of business solutions for the land title
industry, announced that it has been promoted to the “Select Alliance”
level within the UPS Ready Program.
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Canyon Title adds VP of sales
Posted Date: Friday, May 04, 2012
Canyon Title announced the hiring of a vice president of sales. Canyon
is a title insurance company committed to consumer education and
customized title insurance services. Read on for more from the
announcement.
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Foreclosure sales lowest since December 2010
Posted Date: Friday, May 04, 2012
The March Mortgage Monitor report released by Lender Processing Services
Inc. showed that while March foreclosure starts increased
month-over-month, overall, they were still down more than 31 percent
year over year. Read on for more analysis of the latest data from LPS.
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Stewart adds business development officer in the West
Posted Date: Thursday, May 03, 2012
Stewart Title Co. announced the addition of a business development
officer with more than 26 years of experience for several Colorado
offices, including Aspen, Basalt/Carbondale, Glenwood Springs and Rifle.
Read on for more details.
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Fidelity finalizes sale of personal lines business
Posted Date: Thursday, May 03, 2012
Fidelity National Financial officially announced the closing of the sale
of an 85 percent interest in its personal lines business to an
affiliate of WT Holdings Inc. Read on for more from the announcement.
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Ernst Publishing creates app for sharing closing costs
Posted Date: Thursday, May 03, 2012
Ernst Publishing Co., an authority on land recording requirements for
almost two decades, is now making available custom mobile apps that
provide estimated or guaranteed closing cost fee generation at the point
of sale. Read on for more information.
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Retired LPS exec heads up board at Advantage Title
Posted Date: Thursday, May 03, 2012
Advantage Title Inc. and Title365 Inc. holding company Experience 1
Inc., announced that a retired Lender Processing Services executive has
become the company’s chairman of the board. Read on for more from this
announcement.
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New underwriter First National Title looks to independent agents in Texas
Posted Date: Thursday, May 03, 2012
A new regional underwriter threw its hat in the ring in April — First
National Title Insurance Co. We reached out to the president and CEO, Chris Phillips,
for a quick word about this venture and what he thinks his company can
bring to the title insurance table. Read on for details of the company’s
plan and for its current management roster.
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CoreLogic reports 69,000 completed foreclosures in March
Posted Date: Thursday, May 03, 2012
CoreLogic released its National Foreclosure Report for March, which
provides monthly data on completed foreclosures, foreclosure inventory
and 90-plus day delinquency rates. Read on for all of the latest data.
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