News By Edition

TitleWise, a new cloud-based title abstraction platform aiming to ensure faster closings and other efficiencies, is beginning a national roll out after a successful beta launch that began in January.

TitleWise Technologies, Inc. CEO Jennifer Mason sat down with The Title Report to discuss the creative process behind what started as an in-house solution, the platform’s benefits for industry stakeholders and inspiration for turning ideas into actions.

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Kriss Law/Atlantic Closing & Escrow (KL/ACE) and The Closing Exchange are partnering to expand reverse mortgage closing capabilities and offer clients Home Equity Conversion Mortgages-compliant signing services.

Through the partnership, KL/ACE clients have access to The Closing Exchange’s Elite Reverse Notary Panel, which provides nationwide coverage through vetted, trained notary agents.

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Texas-based homebuilder and title services provider D.R. Horton, Inc. acquired the homebuilding operations of Truland Homes, company leaders announced.

D.R. Horton plans to combine Truland operations with its D.R. Horton platforms in Baldwin County, Ala., and northwest Florida. Assets acquired include hundreds of lots, 155 homes in inventory and 55 homes in sales order backlog.

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Miami-based Skyline Lien Search has expanded its services to include mortgage payoff letters, a result of reported significant demand from clients.

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CertifID has added insurance of real time payments (RTP) to its cybersecurity platform, providing up to $1 million in insurance for every verified RTP transaction.

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Wisconsin tops the list for real estate investment-related searches, according to new analysis conducted by California-based Malibu Real Estate.

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Fidelity National Financial (FNF) released its fourth annual Sustainability Report, pointing to progress made in areas like environmental stewardship, diversity equity and inclusion and protection of data.

FNF’s total non-recycled waste footprint at its headquarters was 36 tons of waste in 2022, a 63 percent drop from 2019.

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Tennessee-based Authority Title & Escrow expanded into north Alabama with the opening of an office in Huntsville, offering real estate closing solutions to builders, investors, lenders, homebuyers and homesellers.

The Huntsville office’s range of services includes residential and commercial closings, as well as land purchases and new construction.

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Property data curator ATTOM has brought a pair of new hires on to its executive team in the roles of chief of staff and chief customer officer.

Company leaders say the two will be tasked with duties such as driving companywide initiatives, ensuring alignment of company goals, building out customer experiences and ensuring customer retention.

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Arizona-based Landmark Title Assurance Agency brought on a new commercial and residential business development manager.

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The Federal Reserve has released a list of 57 organizations certified as ready to commence live transactions using the new FedNow Service instant payment infrastructure.

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A historic shortage of homes for sale is fueling bidding wars in some areas despite sluggish homebuyer demand, according to new data from Redfin.

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Zillow announced plans to halt the operation of Zillow Closing Services, its closing and title division established in 2019.

The company said Zillow Closing Services will complete all remaining business and move forward with the shutdown sometime this fall. Roughly 80 positions are expected to be eliminated in the move.

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New Orleans-based title and settlement service solution provider Generes & Associates is urging agents to take advantage of revenue streams stemming from idle escrow account balances.

Company leaders say a better understanding of how banks handle these balances can help title agents find new passive income amid continued market uncertainty.

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Notarize is introducing Proof, a platform for complete digital identity verification, aiming to extend company services beyond notarization.

Identity verification will be certified for NIST IAL2 security.  The platform strengthens trust in eSignatures, locking a signer’s identity to a specific transaction and stopping instances of digital fraud before they happen.

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Proper Title, LLC announced the hiring of a new account executive, which the company said aids expansion of its title services in northwest Indiana.

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Colorado-based software technology company zavvie is bringing its power-buying services such as Cash Offer and buy-before-you-sell Modern Bridge to the mortgage industry.

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All-cash home purchases have reached their highest level since 2014, and the share of buyers using FHA loans has reached its highest level since before the pandemic, according to new data from Redfin.

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Title production technology provider D. Bello has issued guidelines on remote workforce management and the industry’s adoption of such practices. CEO Jeffrey Bates shared thoughts on the matter in an exclusive interview with The Title Report.

Businesses unwilling to embrace at least some level of remote or hybrid work will struggle to attract and retain employees moving forward, according to D. Bello.

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New data from the American Land Title Association shows first quarter title industry premium volume down more than 40 percent year-over-year.

Total operating income was down 71.6 percent during the first quarter of 2023 compared with the start of 2022, but ALTA’s report also points to healthy total industry assets and statutory reserves.

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Virginia-based National Independent Agency Solutions released a nationwide platform for commercial and residential title industry services. According to company leaders, the platform aims to provide independent advisory and consulting services, advocacy, resources and solutions to title insurance agents, title insurers, and title industry vendors.

The firm is also releasing a third-party vendor portal.

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SaaS solution provider VizionX hired a title industry veteran as its new vice president of strategic partnerships and customer advocacy.

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FundingShield has teamed up with Mastercard on expanded payment verification solutions, helping B2B and B2B2C firms tackle continued upticks in online fraud.

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New market analysis from Zillow points to the need for roughly 4.3 million more homes to address nationwide shortages and the resulting affordability struggles for prospective new homeowners.

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