FEATURE: Title Examiner Discovers Documents Missing from Online Database
July 26 2008 (subscription) | |
An Ohio title examiner recently made a startling discovery when she tried to download documents from LandAccess.com. Many of the documents she knew to exist in the county's official database were missing from the online indices maintained by the subsidiary of Affiliated Computer Services. Another examiner has also found inconsistencies between the online records provided by LandAccess.com and the county’s official records.
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Title Firm Changes its Name to Stewart Title
July 25 2008 (subscription) | |
Executive Title Insurance Services of southwest Florida recently announced its intentions to change its name to Stewart Title, the parent company that has owned the firm for eight years.
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Friday Fast Facts
July 25 2008 (subscription) | |
Weekly developments in the title insurance industry (July 19 - July 25, 2008)
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NNA Names Marketing Executive as its Newest CEO
July 24 2008 | |
Preparing for accelerated growth fueled by increasing national demands for secure electronic transactions, the National Notary Association named a new chief-executive-officer.
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FNF's Q2 Profits Fall 92 Percent, Job Cuts Announced
July 24 2008 (subscription) | |
Fidelity National Financial's second quarter 2008 earnings tumbled all the way down to $6.9 million; the dampened figure was the result of increased claims and fewer orders placed.
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Washington Mutual Sees Record Losses During Q2 2008
July 23 2008 (subscription) | |
Washington Mutual posted a second quarter 2008 net loss of $3.33 billion as it significantly increased its loan loss reserves by $3.74 billion to $8.46 billion. During Q1 '08, it only lost $1.14 billion.
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Zillow Continues to Expand its National Footprint
July 22 2008 | |
Zillow.com reported that it had implemented a broad expansion in the number of for-sale listings on the site, bringing the total number of live listings to nearly three million today.
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MBA Leadership Undergoes Changes
July 22 2008 (subscription) | |
Executive changes are underway within the ranks of the Mortgage Bankers Association, as its president and chief-executive officer announced his intention to leave, effective January 1, 2009.
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Ellie Mae Signs Delivery Agreement with SAVVIS
July 22 2008 | |
Under the terms of the agreement, Ellie Mae will relocate and consolidate its U.S.-based IT infrastructure into two SAVVIS data centers, leveraging a single-vendor environment.
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Real Estate Roundtable Elects Newest Members
July 21 2008 (subscription) | |
The Real Estate Roundtable recently welcomed a new board of directors and new leaders for its policy advisory committees, vowing increased attention to real estate policy issues in 2009.
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Fidelity Opens Mexico-based Title Insurance Company
July 21 2008 | |
Fidelity National Financial launched Fidelity National Title de Mexico S.A. de C.V.; the company's principal office is located in Mexico City with branch offices expected to open throughout the country.
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FEATURE: New California Law Aims to Help Troubled Homeowners Avoid Foreclosure
July 18 2008 (subscription) | |
Legislation was recently enacted in the state of California that provides the state’s homeowners with additional protections from foreclosure procedures. The legislation, Senate Bill 1137, which was authored by Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata, was fueled by concerns that California continues to face an unprecedented threat to its state economy and local economies due to skyrocketing residential property foreclosure rates. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed the bill into law on July 8, 2008 at a special bill signing ceremony.
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Zillow.com Forms Advisory Board
July 18 2008 | |
The board will provide counsel on existing Zillow services for the real estate industry, and it also will evaluate ideas for future products and services.
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Freddie Mac Files Paperwork to Become SEC Registrant
July 18 2008 (subscription) | |
In connection with the process, the GSE filed a registration statement with the SEC that includes financial statements for the quarter ended March 31, 2008, and for the last three years.
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Friday Fast Facts
July 18 2008 (subscription) | |
Weekly developments in the title insurance industry (July 12 - July 18, 2008)
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Long-term, Short-term Mortgage Rates Plunge
July 17 2008 | |
Data from Freddie Mac's weekly mortgage survey showed that the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 6.26 percent, a significant decline from last week's figure of 6.37 percent.
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MBA Survey Notes Rise in Mortgage Applications
July 17 2008 | |
The Market Composite Index increased 1.7 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from 513.4 one week earlier, but remained down 17.4 percent compared with the same week in 2007.
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Landata Launches New eRecording Software
July 16 2008 | |
The eRecording and document management software and services provider launched Landata's eClipse, an all-in-one platform supporting recordation of county documents.
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ASF Launches New Project Initiative
July 16 2008 (subscription) | |
The American Securitization Forum publicly launched Project RESTART, a program designed to restore investor confidence in mortgage and asset-backed securities.
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PropertyMaps.com Names New CEO
July 16 2008 | |
The map-based online real estate search company appointed Michael Malone as its new chief-executive-officer. Over his 22-year career, Malone has launched several innovative companies.
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Title Company Sustains Damage From Wayward Driver
July 16 2008 (subscription) | |
Employees working at Chicago Title in Palo Alto, California recently experienced quite a shock when a Toyota SUV came smashing through the company's window and one of its walls.
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Terabitz Signs Contracts with Six Major Firms
July 16 2008 | |
This month alone, Terabitz established contractual relations with six countries that service the real estate industry throughout the United States, thus expanding the company's national presence.
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North Dakota AG Sides with CoreLogic Over County's Fee Costs
July 15 2008 (subscription) | |
North Dakota's attorney general recently provided his opinion on a request from CoreLogic asking whether Mountrail County had violated a state law when it required the company to pay an excessive fee for copies.
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Bernanke Shares Grim Outlook for U.S. Economy
July 15 2008 (subscription) | |
Appearing before the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, the Fed chairman said that the U.S. economy and financial system have significant hurdles to overcome.
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National Survey Reflects Discontent Among Consumers
July 15 2008 (subscription) | |
The credit crunch is impacting not only consumers' ability to get credit, and how they use it, but also, for some, the credit crunch is affecting their mindset toward their financial institutions.
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Hundreds of Midwest Homes Hit the Auction Block
July 14 2008 | |
Hudson & Marshall will auction over 200 bank-owned foreclosures in Chicago on July 19, 2008 in Chicago; the following day, the company will auction more than 100 homes in Indianapolis.
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ZipRealty Launches Online Real Estate Pricing Game
July 14 2008 | |
ZipRealty.com recently launched "Price Me Now," a game that awards players an IQ score based on predicted sale prices of for-sale homes in Boston, Seattle and the San Francisco Bay Area.
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Treasury Secretary Outlines Initiatives for GSEs
July 14 2008 (subscription) | |
In an effort to shore up support for both Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, the U.S. Treasury announced a new plan that it intends to push through Congress that would provide the GSEs greater protection.
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Office of Thrift Supervision Shuts Down IndyMac
July 14 2008 (subscription) | |
On July 11, 2008, OTS closed IndyMac and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation was named conservator. At its closure, IndyMac held about $1 billion of potentially uninsured deposits.
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FEATURE: U.S. Senate Expected to Pass Major Housing, Foreclosure Legislation
July 11 2008 (subscription) | |
The U.S. Senate convened today at 3:30 p.m. to vote upon House Resolution 3221, known as the Foreclosure Prevention Act of 2008. The bill has also been referred to by its supporters as the FHA Modernization Act of 2008 and the Building American Homeownership Act of 2008. Considered to be one of the most important pieces of legislation, if enacted, the bill would provide massive overhauls to the operating practices of the Federal Housing Administration, the government-sponsored enterprises and the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
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Concerns Mount Over Future of GSEs
July 11 2008 (subscription) | |
As Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae's stock values plummeted today, industry analysts expressed fears over the future of the GSEs while government officials continued to back them.
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First Title, Winmarkt Sign Title Insurance Deal
July 11 2008 | |
First Title Insurance plc, a First Title plc subsidiary and a provider of title insurance in the U.K. and Europe, provided title insurance to facilitate the purchase of Winmarkt Magazine by the IGD Group.
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Friday Fast Facts
July 11 2008 (subscription) | |
Weekly developments in the insurance industry (July 5 - July 11, 2008)
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NELTA Adopts ALTA's Principles of Fair Conduct
July 09 2008 | |
The New England Land Title Association officially adopted the American Land Title Association's Principles of Fair Conduct, joining 29 other states that already follow these guidelines.
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GSE Says Mortgage Rates Driven Downward by Market Woes
July 08 2008 | |
Freddie Mac's most recent mortgage market survey indicated that the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 6.35 percent for the week ending July 3, down from the week before when it averaged 6.45 percent.
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ALTA Appoints New Director of Government Affairs
July 08 2008 | |
The American Land Title Association appointed Justin Ailes as the association's director of government affairs where he will liaise between state, federal and association representatives.
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Refinancing Firm Expands its National Footprint
July 07 2008 | |
Refinance.com, a leading U.S. source for residential mortgage refinancing, has expanded its licensing and is now accepting mortgage applications in Arkansas, New Hampshire and New Mexico.
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Fitch Completes Study of 2007 Industry Title Report
July 07 2008 | |
The study showed a significant decrease in the risk-adjusted capital ratio for Fitch's aggregate title insurer universe with the risk-adjusted capital ratio falling to its lowest point since 1997.
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Friday Fast Facts
July 04 2008 (subscription) | |
Weekly developments in the title insurance industry (June 28 - July 4, 2008)
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FEATURE: FHA Signs Groundbreaking Agreement with Minnesota Housing Finance Agency
July 03 2008 (subscription) | |
The Federal Housing Administration and the Minnesota Housing Finance Agency recently reached a first-of-its-kind agreement to promote safer, affordable government-insured mortgages. The memorandum of understanding that the agencies signed forges a working relationship and commitment by the federal and state governments to help Minnesotans continue to access safer and more secure FHA-insured mortgages. As the housing and credit markets change, the understanding will establish a partnership committed to increasing access to FHA-insured mortgages throughout the state.
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Fidelity Completes LPS Spin-off
July 03 2008 (subscription) | |
Fidelity National Information Services recently completed the spin-off of Lender Processing Services. Shareholders received one share of LPS common stock for every two shares of FIS they stock owned.
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Online Company Expands Foreclosure Division
July 03 2008 | |
TheHomeBuyingCenter.com continues to connect sellers eager to sell their properties with investors and recently expanded its service offerings to help consumers find and buy foreclosure homes.
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Mortgage Rates Retreat on Economic Worries
July 03 2008 | |
Mortgage rates were lower across the board, with the average conforming 30-year fixed mortgage rate falling to 6.53 percent, according to Bankrate.com's weekly survey of large lenders.
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New Mortgage Lender Enters the National Market
July 03 2008 (subscription) | |
Fortes Financial debuted Fortes Residential Mortgage, an independent mortgage banking enterprise, comprised of regional wholesale operations centers, retail banking offices and reverse mortgage branches.
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Corcoran Group Publishes Q2 2008 Market Report
July 02 2008 | |
In collaboration with the Corcoran Group, PropertyShark.com audited and supplemented data for the firm's first quarterly report examining Manhattan's residential property sales.
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City Councilman, Old Republic Settle Lawsuit
July 02 2008 (subscription) | |
A Genola town councilman and his son recently reached a settlement with Old Republic over a lawsuit that accused them of fraudulently hiding personal assets. Terms of the settlement were not disclosed.
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L&E Predicts Growth in UK Title Insurance Market
July 01 2008 | |
An insurance services provider recently predicted that the European market will see a surge in the uptake of title insurance policies as the subprime meltdown expands in the United Kingdom.
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New Face Takes the Helm at Kentucky DOI
July 01 2008 | |
The Kentucky Department of Insurance named a 17-year veteran of Kentucky state government as its newest commissioner. The role was being fulfilled by Acting Commissioner John Burkholder.
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