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CFPB on verge of industry-changing lawsuit
Posted Date: Sunday, August 4, 2019
The Title Report has learned from multiple sources that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is on the verge of filing a lawsuit against an independent mortgage lender concerning violations of the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA).
If the regulators file expected allegations, sources said the lawsuit could effectively end the industry’s ability to market and advertise their services through a variety of channels, including trade publications, online media, newspapers, radio stations and TV for fear of regulators charging companies with ECOA violations based on the predominant demographics or political leanings of each media outlet.
Read on for more details from this potentially wide-reaching action.
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Examining trends in Florida title fees
Posted Date: Monday, August 5, 2019
Florida ranked in the top half of states for title fees charged in 2018, according to an exclusive joint project between ClosingCorp and The Title Report.
However, a closer look at the counties and metropolitan areas through the state reveals geographical trends over fees charged.
Read on for more details.
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First American’s second-quarter profits increase
Posted Date: Thursday, August 1, 2019
Lower interest rates and an increase in refinances boasted First American Financial Corp.’s (FAF) second-quarter numbers, according to the company’s latest earnings statement.
CEO Dennis Gilmore said FAF is encouraged by July’s open order trend, which include a 4 percent increase in purchase orders and a 65 percent increase in refinances.
Read on for more details about FAF’s second-quarter performance.
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NS3 keynote touts importance of culture, value
Posted Date: Thursday, August 1, 2019
Teaching is not the same as education and slowing down could be the key to efficiency, according to Mortgage Bankers Association Chairman Chris George, the founder, president and CEO of CMG Financial, Inc.
Delivering the opening keynote address to attendees of the 2019 National Settlement Services Summit (NS3) at the Arizona Biltmore Resort in Phoenix, George stressed the importance of creating a company culture that promotes education in all forms.
Read on for more details.
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Survey: Small-business owners prefer cloud-based software
Posted Date: Thursday, August 1, 2019
A survey of nearly 1,800 small-business owners found they prefer cloud-based software over on-premise software to run their businesses.
The survey was collaboration between DaySmart Software and Researchscape International and was conducted in March and April 2019. It found more than half of the respondents (51 percent) have adopted business management software
Read on to learn more results from the survey.
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Black Knight launches AI-powered solution
Posted Date: Thursday, August 1, 2019
Black Knight, Inc. has launched a new solution powered by artificial intelligence that is integrated with its loan origination system.
Read on for more details.
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Former Title365, GreenFolders CEOs launch new agency
Posted Date: Monday, July 29, 2019
A new title agency which promises to combine relationship-centric title and escrow services with innovative title technology has launched operations in Texas and Utah.
The company’s leadership includes the former CEO of Title365 and a president at Xome, as well as the former CEO of GreenFolders.
Read on to learn what other industry veterans are on the team.
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Covius creates two divisions after Chronos deal
Posted Date: Monday, July 29, 2019
Covius Holdings announced it has completed its purchase of various businesses from Chronos Solutions, including its credit, flood, income and tax verification services, REO management and disposition, online foreclosure auction and homeowners association tracking units.
Additionally, Covius and New Residential Investment Corp. announced that the latter’s strategic investment in Covius has been completed.
Read on to learn how Covius said it will market the company in two divisions.
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MISMO releases updated RON standards
Posted Date: Monday, July 29, 2019
The Mortgage Industry Standards Maintenance Organization (MISMO) recently approved its remote online notarization (RON) standards, including an update to the draft standards issued earlier this year.
MISMO said its RON standards were updated to include language to preclude the storage of personally identifiable information.
Read on to learn for how long MISMO will receive public comments on the standards.
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Simplifile integrates with BeSmartee
Posted Date: Monday, July 29, 2019
Simplifile’s real estate document collaboration and recording technologies have been integrated into BeSmartee’s digital mortgage platform.
Read on for more details.
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Real house prices decreased in May
Posted Date: Monday, July 29, 2019
During May, the five states with the greatest year-over-year decreases in real house prices were North Dakota, Wyoming, California, Arkansas and New Mexico.
Read on for more details.
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NAR adds two vice presidents
Posted Date: Monday, July 29, 2019
The National Association of Realtors recently announced additions to its digital and IT teams.
Read on for more details.
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Stewart’s second-quarter profits decline
Posted Date: Thursday, July 25, 2019
Partially due to expenses related to its proposed merger with Fidelity, Stewart Information Services Corp. had a double-digit drop in second-quarter profits, according to the company’s latest earnings report.
Yet stronger signs could be coming for the third quarter, as Stewart reported open orders rose more than 8 percent in the second quarter from a year earlier.
Read on for more details, and remarks from CEO Matt Morris.
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Moody’s: Amazon, Realogy deal ‘positive’
Posted Date: Thursday, July 25, 2019
Moody’s has weighed in on Realogy Group LLC’s collaboration with Amazon, which matches potential homebuyers with brokers and provides Amazon products and services to homebuyers.
Moody’s said the TurnKey program is credit positive for Realogy because it has the potential to provide high-quality existing homebuyer leads as well as drive higher revenue over time.
Read on to learn more of what Moody’s had to say about the collaboration.
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Small-business optimism dips slightly
Posted Date: Thursday, July 25, 2019
Small-business owners were slightly less optimistic about the economy and business prospects during June than in May, according to a survey by the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB).
Although remaining near historically high levels, six of the components measured by NFIB’s index declined in June, three improved, and one remained the same.
Read on learn more about NFIB’s latest gauge of attitudes among small-business owners.
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BuyerDocs rebrands as ClosingLock
Posted Date: Thursday, July 25, 2019
The company said its new name better incorporates its growing systems and expanded offerings.
Read on for more details.
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Prices for ‘most affordable’ homes increase
Posted Date: Thursday, July 25, 2019
Prices for the most affordable homes in June only fell in San Jose and Orange County, California; and in Memphis, Tenn.
Read on for more details.
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Closetrak, Pavaso complete RON eClosing in Tennessee
Posted Date: Wednesday, July 24, 2019
Pavaso and Closetrak Title & Closing in Memphis recently completed what they called the first remote online notarization eClosing in Tennessee completed by a state eNotary.
The closing agent on the transaction was Joseph Kirkland, senior underwriting counsel with Closetrak and president-elect of the Tennessee Land Title Association.
Read on for more details about the eClosing, which came after the state’s Online Notary Public Act took effect earlier in July.
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Stewart makes major additions to Colorado team
Posted Date: Wednesday, July 24, 2019
As a result of a growing demand throughout the state, Stewart Title has added 15 new staff members to its direct operations in Colorado, the company announced.
Additionally, Stewart announced it has selected both a state sales manager and a sales manager for Colorado.
Read on to learn why Stewart said it is excited about the growth potential in Colorado.
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ALTA urges clarification on cannabis-industry compliance
Posted Date: Wednesday, July 24, 2019
The American Land Title Association (ALTA) is urging Congress to provide clarification concerning compliance for businesses that provide services to the cannabis industry.
ALTA is advocating laws that make it clear title and escrow companies are not violating the state or federal laws when providing services to this industry regarding the purchase of real estate.
Read on to learn what CEO Diane Tomb had to say.
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Home prices rise for third consecutive month
Posted Date: Wednesday, July 24, 2019
The areas that had declines in median sale price in June were San Jose, Oakland and Oxnard, Calif.; Seattle; Lake County, Ill.; and Los Angeles.
Read on for more details.
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Black Knight integrates with Househappy
Posted Date: Wednesday, July 24, 2019
Black Knight, Inc. has integrated Househappy’s all-in-one home concierge suite into its Servicing Digital mobile solution.
Read on for more details.
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Amazon steps into real estate business
Posted Date: Tuesday, July 23, 2019
Realogy Holdings Corp. and Amazon have partnered on a homebuying program designed to simplify the process of purchasing a home and settling into it.
The program steers prospective homebuyers to Realogy’s brands, including Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate, Century 21, Coldwell Banker and ERA, then provides those customers with Amazon’s Home Services and smart home products upon closing.
Read on learn in how many cities the program is available.
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FIN Title acquires Titleology Abstract
Posted Date: Tuesday, July 23, 2019
FIN Title has reached an agreement to acquire Titleology Abstract Inc., a provider of non-insurance title reporting products serving the national market.
The companies said Titleology founder and Principal Jay Jacobs will oversee FIN Title’s uninsured title product division.
Read on to learn why executives from both companies believe they are a good fit.
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Quicken Loans has historic quarter
Posted Date: Tuesday, July 23, 2019
The nation’s largest mortgage lender’s second-quarter performance was the best in its 34-year history.
In June alone, Detroit-based Quicken Loans closed nearly $11 billion in mortgage volume.
Read on to learn what CEO Jay Farner said about how Quicken has translated its success into education, housing stability initiatives and entrepreneurship programs in the communities it serves.
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Foote Title adds vice president
Posted Date: Tuesday, July 23, 2019
Foote Title Group has appointed Penelope Wesely as the company’s new vice president for the Washington, D.C. area.
Read on for more details.
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DocuSign integrates with Keller Williams
Posted Date: Tuesday, July 23, 2019
Keller Williams has integrated DocuSign’s Rooms for Real Estate platform into its CRM-plus suite of apps hosted on the Keller Cloud.
Read on for more details.
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Black Knight launches disaster tools
Posted Date: Tuesday, July 23, 2019
Black Knight, Inc. has introduced two technology solutions designed to help mortgage servicers manage the impact of natural disasters.
Read on for details.
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Fidelity records best quarter in nearly 16 years
Posted Date: Thursday, July 18, 2019
Driven by escalating home prices and interest-rate reductions that significantly increased refinances, Fidelity National Financial, Inc.’s (FNF) second-quarter performance was the company’s best overall in nearly 16 years.
Fidelity briefly mentioned its proposed acquisition of Stewart during its conference call with analysts, investors and journalists.
Read on to learn more about FNF’s second-quarter performance.
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New Jersey title agency relocates headquarters
Posted Date: Thursday, July 18, 2019
A New Jersey title agency that serves residential and commercial clients throughout the Delaware Valley has moved its corporate headquarters.
The agency’s new corporate office includes a high-tech shared work environment and meeting venue for Realtors, lenders, attorneys and other professionals called Closing Cafe.
Read on to learn what the co-owners of the agency said necessitated the move.
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Investors Title, Qualia integrate
Posted Date: Thursday, July 18, 2019
Qualia has integrated Investors Title’s ClientCONNECT into its platform, the companies announced.
The integration will enable title agents to generate Investor Title policy jackets and closing protection letters directly through Qualia’s system, eliminating the need to work across multiple systems or rekey information.
Read on to learn what executives from both companies said about the integration.
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Zillow buying homes directly in Oregon
Posted Date: Thursday, July 18, 2019
Zillow now is buying homes directly in the Portland, Ore.-area, including in Vancouver, Wash.
Read on for more details.
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First American concludes data exposure investigation
Posted Date: Wednesday, July 17, 2019
First American Financial Corp. has completed its investigation into a reported design defect that created the potential for unauthorized access to customer data dating back more than 15 years.
As a result, First American has identified consumers whose non-public personal information likely was accessed without authorization.
Read on to learn what First American has offered to consumers possibly impacted by the data exposure.
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Montgomery: FHA doing ‘everything possible’ to make it easier to do business
Posted Date: Wednesday, July 17, 2019
As real estate transaction companies evolve to meet new demands in an increasingly digital industry, the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) is trying to revolutionize the way it does business.
Federal Housing Commissioner and Assistant Secretary for Housing of the Department of Housing & Urban Development (HUD) Brian Montgomery recently addressed a standing-room only crowd in Phoenix at the National Settlement Services Summit (NS3) on plans in motion for changes at FHA.
Read on for highlights of Montgomery’s keynote address.
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Survey: Time restraints, too many tasks hurt due diligence
Posted Date: Wednesday, July 17, 2019
A PropLogix survey of more than 400 owners, executives, attorneys, managers, closers, and processors suggests professionals are juggling too many hats, and their peers could do a better job when it comes paying attention to detail.
PropLogix concludes title professionals can combat this problem by striking the right balance between personalization and technology.
Read on for more details from PropLogix’s report.
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LodeStar integrates with LendingQB
Posted Date: Wednesday, July 17, 2019
LodeStar Software Solutions’ Loan Estimate calculator now is available through LendingQB’s loan origination solution.
Read on for more details.
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Homes receiving fewer bids
Posted Date: Wednesday, July 17, 2019
During June, a mere 12 percent of offers on homes submitted by Redfin agents faced a bidding war.
Read on for more details.
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Homebuilder launches title, mortgage services
Posted Date: Monday, July 15, 2019
A leading homebuilder in the West has formed a financial group that will provide title, settlement and mortgage services.
The homebuilder already has started providing title agency services in parts of Texas, Arizona, Colorado and Nevada, and expects to expand its title and settlement services operations into virtually all of its homebuilding markets during the next two quarters.
Read on for more details about the new company.
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Title Alliance announces C-Suite additions
Posted Date: Monday, July 15, 2019
Title Alliance, Ltd. recently announced several additions to its C-Suite, including a chief strategy officer, a chief human resources officer and a general counsel and compliance officer.
Joining the Media, Pa.-headquartered company are Maria Deligiorgis, general counsel and compliance officer; Sharon Lontoc, chief human resources officer; and Lindsay Smith, chief strategy officer.
Read on to learn what CEO Jim Campbell said about the newest members of his executive team.
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ATA National opens suburban Chicago office
Posted Date: Monday, July 15, 2019
Farmington Hills, Mich.-based ATA National Title Group, LLC. has opened a new office near Chicago.
As part of the new office, ATA has added two employees with a combined 45 years of experience in the title industry – specifically, an escrow officer and an account manager.
Read on to learn the location of ATA’s new office.
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NATIC hires state agency manager
Posted Date: Monday, July 15, 2019
North American Title Insurance Co. has hired a state agency manager for Maryland and the District of Columbia.
Read on for more details.
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FormFree integrates with FundingShield
Posted Date: Monday, July 15, 2019
FormFree has integrated FundingShield’s loan-level verification services into its platform.
Read on for more details.
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