Industry & Technology news compliments of Marianne Mathieu
Title Insurance Industry & Technology News 01/31/18
Compliments of Marianne Mathieu
Industry Events
Look for NEW events posted since the last issue!
Industry News
Trends that will drive the title business in 2018
MPA (Mortgage Professional America) - By all accounts, 2018 will see more competition among lenders for fewer loans. Of those, significantly fewer will be the easy refinance loans that lender have enjoyed writing and rewriting in the past. We’re entering the purchase money market that experts have been warning us about for a long time. 

How Student Loans Are Killing Homeownership
CityLab - It’s really not the avocado toast: Ballooning college debt is keeping Millennials from buying more houses.

An Overview of Oil and Gas Title
CourthouseDirect.com - When oil and gas companies want to explore land for possible mineral deposits, they must come to an agreement with whoever owns the land before they can start. 

Flat-fee real estate agency Purplebricks plans expansion to New York
HousingWire - Purplebricks offers a flat listing fee, which it claims will set it apart in the competitive New York market. The company charges sellers a flat fee of $3,200 to list their home and a “highly competitive” buyers’ agent commission of 2.5% once the home sells.

Legal News
The Docket: N.Y. Court Addresses Case Involving Deed Obtained by Fraudulent Inducement
ALTA (American Land Title Association) - Review of a recent decision by the New York Appellate Division (First Department) that involved a deed obtained by fraudulent inducement and the execution of a Consolidated Extension Mortgage Agreement Note.

Utah Federal Court Holds That Title Insurance Company Was Not Required to Tender Payment to Its Insured Within 30 Days of Accepting a Claim 
Lexology - The United States District Court for the District of Utah recently granted a title insurance company’s motion for summary judgment in part, holding it was not required to tender a payment within 30 days of accepting its insured’s claim, and denied the motion in part because there were issues of fact as to the proper date of loss under an owner’s policy.

Louisiana Appellate Court Holds Title Insurance Policy Insures Against Judgments Against Insured’s Prior Co-Owner 
Lexology - The Court of Appeal of Louisiana, Third Circuit, recently reversed the judgment of the trial court and held that a title insurance policy insured against the judgments of the plaintiff’s co-owner that attached to the property when plaintiff and the co-owner purchased the property. 

Alabama Supreme Court: Statute of Frauds Does Not Apply When Seller Deeds Real Property Directly to Lender in Purchase-Money Transaction
JD Supra - Last month, the Alabama Supreme Court bypassed the statute of frauds and held that, even though one party had clear record title, the dispute over ownership should go to trial. 

Notable Eminent Domain and Inverse Condemnation Cases from 2017 (and one from 2018)
JD Supra - Here are the cases that caught our attention from the universe of eminent domain and inverse condemnation during 2017 (and one case from January 2018).

Real Property, Financial Services, & Title Insurance Update
Carlton Fields - Updates from week ending January 12, 2018

Real Property Update
Standing / Foreclosure / Statute of Limitations
Substitute Service / Tax Deed / Redemption
And More ...
Financial Services Update
TCPA / FCCPA / TILA / RESPA / FDCPA / FCRA
Title Insurance Update
Experts
Survey Exception
Mortgage Fraud

Tech / Social Media
Blockchain Technology Introduction
LinkedIn.com - Blockchain technology, also known as Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT), is a decentralized and shared database with immutable (permanent) data. Every participant (node) of this network holds an identical copy of this ledger.

Blockchain Real Estate Startup Panel
YouTube - Want to know what's going on with Blockchain-real estate startups? Watch the video from the IBREA annual conference.

Why Bitcoin Matters
The New York Times - A mysterious new technology emerges, seemingly out of nowhere, but actually the result of two decades of intense research and development by nearly anonymous researchers.

Title Agency & People in the News
Louisville Title Agency for N.W. Ohio named one of Metro Toledo’s best workplaces
Shout out to Louisville Title Agency for N.W. Ohio, Inc for their honorable mention in The Blade for Top Workplaces - Metro Toledo's best workplaces at a glance.

In Other News
Fitness tracking app Strava gives away location of secret US army bases
The Guardian - Sensitive information about the location and staffing of military bases and spy outposts around the world has been revealed by a fitness tracking company.

Around the World in 14,000 ‘Do Not Disturb’ Signs
Atlas Obscura - The “Do Not Disturb” (DND) sign is an icon of the hospitality industry. Meant to wave off over-eager hotel staff from entering guests’ rooms at inopportune moments, the little hangers are as ubiquitous as they are multivarious.

Wishlist: A Scratch-Off World Map Poster
Atlas Obscura - It’s like a lottery ticket where with every scratch, you’re guaranteed to win an opportunity to relive all the unforgettable moments from the trip you just took—much more fun than 50 cents and a coupon for a free Big Gulp.

Funeral home offers free pizza to get people in to pre-plan their funerals: ‘A creative way of doing it’
Fox6Now.com - It's a pizza party you'll remember for the rest of your life. Krause Funeral Home is offering a unique approach to get you to think about death: free pizza...

mini-pizza-spatula.jpg
Title Agents Go Nationwide
For agents interested in growing their businesses by expanding into multiple states, we’re here to make the process simple and profitable. We offer you one point of contact to streamline your options and solutions.


Marianne Mathieu, NTP
Vice President/National Agency Accounts
Fidelity National Title Group
347-987-0677