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Stewart’s profits climb 60 percent
Posted Date: Friday, October 26, 2018
Despite a double-digit drop in both opened and closed orders, an increase in its fee-per-file for both residential and commercial transactions helped Stewart Information Services Corp. achieve a 60 percent increase in third-quarter profits.
In a release that accompanied the company’s quarterly results, Stewart CEO Matthew Morris also addressed Stewart’s pending acquisition by Fidelity.
Read on to learn what Morris had to say about Stewart’s third-quarter results and the progress of the Fidelity deal.
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First American reports huge profits in slowing market
Posted Date: Monday, October 29, 2018
An increase in commercial revenue and investment income helped First American Financial Corp. (FAF) produce a huge increase in third-quarter profits but only a slight improvement in overall revenue, according to the company’s latest earning statement.
CEO Dennis Gilmore said rising interest rates continue to negatively impact FAF’s mortgage volumes, but the increase in short term rates helped spike quarterly investment income.
Read on for more details from FAF’s latest earnings report.
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Iberiabank title revenue up, title agency acquisition announced
Posted Date: Monday, October 29, 2018
Iberiabank Corp., whose holdings include nearly 30 title insurance offices, reported a double-digit increase in title revenues during the third quarter, according to the company’s latest earnings statement.
CEO Daryl Byrd said Iberia’s focus on improving operating leverage and financial performance has resulted in loan growth, increased revenues and reduced expenses.
Read on for more details from Iberia’s third-quarter earnings report.
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Atlanta title agency creating new abstracting application
Posted Date: Thursday, October 18, 2018
An Atlanta-based title company has partnered with an enterprise-ready, Blockchain-secured platform to create a new abstracting application designed to provide an efficient platform for closing real estate deals, the companies announced.
The two companies will announce the public availability of the new abstracting application at a later date.
Read on to learn which companies are involved in this project.
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Westcor agent conducts remote closing in Ohio
Posted Date: Wednesday, October 17, 2018
One of Westcor Land Title Insurance Co.’s Ohio-based agents recently closed the company’s first remote online notarized transaction in the Buckeye State.
Westcor Chief Operating Officer Scott Chandler said its partnership with Notarize, Inc., provides its independent title agents with a secure, scalable platform that empowers them to serve lenders’ online closings, as well as initiate their own online notarizations and signings.
Read on to learn which title agency was involved in the eClosing.
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DocuSign launches digital rooms for mortgages
Posted Date: Monday, October 22, 2018
DocuSign recently announced the beta launch of its DocuSign Rooms for Mortgage, which it said delivers a digital environment for the borrower, lender and settlement agent.
DocuSign said the new product leverages its broader suite of solutions for digital closings, including eSignature, eNotary, eNote and eVault.
Read on to learn what DocuSign General Manager Georg Gerstenfeld had to say about the new offering.
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Survey: Businesses using search data to target consumers
Posted Date: Wednesday, October 24, 2018
A recent data privacy survey from an information security and risk management consultancy reveals that nine out of 10 U.S. companies use personal information from search results as part of their marketing strategies.
The same survey indicated three-quarters of consumers are either not aware or only moderately aware of how their information is being used.
Read on to learn more of what the survey found.
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NATC names division manager
Posted Date: Wednesday, October 17, 2018
North American Title Co. has named a division manager for Alameda, Contra Costa and Solano counties in California.
Read on for more details.
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Split government back in place
Posted Date: Wednesday, November 7, 2018
The reign of Republican control over both branches of Congress and the White House in Washington will last two years, as voters across the country assured there would be split government by overwhelmingly voting for House Democrats.
However, Republicans maintained their control of the Senate and could expand their margin depending on late races and a special election runoff next month.
Read on for the latest from Tuesday night's midterm elections and its ramifications for congressional committees which oversee financial services.
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TitleWave expands team
Posted Date: Thursday, November 1, 2018
TitleWave Real Estate Solutions has expanded its team with the addition of two seasoned title industry veterans.
Read on for more details.
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Freddie: Rising interest rates discouraged buyers
Posted Date: Thursday, November 1, 2018
Rising interest rates coupled with increasing home prices discouraged home buying activity during the third quarter.
Read on for details from Freddie Mac’s latest forecast.
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Fairway Mortgage adds eClosing solution
Posted Date: Monday, October 29, 2018
Fairway Independent Mortgage Corp. is offering customers digital closings through a platform it calls Fairway Express Close, the company announced.
The company said its eClosing platform allows all parties to conveniently and securely preview and approve documents electronically prior to settlement.
Read on to learn what two Fairway branch managers had to say about the eClosing platform.
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SoftPro integrates Ameristar
Posted Date: Monday, October 29, 2018
SoftPro has integrated Ameristar’s title reports directly into its business exchange platform.
Read on for more details.
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Loan defects trending up
Posted Date: Monday, October 29, 2018
The frequency of defects, fraudulence and misrepresentation in mortgage loan applications in September increased by 1.3 percent compared with August.
Read on for more details from the latest First American Loan Application Defect Index.
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QRL Financial links with DocMagic
Posted Date: Monday, October 29, 2018
QRL Financial Services (QRL) will leverage DocMagic, Inc.’s eVault technology to purchase eNotes.
Read on for more details.
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Lennar subsidiary agrees to settlement
Posted Date: Friday, October 26, 2018
A mortgage company which is a subsidiary of Lennar Corp. has agreed to pay $13.2 million to settle claims it violated the federal False Claims Act by falsely certifying it complied with FHA insurance requirements regarding certain loans.
Eagle Home Mortgage was accused of knowingly submitting loans for FHA insurance that didn’t qualify in pre-housing crisis times, between January 2006 and Dec. 31, 2011.
Read on for more details.
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Record number of small-business owners hiking pay
Posted Date: Friday, October 26, 2018
To attract qualified workers, a record percentage of small-business owners reported raising overall compensation levels, according to a report by the National Federation of Independent Businesses (NFIB).
More than six out of 10 small-business owners told NFIB that they tried to hire workers during September, but a majority of those complained of not being able to find qualified workers.
Read on for more details from NFIB’s latest report.
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Home price appreciation slowed in quarter
Posted Date: Friday, October 26, 2018
Home price appreciation during the third quarter was the slowest pace since the second quarter of 2016.
Read on for more details from ATTOM Data Solutions’ Q3 2018 U.S. Home Sales Report.
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Qualia launches eSignature product
Posted Date: Wednesday, October 24, 2018
Qualia has released what it is calling the title and escrow industry’s first electronic signature product built specifically for title, escrow and closing software.
Read on for more details.
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NotaryCam hires executive vice president
Posted Date: Wednesday, October 24, 2018
NotaryCam has hired a digital mortgage specialist to serve as its executive vice president of marketing and business development.
Read on to learn who was selected.
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Redfin: Homes staying on market longer
Posted Date: Wednesday, October 24, 2018
The hottest housing markets during the spring cooled off considerably during September when it comes to time listed on the market.
Read on for more details from an analysis by Redfin.
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Percentage of closed loans increased in September
Posted Date: Wednesday, October 24, 2018
The average 30-year interest rate for all loans during September decreased for the first time in 2018.
Read on for more details from Ellie Mae’s latest Origination Insight Report.
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A.M. Best: Trade war could hamper industry’s growth
Posted Date: Monday, October 22, 2018
A new report from A.M. Best details how the title industry has benefited from a burgeoning U.S. economy in recent years, but said the sustainability of the country’s economic growth is uncertain and potentially threatens the industry’s future results.
The report warns that President Donald Trump’s brewing trade war with China may slow gross domestic product growth, because many products involved in home construction are imported from China.
Read on to learn what other key factor A.M. Best believes might slow economic growth during the second half of 2018.
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FTC releases new cybersecurity tools
Posted Date: Monday, October 22, 2018
As part of National Cybersecurity Awareness Month, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is offering new cybersecurity resources for small businesses.
FTC attorney Rosario Méndez said the resources are delivered in a way that will make it easy for small-business owners to talk about cybersecurity with employees, vendors, and others involved in their businesses.
Read on to learn how to get these free materials.
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American Property Guard integrated into ResWare
Posted Date: Monday, October 22, 2018
Adeptive Software has integrated American Property Guard’s tax and homeowner’s association information retrieval into its ResWare software.
Read on for more details.
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State Capital launches new search website
Posted Date: Monday, October 22, 2018
New Jersey-based State Capital has launched a new website designed to provide title, legal and lending professionals the most technologically advanced public records search and online ordering methods available, the company announced.
Read on for more details.
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CertifID increases transaction guarantee to $1 million
Posted Date: Thursday, October 18, 2018
CertifID has increased the transaction guarantee on its wire fraud prevention platform to up to $1 million in losses, the company announced.
CertifID said the increased coverage provides its customers with higher protection for commercial transactions and higher-value residential real estate markets.
Read on to learn how much CertifID said it has protected in wire transactions within residential and commercial real estate.
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Norcom Mortgage selects Pavaso
Posted Date: Thursday, October 18, 2018
Norcom Mortgage, the largest independent purchase mortgage lender in Connecticut, has selected Pavaso’s closing platform to facilitate its eClosings, the companies announced.
Norcom Mortgage’s electronic mortgage closings process “Swift Sign” now is available through Pavaso’s platform.
Read on to learn what executives from both companies had to say about the partnership.
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ResWare integrates RMail
Posted Date: Thursday, October 18, 2018
Adeptive Software has integrated RPost’s email cybersecurity software services directly within ResWare.
Read on for more details.
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NATC appoints Texas president
Posted Date: Thursday, October 18, 2018
North American Title Co. has named a president of its Texas division.
Read on for more details.
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ePN adds Ohio county to its network
Posted Date: Thursday, October 18, 2018
eRecording Partners Network recently added a county in Ohio to its eRecording network.
Read on for more details.
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California escrow company accepting Bitcoins
Posted Date: Wednesday, October 17, 2018
An independent escrow company in California has started accepting cryptocurrency as payment.
The company said it made the decision to accept cryptocurrency because of the increasing number of homes on the market that are accepting Bitcoin as a form of payment.
Read on to learn why Piper Moretti, a Realtor and crypto transaction expert and speaker at June’s National Settlement Services Summit, called the announcement “great news” for buyers and sellers in the Blockchain space.
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First American launches eClosing solution
Posted Date: Wednesday, October 17, 2018
First American Mortgage Solutions, LLC has launched an eClosing solution designed to securely deliver digital settlement for digital mortgages, the company announced
First American said its eClosing platform is part of its efforts to help lenders manage the eClosing process and to enhance the digital mortgage experience for consumers.
Read on for more details about First American’s eClosing solution.
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Third-quarter foreclosures decline
Posted Date: Wednesday, October 17, 2018
Third-quarter foreclosure filings dropped to the lowest level since the fourth quarter of 2005.
Read on for more details from ATTOM Data Solutions’ Q3 2018 U.S. Foreclosure Market Report.
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