Eye on the Industry

As individuals make their way through the industry and companies merge, keep watch on the important highlights in this activity update.

CoreVest, the lender to residential real estate investors, announced that it has recently been approved under a pilot program with Freddie Mac to provide enhanced liquidity in the single-family rental (SFR) market.  The pilot is expected to expand financing options for investors in SFR rentals for the workforce and affordable housing.

Beth O'Brien, CEO at CoreVest said, "We are excited to partner with Freddie Mac in multiple ways to provide liquidity to a very important part of the US housing market.  Providing investors with low-cost options to finance affordable housing increases the opportunity for families to find places to live in the communities they want to be in."

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First American Financial Corporation, a leading global provider of title insurance, settlement services, and risk solutions for real estate transactions, announced the signing of an agreement to acquire Bank of America’s lien release business, which includes an agreement to provide these services to Bank of America going forward.

“We’re excited to soon welcome the Bank of America lien release team to First American,” said Dennis J. Gilmore, CEO at First American Financial Corporation. “The post-closing function is important in today’s mortgage lending environment, and this move will enhance the breadth of our post-closing products and services.”

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Redfin Mortgage, LLC, is now offering loans to homebuyers in Washington, D.C., announced Redfin Corporation, the next-generation real estate brokerage.

With this expansion, Redfin Mortgage now serves homebuyers in Texas, Illinois, and the District of Columbia, and the company plans to launch in additional states in 2018. Redfin Mortgage offers fixed and adjustable-rate conforming mortgages as well as jumbo loans for higher-priced homes in every state where it operates.

Redfin Mortgage also offers a 30-day closing guarantee, demonstrating its commitment to fast, on-time closings. If Redfin Mortgage is unable to fund a mortgage in 30 days, it will give the homebuyer a $1,000 credit toward closing costs, subject to terms and conditions.

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Roostify, a provider of automated mortgage transaction technology, announced that it has signed an agreement with Black Knight, Inc., to integrate its platform with Black Knight’s LoanSphere Empower loan origination system (LOS). The integration will enable Empower users to add further efficiency and transparency to the loan origination process—from application to closing.

“As consumers increasingly demand an online, self-serve loan process, lenders are seeking to meet that demand as efficiently as possible,” says Rich Gagliano, President of Black Knight’s Origination Software division. “Integrating with the Roostify platform offers our clients a solution to deliver a seamless mortgage experience within existing Empower-based workflows.”

Roostify’s platform benefits both consumers and lenders by enabling a faster transaction, with greater visibility for all parties involved. Besides an intuitive application, consumers can upload and review documents, correspond with their loan officer and real estate agent, and gain complete transparency into the loan process from beginning to end.

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In an effort to stem burgeoning and ever-more complex mortgage wire fraud schemes, title industry experts have unveiled CertifID, a unique wire fraud prevention platform designed to safely authenticate the identities of transactional parties and share banking information securely. CertifID uses proprietary digital device analysis and knowledge-based authentication sequencing and provides a guarantee up to $500,000—an industry first.

CertifID, is designed to confirm the true identities of people and expose fraud so that all parties to the transaction are protected. CertifID’s proprietary technology verifies the identity of an individual (such as a participating escrow officer, buyer, or seller) as well as bank account credentials, enabling those involved in a real estate transaction to transfer funds securely. In addition to its easy-to-use enterprise platform, CertifID’s system is backed by an unprecedented $500,000 guarantee.