News By Edition

Stewart Title launched its Connect Close title production system to meet the needs of attorney agents at smaller law firms. In an exclusive interview with The Title Report, Stewart Title Senior Vice President and New England District Manager Gary Bernier shared details about the platform, which has been rolled out in Connecticut, Massachusetts and Rhode Island so far. Read on to find out more.

Razi Title is offering a program called Hot Leads that helps title agents use past transactions for new business opportunities. Since the program was launched in fall 2023, company data shows clients have converted an average of 25 percent of the leads they received into new title commitments. Read on to learn more.

Hopdox’s document eRecording process is now available in 36 counties in Wisconsin and five in Ohio. This expansion closely follows the platform being launched in seven counties in Florida. Read on to learn more information.

Proof announced a strategic investment from State Farm Ventures, the corporate venture arm of State Farm. Leaders of both companies say they are committed to making digital transactions in the insurance industry safer. Read on to learn more.

Attorneys Title Guaranty Fund Inc. announced the selection of two new agency managers, one for the Eastern Region and one for the Western. Read on to learn more.

Alanna.ai has introduced a new artificial intelligence-driven tool that leaders say is designed to automate and simplify title order entry. Read on to find out more.

The combined value of homes gained $2.5 trillion in 2024 to reach $49.7 trillion, according to a new report from Redfin. That was the slowest growth since 2019. Read on to learn more.

Fidelity National Financial Inc. reported increases in title segment revenue in both the fourth quarter and full year 2024. Title segment earnings in 2024 totaled $7.7 billion, a 9 percent increase from the $7 billion posted in 2023. Read on to learn more.

Hopdox has expanded its eRecording platform to seven Florida counties, including Broward and Palm Beach. Hopdox was founded in 2024 to bring its document recording process to settlement agents and county employees nationwide. Read on to learn more.

CLOSED Title has announced the addition of a specialty group known as The Creative CLOSED Team to help provide investor transaction services. Read on to learn more.

Snapdocs has become the first eVault provider to achieve certification for complying with Mortgage Industry Standards Maintenance Organization’s eVault System Standards. Read on to learn more information.

A recent report from property data curator ATTOM found median single-family home and condo prices increased from the third to fourth quarter of 2024 in about half of Opportunity Zones with enough data to measure. Read on to learn more information.

First American Data & Analytics’ January 2025 Home Price Index (HPI) report showed national house price growth at its slowest rate since June 2023. House price growth reported in last month’s HPI for November 2024 to December 2024 was revised down to 0 percent. Read on to find out more information.

Venture Title & Escrow announced the launch of Venture 1031, a firm specializing in Section 1031 tax-deferred exchange services. Venture 1031 aims to guide real estate agents, brokers and investors through the specific type of property exchange. Read on to learn more information.

National Independent Agency Solutions and DomiDocs are offering a platform that allows title agents and their customers to remain connected after the closing process. DomiDocs’ Homeowner Enablement Platform offers services such as property fraud protection, property tax analysis and professional grade home valuations. Read on to learn more.

Arizona Premier Title announced the appointment of a 35-year title industry veteran as its president. Read on to find out more.

Lundy Inc. announced that five real estate organizations are using its artificial intelligence (AI)-powered tool built for Multiple Listing Services and associations. Read on to learn more.

Nearly one-third of home purchases were made in cash in 2024, down from 35.1 percent the year before and the lowest share since 2021, according to a new report from Redfin. Read on to learn more.

The latest earnings report for First American Financial Corp. shows that fourth quarter revenue was up 18 percent year-over-year and total 2024 revenue was 2 percent higher than in 2023. “The company delivered excellent results,” First American CEO Ken DeGiorgio said. Read on to find out more information.

Qualia announced the launch of new features in Shield, its wire fraud detection product. Those enhancements include $1 million in insurance coverage, backed by Lloyd’s of London, for wire transfers that shield has reviewed and assessed as low risk. Read on to learn more.

JenesisDigital has rolled out JenesisLink, a digital marketing tool to help title insurance agents and attorneys with business growth, client relationships, and web presence. Features include customer relationship management, reputation management and email marketing automation. Read on to learn more.

Anderson|Biro, an executive search firm for the financial services sector, has named an equity partner in the company. Read on to learn more.

Hopdox, an eRecording firm, announced its integration with Fidlar Technologies, a land records management software company. Read on to learn more.

There are five months of for-sale housing supply on the market nationwide, up from 4.4 months a year earlier and the most since early 2019, according to a new report from Redfin. Read on to learn more.

New Stewart Title Chief Underwriting Counsel Wilhelmina Kightlinger shared thoughts on the real estate industry, housing market and more with The Title Report. Kightlinger initially joined Stewart in 2005 as a commercial underwriting counsel and returned in 2022 as deputy chief underwriting counsel for its National Commercial Services division. Read on to find out more information.

According to a new report by CertifID, first-time homebuyers are three times more likely to fall victim to real estate wire fraud when compared with other homebuyers. Overall, a quarter of all homebuyers are targeted by fraudsters, according to the report and nearly 1 in 20 become victims. Read on for more details from the report.

True Title Co., based in the St. Louis area, announced its acquisition of a title company also in Missouri. Leaders of both companies say they aim to elevate the real estate closing experience for clients across the region through the merger of modern technology and solutions with experience and personalized service. Read on to find out more.

Radian Group Inc. announced it appointed a new member to its board of directors.

Read on to learn more.

Westcor Land Title Insurance Co. leaders say a Michigan-based title agency used Westcor’s val-ID tool to thwart a real estate fraud attempt.

Read on to learn more information.

As of January, Redfin data showed the typical home was selling for 1.8 percent lower than its asking price and the ones that did sell took 56 days to go under contract.

Read on to find out more information.