News By Edition

Stewart Title announced its acquisition of a Frederick, Md.-based title agent that provides residential and commercial services in Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia and Pennsylvania. Craig Goldenberg, group vice president with Stewart, told The Title Report the Maryland agency’s customers will continue working with agents they know while Stewart will provide its expanded capabilities and financial strength.

Lone Star Title Co. of El Paso has acquired a title company in Texas in a move that will help expand the geographic area it serves. John Martin, founder of Lone Star, told The Title Report that the acquisition fit with his company’s plan to expand its operations in the Permian Basin market for real estate and title information.

Blend Labs Inc. reported its second-quarter revenue was $33.8 million, which is about $2 million more than the same time frame in 2025.

The Small Business Optimism Index increased by 2.4 points from June to July, but the Uncertainty Index rose by 2 points during that same time frame, according to the latest report from the National Federation of Independent Business. The rise in optimism was due in large part to the improvement of hiring plans while the increase in uncertainty was tied to more owners expressing uncertainty about whether now was a good time to expand.

FIRPTA Solutions continued nationwide growth and will strengthen its ability to serve the increasing demand from title agencies, realtors, attorneys, CPAs and settlement agents (real estate professionals) throughout Texas. The expansion to Florida also positions FIRPTA Solutions to provide enhanced support to clients across the Midwest and western United States as demand for specialized FIRPTA compliance services continues to grow.

Jenny Martin with First American Title, Valerie Grandin with Alliant National Title and Jeffrey Heighton with Fidelity National Financial discuss what creates effective leadership that results in a successful business and how leaders can continue to develop their skills.

Westcor Land Title Insurance Co. has hired a new vice president of its New England Regional Counsel. In this role, the administrator provides underwriting counsel for residential and commercial title insurance matters throughout New England, advising title agents, conveyancing attorneys, agency representatives, and internal teams on insurability, curative requirements, closing-related risks, policy coverage, endorsements, and state-specific title practice.

Westcor Land Title Insurance Co. announced the first ever recipient of the Mary O’Donnell Scholarship is a graduate of Westerville High School who will attend The Ohio State University.

Brad Rable, who is planning to retire from his group president role with Stewart Title at the end of 2026, told The Title Report there are “many things” he is proud of from his tenure with the company. High on the list, he said, is “leading a team that transformed Stewart’s title and escrow functionality, from what started as non-existent, to a global powerhouse.”

Investors Title Co. reported revenue in the second quarter rose by $13.1 million year-over-year and net income increased by more than $2 million in the same time frame. Investors Title Chairman J. Allen Fine said, “We are pleased to report our strongest quarterly financial performance in several years, highlighted by title revenue growth across all of our key markets.”

The National Federation of Independent Business’s July Jobs Report showed that the Small Business Employment Index increased by nearly 2 points from June to July. This uptick follows four straight months of decline.

AgentBrief will provide Westcor Land Title Insurance agents with access to discounted pricing, insights that find opportunities to engage customers and AI-assisted outreach tools that make business development more efficient and effective.

SettlementOne and Secure Insight have formed a partnership that will provide instant verification of settlement agent risk assessment along with verified wire instructions. Secure Insight’s Closing Guard solution will be offered to mortgage lenders on SettlementOne’s software platform.

Newly pending listings, a leading indicator of future closings, grew 0.3 percent from a year ago and fell 7.7 percent from June, as reported by Zillow. Additionally, inventory sits 1.5 percent above year-ago levels, helped by 3.1 percent annual growth of new listings, extending the 32-month streak of supply gains.

Fidelity National Financial Inc. reported a year-over-year increase in title segment revenue and net earnings in the second quarter, according to its latest earnings report. Overall revenue for the title segment increased from $2.2 billion in the second quarter of 2025 to $2.5 billion in the second quarter of 2026.

Radian Group Inc. leaders say they have entered a definitive agreement to sell their title business to a real estate technology and services platform. The sale is anticipated to be finalized in the fourth quarter.

Policy-issuing agents of First American Title can now access CryptEscrow and work with their clients to evaluate whether a cryptocurrency-to-cash settlement is a compliant option for any given transaction.

Zillow is announcing company expansions regarding the roles of chief operating officer and chief financial officer, while another employee will be appointed as Zillow’s first-ever chief legal and policy officer. The company is also promoting two other senior leaders.

Covius announced the acquisition of Title365’s operations in 2025 and closed the transaction earlier this spring. Existing teams and technology that Title365’s clients count on are fully integrated into the offerings of Covius’ legacy title business.

The median household now earns about $17,000 more than what’s needed to afford a starter home, up from $12,500 a year ago, Redfin is reporting in its latest report. While Austin (Texas) leads the nation in improving starter-home affordability with Detroit, Philadelphia and Cleveland becoming less affordable, but typical local households can still generally afford starter homes.

MaestroX leaders said they are partnering with Pat Carney to have him serve as the firm’s chief AI officer and chief technology officer. Christopher Leonard, CEO of MaestroX, told The Title Report that Carney’s decades of experience building technology solutions for the title and real estate industries made him “uniquely qualified to help guide our next phase of growth.” Carney said he is partnering with MaestroX “to implement AI the right way for title search and exam.”

WFG National Title Insurance Co. closed the second quarter of 2026 with a 4.9-star customer rating on a 5-point scale and a Net Promoter Score (NPS) of 95 across all direct title operations. The score is important because customers assess their experience with WFG not only against other title and settlement providers, but also against the best service they receive from companies in any industry.

New Venture Escrow has opened an office in Del Mar, Calif. that reflects the company’s approach of pairing exceptional people with the resources needed to deliver an elevated escrow experience.

Knox Title has appointed a new chief financial officer who will oversee the financial health of the six regional brands, spanning nine states and ranging from local abstract offices to large-scale title operations.

Accurate Group has issued an underwritten title company license covering all of California and a title agency license for Nevada. Company leaders say they are providing lenders, servicers and financial institutions with a superior integrated title and escrow experience.

A panel of four industry experts recently engaged in a comprehensive discussion about the challenges surrounding the adoption of various aspects of eClosings. While adoption of digital closings is steadily rising, the panelists noted that each state having its own regulations and technology generally moving faster than the enactment of regulations are two of the challenges the industry faces.

WFG National Title Insurance Co. and Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Arizona Properties have entered into a regional partnership designed to strengthen support throughout the real estate transaction process while helping facilitate efficient and seamless closings for buyers and sellers.

American Land Title Association CEO Chris Morton says the “real value” of title insurance lies “in the defects discovered, the fraud prevented and the property rights protected.” He added that consumers should not have to choose between affordability and protection, and noted that a strong housing market provides both.

CATIC hired an agency advisor for its Connecticut sales group who will help strengthen relationships with agents, support sales and service initiatives, and contribute to growth opportunities throughout the market.

Leaders of BSI Financial Services said their firm has been approved by Ginnie Mae as an eIssuer and eSubservicer under its digital collateral program. The approvals give BSI an expanded ability to support Ginnie Mae-backed digital mortgage assets across both securitization and servicing.

It’s a tale of two housing markets, according to data released by Zillow. Luxury homes are selling at a quicker pace than a year ago, while starter homes are sitting longer and drawing price cuts as buyers fail to show up.

Sun Title has initiated a new campaign that is designed to verify the identity of every buyer, seller and borrower closing with the firm. This new system will be a standard part of every Sun Title closing, adding a layer of security to help protect all parties from impersonation fraud.

We caught up with Daniel Brown, senior director and economist at the American Bankers Association, in advance of the October Research Economic Outlook webinar to be presented on Aug. 5 at 2 p.m. (ET).

While the Home Price Index (HPI) was unchanged from May to June, that metric increased by almost 1 percent from June 2025 to June 2026, according to First American Data & Analytics’ June 2026 HPI report. First American Chief Economist Mark Fleming observed, “The housing market is quietly inching back toward price growth.”

CATIC leaders announced they have hired a new title counsel to serve as part of the firm’s Southeast Underwriting team. The legal professional will provide underwriting and title support to CATIC’s agents, as well as assist with complex title issues and curative matters.

ParcelRecordsUSA announced it has completed its Arkansas statewide property-record directory, which brings all 75 of the state’s counties together in resource available to the public. Visitors to the website can access items such as a dedicated county page, ZIP-code directory or available parcel record.

Pending home sales fell to their lowest level since early April during the four weeks ending July 26, according to a report from Redfin. Homebuying demand is decreasing partly because mortgage rates continue to rise.

Net income for the second quarter came in at $322.3 million, compared to $204.4 million in the second quarter of 2025, according to Old Republic’s latest earnings report. Net income excluding investment gains (net operating income) was $186 million in the second quarter, compared to $209.2 million in the second quarter of 2025.

Closinglock’s expanded SecurePay system has an open payment link that buyers can use to securely send earnest money, option fees, cash to close and other closing costs at any time within a single platform.

A new talent acquisition service offered by Darryl Turner Corp. will provide targeted sourcing and outreach, in-depth vetting, behavioral analysis and structured interviews to locate sales professionals for title firms. This will help title companies remain focused on operations while gaining access to a consistent pipeline of elite talent.

The Mortgage Office (TMO), AFX Research integration enables lenders using TMO to order verified title update reports directly within the platform, giving them faster visibility into lien position and ownership data at any point in the loan lifecycle.

The new staffer at CATIC will be charged with leading the firm’s Rhode Island office, as well as providing underwriting and educational support for the company’s Rhode Island agents.

The net loss of people coming to rural northern California runs contrary to a national trend of two-thirds of fire-prone counties gaining more residents than they’re losing, according to Redfin.

Revenue for the second quarter was $2.1 billion, a 15 percent increase over the second quarter of 2025, according to First American Financial Corp.’s earnings report. In addition, adjusted net income in the current quarter was $214 million, or $2.08 per diluted share, compared with $158 million, or $1.53 per diluted share, in the second quarter of last year.

Proper Title recently opened an office in River Forest, Ill. Kim O’Donnell, executive vice president of business development at Proper Title, said the firm wanted to have "a permanent presence in Oak Park-River Forest for over 10 years," and added the new office will serve that purpose.

While the sales of newly built single-family homes were up by 1.6 percent in June, the pace of new home sales is 5.6 percent lower than it was a year earlier.

Exeter 1031 Exchange Services LLC has hired an exchange officer who has five-plus years of experience in the qualified intermediary industry.

Friday Harbor’s new capability allows lenders to identify documentation gaps, eligibility issues and changes that require updated Guaranteed Underwriting System findings before loan files reach underwriting.

Clean air, along with security systems are the top priorities for house hunters, according to a survey commissioned by Redfin.

In its latest earnings report, Stewart Information Services Corp. reported net income attributable to Stewart of $37.2 million ($1.21 per diluted share) for the second quarter, compared to net income attributable to Stewart of $31.9 million ($1.13 per diluted share) for the second quarter of 2025. In addition, title segment operating revenues increased $91.1 million (15 percent) in the second quarter compared to the second quarter of 2025.

Sam Williamson, a senior economist with First American, said as mortgage rates climbed to their highest level in nearly a year and home prices remained elevated, “the math simply got harder to make work, especially for first-time buyers.”

AmTrust Title welcomes a new team member. This individual has almost three decades of experience working in the title insurance and real estate industries.

While there was a slight increase in the median lot size for newly built single-family detached homes in 2025, the typical lot remains under one-fifth of an acre and well below historical levels, according to the National Association of Home Builders.

The U.S. is currently 4.7 million homes short of what is needed. Building one home on each of 300,000 empty lots listed for sale would reduce the housing deficit by 6.3 percent, according to Zillow.

Pending home sales dropped by 1.3 percent week-over-week to their lowest level in three months during the four weeks ending July 19, according to a report from Redfin.

While 11 of the 12 Federal Reserve Districts reported a slight to moderate increase in economic activity, real estate activity rose in six of the districts and was mixed in three other ones, according to the latest Beige Book report.

Overall, housing starts increased 19 percent in June to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.43 million units, according to a report from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Census Bureau.

The National Federation of Independent Business jobs report for June showed the Small Business Employment Index was 100.2 after it was 100.3 in May.

Visionet Systems selected Mark Holley to serve as the firm’s vice president of sales for its AtClose Title Production Software platform.

Home prices increased by 3 percent year-over-year in June, according to a new report from Redfin.

There were 227,548 properties with foreclosure filings during the first six months of 2026, according to ATTOM’s Mid-Year 2026 U.S. Foreclosure Market Report. This figure is 21 percent higher compared with 2025 and 28 percent more than in 2024.

The acquisition by Stewart of a Fort Worth, Texas, title company joins two well-known title insurance brands in Texas and renews a shared history between the companies and their founders dating back more than a century.

ArcGIS users can access First American’s GIS-ready property intelligence such as nationwide parcel boundaries and ownership information through web feature layers and other flexible delivery options.

The new office of Exeter 1031 Exchange Services establishes a regional presence to serve real estate investors and their legal, tax and financial advisors throughout Texas.

The American Land Title Association (ALTA) has recognized Capital Bank, N.A. as an ALTA Elite Provider for 2026.

LodeStar’s Closing Cost Calculator is available in the Empower loan origination system, developed in conjunction with the Dark Matter Developer Platform.

House hunters backing off due to high housing costs and a shaky global economy due in part to the end of the U.S.-Iran ceasefire led to the first drop in pending sales in a month, according to Redfin.