News By Edition

The underwriter panel at the 2024 National Settlement Services Summit featured insight from First American’s Don Kennedy, WFG National Title Insurance’s Pat Stone, Old Republic Title’s Jeff Bluhm and Fidelity National Financial’s David Townsend.

Panelists discussed the evolving relationship between underwriters and agents and highlighted the need for heightened awareness and advocacy within the industry as well as proper implementation of technology and responses to wire fraud.

Read on to find out more.

Real estate technology company Alita Group has put forth AOLPro, a software-as-a-service platform offering fully insured attorney opinion letters.

Stacy Mestayer, president of Alita Group, shared insights into the creation, scope and future of AOLPro in an interview with The Title Report.

Read on to find out more information.

Homebuilder and title insurance provider D.R. Horton reported a slight income increase and jump in homebuilding revenue for its fiscal third quarter ending June 30.

During the same period, the company mourned the passing of founder and Chairman of the Board Donald “D.R.” Horton, who died in May at age 74.

Read on to find out more information.

Latest data from the Federal Reserve System’s Beige Book shows continued modest economic growth in the majority of districts, albeit with some districts reporting flat or declining activity.

Reports on residential and commercial real estate markets varied, but most banks reported only slight changes, if any, in recent weeks.

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A new integration between ECL Software and AFX Research will allow for automatic title updates within the ECL Software platform.

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Two industry veterans have been brought on by the Security Title Guarantee Corp. of Baltimore to serve as chief operating officer and assistant state manager in Mississippi.

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Homebuyers on a $3,000 monthly budget have gained over $20,000 in purchasing power since mortgage rates peaked in the spring, according to Redfin.

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Two title industry veterans have joined forces to start Perpetual Title in Tampa, Fla., expressing a desire for quick technology adoption and custom services for clients.

Owner Chip Ridge and Chief Strategy Officer Morgan Launikitis sat down with The Title Report to go over the new venture and plans for growth.

Read on to find out more information.

Small business optimism among owners has reached its highest level this year, but concerns over inflation remain, according to the National Federation of Independent Business.

Twenty-one percent of owners reporting inflation as their single most important problem in operating their business in June, down one point from May.

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A new integration will allow RamQuest users to access homeowners association documents and other services from Rexera through GridBase.

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WFG National Title Insurance Co. has tapped an industry veteran with nearly 20 years of experience as its senior vice president of sales and strategic growth, north Texas division.

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Competition is fading fast after the peak of this year’s affordability-challenged home shopping. Home value annual appreciation is a reasonable 3.2 percent nationally, according to Zillow.

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Ways to draw a proper line between artificial intelligence and robotic process automation were recently shared by Pythonic’s Matt Younkle and Razi Exchange’s Robert Zwink.

Both leaders advised title businesses on how to properly prepare for adoption of the technologies while also setting realistic expectations for operational benefits.

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A long-standing Memphis, Tenn., title business has joined Foundation Title & Escrow Series, LLC, the companies recently announced.

Company leaders added that clients can expect to continue receiving the same services they have been accustomed to, now with the added benefits and resources of Foundation Title's extensive operations.

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A Fathom Holdings Inc. subsidiary has acquired a Salt Lake City-based title insurance business serving Utah, Colorado and Virginia, the latest of several acquisitions made under the Fathom umbrella since last year.  

Fathom Holdings Inc. brands include Fathom Realty, Encompass Lending, intelliAgent, LiveBy, Real Results and Verus Title.

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First National Title Insurance Co. has appointed a long-time Texas Realtor and broker as its head of agent education and training within the state.

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Ubitquity, LLC is preparing to launch an SMS platform designed to collaborate with homeowners, title agencies, underwriters and county recorders to enhance deed fraud mitigation efforts.

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U.S. foreclosure starts dropped 3.5 percent year-over-year in the first half of 2024, according to property data curator ATTOM.

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A technology forum at the 2024 National Settlement Services Summit was led by Fidelity National Financial’s Rick Diamond and Stewart Information Services’ John Hamm.

The duo, along with audience members, stressed the need for title professionals to protect sensitive data at all times, whether it’s during or outside work hours.

Read on to find out more information.

Chicago-based Proper Title has opened a new office, a move company leaders say is in response to a growing customer base.

A senior escrow officer with more than 17 years of experience will oversee the office, along with additional staff as needed per closing.

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Small businesses continue to struggle to find qualified workers in June but the overall number of job openings fell from the previous month, according to the National Federation of Independent Business.

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Digital earnest money service provider Earnnest is joining CoreLogic’s Real Estate Alliance Network, with Earnnest becoming the exclusive provider of escrow management across CoreLogic’s multiple listing services.

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Westcor Land Title Insurance Co. has tapped a 25-year industry veteran as its new agency representative in Texas, adding to its South Central State region team.

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More homes are sitting on the market for at least 30 days without going under contract, as homebuying demand falters in the face of high housing costs, according to Redfin.

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A newly released State of AI in Title & Escrow report from Qualia shows that roughly 90 percent of industry professionals use some form of artificial intelligence (AI).

Among those who reported using AI tools in their title business, predictive text proved to be the most popular, followed by voice assistants

Read on to find out more findings from the report.

Missouri-based True Title Co. has opened a new office in the city of St. Louis, not too far from company headquarters in Clayton, Mo.

True Title was founded in 2012 and is licensed to write title insurance policies in Missouri, Illinois and Colorado and facilitates closings throughout all 50 states.

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New data from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce shows confidence among small-business owners reaching highs not seen since before onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Small businesses expect revenue to increase and are optimistic about artificial intelligence’s potential to improve operations, believing it will give their business a competitive edge.

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Arizona-based Landmark Title Assurance Agency has brought on a 20-plus-year industry veteran as its vice president of national commercial sales.

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The Clearing House’s RTP Network recorded more than $1 billion in instant payment transactions on June 28, a daily record. Second quarter transaction volume also set an all-time high.

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Major homeownership expenses now consume 35 percent of the average nationwide wage, a high point not seen in more than a decade, according to ATTOM.

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Fidelity National Financial (FNF) has released its annual sustainability report, highlighting progress made across environmental, social and governance initiatives.

In 2023, FNF's Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions decreased by 24 percent at the company's Jacksonville, Fla., headquarters as compared with the 2019 baseline year, according to the report.

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Chicago’s Near North Title Group has acquired another title business, expanding a Minnesota footprint first established last year.

The company’s Minnesota presence stems from its acquisition of Doma’s Midwest retail operations in 2023. Near North acquired Doma’s Florida retail title business in a separate transaction roughly one month later.

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Florida-based artificial intelligence-powered title search provider Dono has brought in nearly $4 million during a recent investment round.

Dono’s platform integrates large language models, advanced data retrieval, and modern machine learning capabilities to help users, including title agents, interact with data packages and clarify property statuses and legal standings.

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Mortgage services provider ServiceLink  hired a new national sales executive who will spearhead client growth strategy and other initiatives for the company’s origination division.

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Title and real estate technology provider GridBase launched a new website with improved navigation tools and product information, among other features.

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High housing costs — and high temperatures — are keeping prospective homebuyers on the sidelines, making it more common for homes to sell below list price, according to Redfin.

Read on to learn more.