Operations

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 f...

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.

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.

For every action there is a reaction — a scientific notion that sums up the lender/title industry dynamic in 2012. The action in question is title insurance industry defalcations and the reaction is coming from the mortgage industry in the form of more processes, more scrutiny and a few radical solutions aimed at reducing risk. Many mortgage industry players are taking more precautions in terms of who they conduct business with, which is a reaction to industry defalcations, but also just a general sensi...

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.

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.

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.

Welcome to the 2012 edition of Voice of the Title Agent , a special report from The Title Report that takes the pulse of our title agent readership. We want to know how business is faring and where it is headed. We want to know your thoughts on the big topics of the day and how you conduct operations. Read on for links to all of the features, charts and download information.

Underwriter/agent relations seem to ebb and flow along with the market place, and at the moment, that relationship might be near one of the lower points in this cycle. The last few years, the national underwriters have gone through a process of thinning their agency ranks, so we asked our agents if they’ve lost an underwriter in the past year and what type of underwriter they prefer to work with.

The American Land Title Association has placed a greater emphasis on transparency this year. With the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau advocating on behalf of consumers for more transparency in all financial processes, the feeling is now is the time to speak up and start telling the story of the title industry more persistently. See what our title agent respondents had to say about marketing to consumers, closing protection letters and a host of other operational processes.