News By Edition

String Real Estate Information Services recently reported a 176 percent increase in refinance volumes and said its operational capacities have exceeded pre-pandemic volumes by 15 percent.

 The company’s founder and Managing Director Prashant Kothari told The Title Report originations (purchases/resales) are bouncing back nicely and he believes they will remain strong for the rest of 2020.

 Read on to learn more of Kothari had to say.

JetClosing has launched a digital mortgage refinancing solution designed for lenders, agents and homeowners, the company announced.

 The company said the expanded offering is available in Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, Texas and Washington.

 Read on to learn what CEO Dan Greenshields said about the increasing demand for technology solutions that streamline the title and escrow process.

Lone Wolf has integrated RamQuest’s title, closing, and escrow accounting solutions into its platform.

Read on for more details.

ServiceLink has appointed a senior vice president of servicing product strategy.

Read on for more details.

Stewart Information Services Corp. has acquired a nationwide appraisal management company that provides comprehensive suite of residential valuation products to lenders and other mortgage origination firms, the company announced.

 Stewart said the acquisition strengthens its digital real estate services offering in appraisal and valuation management. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

 Read on for more details.

As expected, the small-business labor market weakened in May with firms reducing employment by an average of 0.17 workers per firm, according to the latest National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) jobs report.

NFIB said because of massive layoffs and terminations related to the coronavirus pandemic, fewer employers are raising compensation than in previous months.

Read on for more details from the report.

Freddie Mac has tapped a former executive vice president and chief financial officer (CFO) from Navient Corp. as its next CFO, the company announced.

Freddie Mac CEO David Brickman said the new CFO’s strong background in the debt and equity capital markets and in mergers and acquisitions will be invaluable as the company prepares to exit conservatorship.

Read on to learn more about the new CFO.

Atlanta-based Cook & James recently added another attorney to its team and announced several promotions.

Read on for more details.

Qualia has launched a video chat platform it said is designed to make contactless home closings possible for millions of potential homebuyers around the country.

Read on for more details.

The number of newly built homes on the market decreased 10.5 percent year-over-year in April.

Read on for more details.

What will lender-title relationships resemble following the pandemic? That was one of the topics of discussion during the webinar “Evolving Lender Relationships.”

Moderated by Qualia’s Director of High Growth Accounts Jamie Kump, featured subject experts were Kate Steineman, senior vice president and business liaison at Wells Fargo Home Mortgage; and Landy Liu, general manager of Better.com.

Read on for more details.

Fitch Ratings has affirmed First American Financial Group’s insurer financial strength ratings of 'A' (Strong). Fitch said First American’s rating outlook is stable.

 Fitch said the affirmations are based on its current assessment of the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, including its economic impact, as well as First American’s very strong capitalization, modest leverage, and its continued strong profitability.

 Read on for more details.

The Radian Group Inc. has redesigned its corporate website to better reflect its full range of services, which include mortgage, risk, title, valuation, and asset management.

 Chief Digital Officer Eric Ray said the new website offers improved functionality, interactive tools, accessibility and readability on all devices that allows customers to connect easily and efficiently.

 Read on for more details.

Title Alliance, Ltd. has partnered with Adeptive Software to allow its affiliates to implement ResWare.

Read on for more details.

Bank Shot has announced a regional partnership with Charles Rutenberg Realty.

Read on for more details.

LenderClose has appointed an industry veteran to its board of directors.

Read on for more details.

Cedar Knolls, N.J.-based Investment Title LLC has merged with Freehold, N.J.-based Prestige New Jersey Title Agency Inc., the companies announced.

 Exact terms of the deal were not disclosed. Prestige’s staff has joined Investment’s team, and the latter has taken over Prestige’s Freehold location.

 Read on for more details about the merger as well as comments from executives from both companies.

AM Best has assigned a financial strength rating of B++ (Good) and a long-term issuer credit rating of “bbb+” to Title Resources Guaranty Co. (TRG).

The agency said the ratings reflect TRG’s “very strong” balance sheet strength, as well as its adequate operating performance, limited business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management.

Read on for more details.

WFG National Title Insurance Co.’s policy jackets, policy numbers, agent authorization letters in New York, and closing protection letters outside New York now are available directly through TrackerPro, both companies announced.

 The companies said the integration enables TrackerPro users to access the documents without working across multiple systems and re-keying data.

 Read on for more details.

Westcor Land Title Insurance Co. has hired a Michigan state manager.

Read on for more details.

A report by Redfin indicates page views of homes in small towns increased 105 percent year-over-year during the seven-day period ending May 1.

Read on for more details.

Simplifile announced that more than 50 additional jurisdictions in the eastern and southern U.S. have joined its eRecording network.

Read on for more details.

Fidelity National Financial, Inc. has received all regulatory approvals and clearances necessary to close its $2.7 billion acquisition of FGL Holdings (F&G), the company announced.

Fidelity said the anticipated closing date is June 1, 2020, assuming that F&G shareholders approve the merger and related proposals at the F&G general meeting scheduled for May 29.

Read on for more details.

The Michigan-based turnkey title company ownership system that offers entrepreneurs an opportunity to own their own title company has adopted CertifID’s wire fraud prevention solution.

The company’s president said integrating CertifID into its model provides franchisees with simple and effective wire fraud mitigation and called the addition of the services a game-changer.

Read on for more details.

Tennessee-based 1810 Title & Escrow LLC. has launched a new website it said better showcases what it offers to customers in and around Coffee and Warren counties.

 The company said its new website is mobile-friendly so that Realtors, lenders and homeowners can access the site from anywhere on any device.

 Read on for more details.

Fifth Third Bank is collaborating with ZOCCAM to offer title and escrow clients the ability to receive earnest money through electronic third-party delivery.

Read on for more details.

A new survey from Zillow suggests the coronavirus pandemic could spur many workers to move to secondary cities as a result of corporate America’s embrace of remote work.

Read on for more details.

As interest rates continued to decline in April, the percentage of refinances climbed, according to Ellie Mae’s latest Origination Insight Report.

Read on for more details.

States Title recently closed a Series C financing round of $123 million, led by Greenspring Associates, a Baltimore-headquartered venture capital investor.

States Title founder and CEO Max Simkoff said the money will be used to enhance the company’s machine intelligence platform to support the goal of providing an instant closing experience at a lower cost.

Read on for more details.

A national title insurance and escrow company has raised $29 million in Series B funding led by Scale Venture Partners, with participation from Zigg Capital, Bessemer Venture Partners, and Gramercy Ventures, the company announced.

The company said the new funding will support its expansion, accelerate development of its proprietary technology, and deepen integrations with client partners. 

Read on for more details.

AM Best has affirmed the financial strength rating of A+ (Superior) and the long-term issuer credit ratings of “aa-” of members of Old Republic Insurance Companies.

 The credit ratings agency said Old Republic’s rating reflect its balance sheet strength, which AM Best categorizes as strongest, as well as its strong operating performance, favorable business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management.

 Read on for more details.

Qualia has integrated Black Knight’s enterprise-grade tax, HOA, title and property services and products into its platform.

Read on for more details.

The coronavirus hit the housing market with full force in April, with sales and listings both turning in historic declines from year-ago levels.

Read on for more details.

Covius’ credit reporting platform has been integrated into Blend’s digital lending platform.

Read on for more details.

The title division of homebuilder PulteGroup, Inc. generated a nearly 25 increase in revenues during the first quarter, according to the company’s latest earning statement.

 However, Pulte Group President and CEO Ryan Marshall said the company’s growth in home orders in the first quarter is not reflective of current market conditions.

 Read on for more details about the company’s first-quarter earnings statement.

Agents National Title Insurance Co. (ANTIC) recently launched a qualified intermediary to support successful tax deferred exchanges, the company announced.

 ANTIC’s sister company will work directly with real estate, tax, and legal professionals to manage the risk associated with exchange process deadlines, helping to ensure exchanges to defer taxes under Section 1031 of the Internal Revenue Service code.

 Read on for more details.

Alliant National Title Insurance Co. recently completed its second-year surveillance audit and maintenance of its ISO 27001 certification for 2020, the company announced.

 Alliant National said successfully completing the audit is evidence that it continues to meet rigorous international standards in ensuring the confidentiality, integrity, availability and protection of non-public information.

 Read on for more details.

Plaza Home Mortgage, Inc. has hired a senior vice president, chief underwriter.

Read on for more details.