News By Edition

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is reportedly considering a ban on homeowners paying for lenders’ title insurance, a measure that could encompass home purchases and refinances, according to a media report.

Increased scrutiny of the title insurance industry and closing costs started in early-March when President Joe Biden announced his plan to lower housing costs, specifically calling out title insurance.

Read on to find out more.

The Title Report is on the ground at the 2024 Association for Title Information Management (ATIM) conference, with discussions set to touch on artificial intelligence, mergers and acquisitions and much more.

We’re looking forward to taking in these nuanced discussions and talking one-one-one with industry experts. Be sure to follow The Title Report on X/Twitter @TheTitle Report for live updates.

Read on to find out more.

Stewart Information Services Corp. has acquired a New York title agency that’s operated across the Empire State for nearly 30 years.

CEO Fred Eppinger said the move will help bolster Stewart’s national commercial services division, with the acquired firm specializing in affordable housing, supportive housing and senior housing.

Read on to find out more information.

The 2024 National Settlement Services Summit (NS3) will welcome CloseSimple’s Bill Svoboda and FNF’s Sam Trimble for a talk on “AI 2.0: Beyond the Hype,” detailing artificial intelligence’s effect on title.

The AI aficionados will show NS3 guests how AI can be a useful tool for marketing and operations and provide insights on educating partners across the real estate transaction.

Read on to learn more.

SoftPro is putting forth a new integration with American Eagle Title Insurance Co., letting users seamlessly order closing protection letters and access rates.

Read on to find out more information.

Capital Title of Texas has promoted to fill the positions of president of its Austin and San Antonio regions and Texas director of escrow/operations. She will oversee escrow and operations across the state.

Read on to learn more.

Daily average mortgage rates reached their highest level in nearly five months following a recent hotter-than-expected inflation report, according to Redfin.

Read on to find out more.

Qualia CEO and founder Nate Baker dissected the current title tech landscape and what he expects to come next for the industry during the recent Future of Real Estate Summit in Austin, Texas.

In an interview with The Title Report, Baker said title agents will remain at the center of real estate transactions, even in an increasingly technological environment.

Read on to learn more.

Seller impersonation fraud red flags and best ways to combat such crimes were recently discussed by AmTrust Title Insurance Co. Underwriting Counsel James Tarlton.

According to an October 2023 survey, 54 percent of real estate professionals reported having experienced at least one seller impersonation fraud attempt within the past six months.

Read on to find out more information.

John Marshall Bank is putting forth a digital escrow deposit platform that will allow customers to open, close and fund subaccounts at any time while retaining ability to segregate funds. Title companies will be able to optimally manage third party funds through the platform, according to the bank.

Read on to find out more information.

Surety Title Co. of Marlton, N.J., is hiring a new director of commercial operations and counsel who boasts more than 17 years of real estate industry experience.

Read on to find out more.

Major homeownership expenses required a smaller portion of wages for the second straight quarter, but that share remains the largest it’s been in 15 years, according to ATTOM.

Read on to find out more information.

State-of-the-art enhancements are part of a multi-year program that leverages artificial intelligence and automation and has deepened DataTrace’s geographic title plant coverage in Florida..

Customers can search the geographically indexed Florida title plants using multiple property parameters, including legal descriptions, subdivision names and assessor parcel numbers, to streamline search processes.

Read on to find out more information.

Idaho-based Property Sync Software Systems appointed an interim CEO who brings more than 30 years of technology sector experience to the position.

The new CEO said he’ll focus on continuing PropertySync’s commitment to modern software solutions and reinforcing its position as a leader in the title industry.

Read on to find out more information.

Rocket Mortgage is launching Rocket Logic, an artificial intelligence platform designed to help close home loans faster and speed up confirmation of mortgage qualification.

Read on to find out more.

GridBase has tapped a long-time IT leader and manager of vendor relationships as its new national account executive.

Read on to find out more.

Redfin reports over one-third of home purchases in February were made in all cash — not far from the record high. Typical down payments were up 24 percent from the same time last year.

Read on to find out more.

Insight on the present and future of the title insurance industry, as well as imminent change, was shared by WFG Title Insurance Co. Chairman Patrick Stone at the inaugural WFG Executive Summit.

He discussed the anticipated transition toward a more traditional insurance agent model, where agents focus on sales while underwriters handle back-end operations.

Read on to find out more information.

New data from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce showed renewed optimism on the current economy among small-business owners, even as they show increased worry over future cyberattacks.

Roughly one in three business owners said they feel the economy is in good health, up seven  percentage points since late-2023. Almost 40 percent felt positively about their local economy.

Read on to learn more.

AM Best has affirmed strong credit ratings and financial strength for several Old Republic International Corp. subsidiaries, including Old Republic Title Insurance Group (ORTIG).

The ratings of ORTIG reflect its balance sheet strength as well as its adequate operating performance, neutral business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management, AM Best stated.

Read on to find out more.

California-based Informative Research is adding identity verification services from Veri-Tax to its proprietary verification platform.

Read on to learn more information.

Blue Brick Title and Escrow of Clearwater, Fla., has brought on a licensed closer who brings previous experience with the company to the table.

Read on to find out more.

New listings are rising fastest in metros where more homes are owned outright, without a mortgage. Baby boomers in Pittsburgh ranked as the least “locked-in” to their current home.

Read on to find out more.

Lighthouse Title Group (LTG) has acquired a Wisconsin-based title business and opened a new office in Michigan. LTG President Bob Wuerfel discussed growth opportunities in an exclusive interview with The Title Report.

LTG currently operates 51 locations and continues to expand. Since the start of 2023, it’s acquired four title companies and entered two new markets.

Read on to find out more information.

Online notarization provider OneNotary just finished a highly successful Series A funding round and is entering a new partnership with DocuSign, with their combined services scheduled to launch this summer.

Over the past year, OneNotary has doubled its revenue, and its marketplace of notaries across the country has grown to over 30,000.

Read on to find out more information.

Notarized.com and title technology provider EquityProtect are teaming up on a host of initiatives to combat property fraud, the companies recently announced.

The initiatives include providing notaries and customers with the tools and education to protect themselves and their investments from one of the country’s fastest-growing real estate crimes.

Read on to find out more information. 

Pythonic Corp. has added a new title agency client in Kansas, where Pythonic will work to streamline opening orders, closing disclosure processing and document package automation.

Read on to learn more.

Doma Title Insurance appointed a new agency manager for Missouri, Kansas and Nebraska who has long-time experience in the mortgage and title sectors.

Read on to find out more.

Redfin reports there are more homes for buyers to choose from, with new listings posting their biggest uptick in nearly three years.

Read on to find out more information.