Title insurance

The company continues to retrench and refocus as it looks to become profitable from its original aims after it first became public in July 2021.

The Berkshire Hathaway unit first invested in the underwriter in May 2022. Previously it was wholly owned by Realogy.

Housing market players navigated big changes, and controversy, as the spring market moved forward.

The transaction helps cement WFG's place in the Bay Area market, something it has targeted since its 2010 founding, Chairman Patrick Stone said.

Only one company, Doma, reported improved results from the year before, but it still took a large loss for the period.

However, the 16% decline was far less than the drop in mortgage volume due to the increased share in purchase transactions.

A bill passed related to broker engagement contracts is similar to Utah's and North Dakota's, according to the American Land Title Association.

Lenders have focused on front-end cost differences since key secondary market players opened up the option, but what happens when a problem emerges down the road is worth weighing too.

Major secondary market investors recently allowing for the use of an attorney opinion letter (AOL) as an alternative to traditional title insurance has led to the emergence of both instigators and imitators, writes the CEO of Voxtur.

Title insurers are lobbying Congress eliminate alternatives to their products, writes the founder of iTitleTransfer.

The plunge in mortgage volumes 2021 highs led to reduced business for insurers, while growing acceptance of attorney-opinion letters pose a greater competitive threat.

The company reported a net loss of $84.1 million in the third quarter and blamed the performance on interest rate hikes, inflation and supply chain woes.

Replacing title policies with attorney opinion letters could exacerbate consumer and lender risks now and into the future, writes the president of Incenter's Boston National Title Agency.

Other offerings update the company's platform for hybrid and virtual closings, and allow borrowers to get an appraisal waiver pre-check before submitting a loan.

Only Stewart reported a quarter-to-quarter increase in net income, while upstart Doma is reducing headcount by 15%.

The industry trade group warns that attorney opinion letters may introduce additional risk, but vendors offering them said their products can sufficiently protect ownership of mortgaged properties at a lower price.

One company that has responded with a new product thinks it can avoid roadblocks past attempts encountered by coupling automation with errors-and-omissions insurance.

The government-sponsored enterprise will now accept a written opinion from an attorney in lieu of a policy for some transactions.