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The Title Report Print Edition
July 4, 2022
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Underwriters detail hot topics in the title industry
Posted Date: Thursday, June 23, 2022
From market changes and real-time payments to using Tinder for talent recruitment, members of the 2022 National Settlement Services Summit (NS3) underwriting panel covered a lot of ground in their session.
Executives from Old Republic National Title Insurance Co., Stewart, Fidelity National Financial, First National Title Insurance Co. and Doma Title Insurance, Inc. took part in the round-table discussion about the ever-changing landscape of the title industry.
Read on for more.
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ALTA: Premium volume up slightly in first quarter
Posted Date: Thursday, June 23, 2022
The title industry generated $5.89 billion in insurance premiums during the first quarter, up 3.6 percent from $5.68 billion a year ago, according to the American Land Title Association’s (ALTA) recent market share analysis.
Total operating income in the industry also was up 3.6 percent, operating expenses were up 40 percent and loss and loss adjustment expenses were up 13.8 percent.
Read on for more from ALTA.
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Law firm boosts real estate team
Posted Date: Thursday, June 23, 2022
Rockville, Md.-based law firm Miller, Miller & Canby added an attorney to its real estate practice group. He will provide settlement services as well as focus on commercial real estate transactions, financings, land development matters, real estate litigation and property tax appeals.
Read on for more.
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Title companies to merge after HomeServices acquisition
Posted Date: Tuesday, June 21, 2022
HomeServices of America, a Berkshire Hathaway affiliate, acquired real estate company Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices New Jersey Properties as well as its affiliate title company, Associated Title Agency.
As part of the transaction, Associated Title will merge with Trident Land Transfer Co., affiliated title company of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Fox & Roach Realtors.
Read on for more about the acquisitions.
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HomeLight to acquire Accept.inc
Posted Date: Tuesday, June 21, 2022
Real estate technology platform HomeLight entered an agreement to acquire Denver-based fintech lender Accept.inc, which offers homebuyers a way to submit all-cash offers in an all-stock transaction.
HomeLight also raised $115 million in additional capital, including $60 million of Series D equity and $55 million of debt financing, to fund operations. The transaction brings HomeLight’s total funding to approximately $645 million.
Read on for more.
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Boston National Title partners with Clarifire
Posted Date: Tuesday, June 21, 2022
Boston National Title Agency, an Incenter company, entered a strategic alliance with workflow automation provider Clarifire.
Through the integration, users of Clarifire for default servicing and loss mitigation will be able to automate requests and responses for property reports, mortgage modification policies and similar documentation from Boston National Title without leaving the Clarifire platform.
Read on for more.
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Ideal Agent launches cash offer service
Posted Date: Tuesday, June 21, 2022
Tampa, Fla.-based real estate services company Ideal Agent launched its cash offer program for homesellers. The company allows clients to forgo listing, showings and open houses and provides multiple cash offers through its network of investors.
Read on for more.
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USA National Title adds DataTrace platform
Posted Date: Tuesday, June 21, 2022
USA National Title Co. selected Data Trace Information Services LLC’s TitleIQ Enterprise as its primary title production platform. USA National Title expects the platform could reduce its production time by 50 percent.
Read on for more.
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Luxury-home sales drop 18 percent
Posted Date: Tuesday, June 21, 2022
Sales of luxury homes fell 17.8 percent year-over-year during the three months ending April 30, the largest drop since the onset of the pandemic, according to Redfin. By comparison, sales of non-luxury homes fell 5.4 percent.
Read on for more.
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Compass to lay off 450, close title software company
Posted Date: Friday, June 17, 2022
Real estate technology company Compass will lay off 10 percent of its workforce, or about 450 positions throughout the company, according to its “workforce reduction plan” detailed in a June 14 filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
The company also plans a “wind down” of Modus Technologies, Inc., the title and escrow software company Compass acquired in 2020.
Read on for more.
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Notarize cuts a quarter of its workforce
Posted Date: Friday, June 17, 2022
Boston-based Notarize cut 25 percent of its workforce, or 110 employees.
CEO Pat Kinsel said the current economy and market “change the company’s access to future investment and force us to re-evaluate what we can invest in and pursue,” and the cuts allow the company to “realign resources against our most critical goals.”
Read on for more.
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Redfin cites market conditions for laying off 470
Posted Date: Friday, June 17, 2022
Redfin plans to reduce the number of its employees by 470 by the end of the month, according to a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The filing cited “market conditions” for the workforce reduction.
In a blog post, CEO Glen Kelman said with May demand 17 percent below expectations, there is not enough work to go around.
Read on for more.
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SoftPro integrates with Texan Title
Posted Date: Friday, June 17, 2022
SoftPro released an integration with Texan Title Insurance Co. for title search services. SoftPro users who are agents of Texan Title can share data via the SoftPro 360 vendor exchange portal.
Read on for more.
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Landmark Title names business development manager
Posted Date: Friday, June 17, 2022
Phoenix-based Landmark Title Assurance Agency named a business development manager. He will focus on expanding the agency’s customer relationships in the north Scottsdale, Ariz., area.
Read on for more.
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Zombie foreclosures rising in second quarter
Posted Date: Friday, June 17, 2022
According to ATTOM’s second-quarter vacant property and zombie foreclosure report, 1.3 million residential properties across the country sit vacant. Also, 259,166 are in the process of foreclosure, up 12.7 percent from the first quarter and up 15.9 percent year-over-year.
Read on for more.
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WFG National Title Insurance expands into West
Posted Date: Tuesday, June 14, 2022
WFG National Title Insurance Co., a division of WFG, expanded its agency footprint to include four Western states with the formation of the company’s new Rocky Mountain Region.
A newly named vice president, Rocky Mountain area manager will head operations in the new region and will work with an agency sales representative and underwriting counsel.
Read on for more.
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FNF first-quarter title revenue dips 4 percent
Posted Date: Tuesday, June 14, 2022
Fidelity National Financial (FNF) generated total revenue of $3.2 billion in the first quarter, for what the CEO said was the company’s best first quarter in FNF history.
In the title segment, total revenue was $2.4 billion, down 4 percent year-over-year from $2.5 billion, according to the first quarter earnings report.
Read on for more from the report.
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Global America Title unveils new website
Posted Date: Tuesday, June 14, 2022
Global America Title Services, a Hollywood, Fla.-based real estate title company that specializes in luxurious residential and commercial closings, launched a redesigned website.
Features on the new website include an instant estimate generator, the ability to instantly receive a quote for and order title services, a real estate purchase checklist, a library of closing resources and a listing of residential, commercial and construction real estate services.
Read on for more.
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Bank Shot setting new standard for cybersecurity
Posted Date: Tuesday, June 14, 2022
Bank Shot is setting new cybersecurity standards in the industry for sending earnest money, down payments and other real estate funds, according to the company. It has partnered with Red Sentry, a testing tool that continually checks Bank Shot’s assets for vulnerabilities.
Read on for more.
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Innovation undeterred by mortgage rate hike
Posted Date: Tuesday, June 14, 2022
Despite a rising mortgage rate environment and a slowdown in the deployment of venture capital, the pace of real estate innovation is unlikely to slow. That’s according to First American Chief Innovation Officer Paul Hurst.
Read on for more.
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Meridian Title acquires Moore Title & Escrow
Posted Date: Friday, June 10, 2022
Meridian Title acquired Indiana-based Moore Title & Escrow. Moore Title was established in 1899 and has served Howard, Clinton and Tipton counties for over 100 years. It has office locations in Kokomo, Tipton, and Frankfort, Ind.
Meridian Title, owned by Armatage Capital, has over 250 employees with more than 40 offices headquartered in Indiana.
Read on for more about the acquisition.
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Ex-FBI assistant cyber director joins Home Lock Title
Posted Date: Friday, June 10, 2022
The former assistant director of the FBI’s Cyber Division joined the Home Title Lock team as its senior cyber security adviser.
He will help the home title fraud detection service stop such cybercrimes and get the word out to consumers on what they can do to protect themselves from title theft scams.
Read on for more.
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AM Best revises outlooks for CATIC
Posted Date: Friday, June 10, 2022
AM Best has revised the outlook of Connecticut Attorneys Title Insurance Company (CATIC) to stable from negative and affirmed its financial strength rating of B++ (good) and the long-term issuer credit rating of “bbb” (good).
The credit ratings reflect CATIC’s balance sheet strength, which AM Best assesses as strong, as well as its adequate operating performance, limited business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management.
Read on for more.
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ALTA adds five members to DEI Advisory Council
Posted Date: Friday, June 10, 2022
The American Land Title Association (ALTA) Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) Advisory Council now has 13 members, as five new members joined the original eight. The ALTA Board of Governors voted to create the council earlier this year.
Read on for more.
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SIGNiX launches RON integration with RamQuest
Posted Date: Friday, June 10, 2022
RamQuest’s Closing Market digital network is now integrated with Chattanooga, Tenn.-based SIGNiX’s remote online notarization (RON) platform. The integration will save RamQuest users time by allowing them to work from their own software, according to the companies.
Read on for more.
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Economists say housing market not in a bubble
Posted Date: Friday, June 10, 2022
Sixty percent of housing experts polled by Zillow don’t believe the housing market is in a bubble, compared with 32 percent who do. The experts do foresee a recession coming soon.
Read on for more
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MISMO certifies DocMagic platform
Posted Date: Thursday, June 9, 2022
DocMagic attained MISMO’s eClosing System and remote online notarization (RON) certifications for its Total eClose solution. The RON certification confirms the provider’s platform, procedures and policies comply with MISMO standards, and the eClosing certification confirms the platform meets MISMO-specific requirements.
Read on for more.
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Home prices rise in over half of Opportunity Zones
Posted Date: Thursday, June 9, 2022
Median single-family home and condo prices rose from the fourth quarter to the first quarter in 55 percent of Opportunity Zones around the country, according to ATTOM. Prices jumped by at least 20 percent annually in half.
Read on for more.
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