Industry News

Erica Meyer, chief executive officer and publisher of October Research, LLC, announced that Fidelity National Title Group  has signed on as the presenting sponsor for the 10th Annual National Settlement Services Summit, making this the third consecutive year the company has taken on this central role.

Interthinx, a provider of comprehensive risk mitigation solutions for the financial services industry, has released its quarterly interactive Mortgage Fraud Risk Report, covering data collected in the fourth quarter of 2013. This quarter’s findings show that loans associated with multi-unit properties have a much higher fraud risk than loans associated with other property types.

Several high-profile data breaches that occurred in the last year have highlighted the importance of data security to consumers and regulators in a variety of areas. The importance of data protection to lenders has been highlighted in the last few years by several moves by their regulators — the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Federal Trade Commission. These safeguard requirements are trickling down to the settlement services industry and it’s important to be prepared for new lender expectations when they come down the pike. During a recent October Research LLC webinar, "Data Security Compliance: Taking the Fear Out of Implementation," Christopher Gulotta, founder and chief executive officer of Real Estate Data Shield, led a discussion with Matthew Froning, chief information officer, Security Compliance Associates; Richard Purcell, chief executive officer, Corporate Privacy Group; and Paul Schwartz, professor, Berkeley Law School and director, Berkeley Center for Law and Technology to discuss things agents can do now to protect consumer data, as well as what to expect from a data security assessment.

Several high-profile data breaches that occurred in the last year have highlighted the importance of data security to consumers and regulators in a variety of areas. The importance of data protection to lenders has been highlighted in the last few years by several moves by their regulators — the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Federal Trade Commission. These safeguard requirements are trickling down to the settlement services industry and it’s important to be prepared for new lender expectations before they come down the pike. During a recent October Research LLC webinar, Data Security Compliance: Taking the fear out of implementation, Christopher Gulotta, founder and chief executive officer of Real Estate Data Shield, led a discussion with Richard Purcell, chief executive officer, Corporate Privacy Group and Paul Schwartz, professor Berkeley Law School and director, Berkeley Center for Law and Technology to discuss things agents can do now to protect consumer data.

Cyber theft is all around us, and the threat is even greater for title companies. The amount of consumers’ money they hold is a risk weighed carefully by lenders and regulators. Both parties have attempted to mitigate the risk. But how can agents protect themselves? During a session at the LandTitle Compliance and Tecnology Conference, Charles Cain, senior vice president of WFG National Title Insurance Co., discussed how specific errors and omission’s coverage can help make agents whole, even after following all other safety protocols.

It seems settlement agents and other industry members share a desire to improve the closing process. During the comment period for a notice by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau regarding consumer pressure points at closing and how to improve the consumer experience, settlement service providers spoke out on the issues. In addition to suggestions for changes, the following quotes struck me because it showed how much care agents took when conducting a closing.

2014 has been labeled the year of implementation, and when it comes to data security, there are no exceptions. Title insurance and settlement services professionals will be on alert this year, taking numerous actions to protect their company’s dollars, data and customer information. But what is required for protection? Where are the troublesome areas? What should you implement and how? What are the costs associated with implementation? The Legal Description and sponsor Real Estate Data Shield have teamed up to offer an educational webinar to provide answers to these questions and, specifically, to instruct on what it means to “implement” to ensure data security compliance.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has released its final rule on the integrated mortgage disclosures under the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act and the Truth in Lending Act. Not much time has passed since industry members had to implement a new Good Faith Estimate and HUD-1 form under the 2010 RESPA reform. Similar to that reform, preparing for this new rule will require extensive staff training, retooling and systems upgrades to ensure compliance.

Alaska has become the third multi-jurisdictional state in which 100 percent of its recording jurisdictions are e-recording enabled. Read on for more details.

Potential new legislation could be a catalyst for reduced prices in the New York market that would pressure profit margins for title insurance agents and insurance companies that operate in the New York market, according to Fitch Ratings. Read on for more details on Fitch Rating’s view of the proposal.