Title insurance underwriters at eye of financial hurricane

Real estate transactions, the lifeblood of the title insurance industry, have come to a screeching halt, slashing revenue and underwriting income. What's worse, according to a report released by Morningstar, a major portion of expenses is fixed, leaving the insurers with few realistic cost-cutting options. Still, all of the companies have made deep cuts into variable costs, which have lessened underwriting losses somewhat.