April 2011
BUSINESS & INDUSTRY NEWS
TDI Issues Call for Agent Statistical Data for 2010 - Important Deadlines Below
Yesterday the Texas Department of Insurance (TDI) issued its call for agent statistical data for the year 2010. There are two important deadlines to note. This form acknowledging receipt and listing of branch offices form included with the letter should be returned by fax, e-mail, or regular mail postmarked no later than next Monday, May 2, 2011. The actual completed report must be postmarked or submitted electronically by June 9, 2011. You may read the bulletin and download all of the necessary forms here. TLTA will offer a webinar in May that will provide guidance on completing the form. Stay tuned for more information and plan to participate.
Compliance Update: Stat Code Reporting
It was brought to our attention several months ago that the statistical code chart needed to be updated to reflect recent rule and form changes. TLTA staff discussed this with the title division and data services department at TDI and as a result, they developed and have provided us with updated information which you can view and download here. These proposed amendments will be formally adopted in the next rule hearing, but in the meantime, TDI Title Division Deputy Commissioner Rob Carter has verified that they can be used and relied upon for statistical reporting compliance. Proper statistical reporting is critical to our rate hearing process, so we urge you to make sure you are using the right codes so that the data used to set our future premium rates is accurate.
Consumer Bureau to Release Model Mortgage Forms Soon
Bloomberg News
Elizabeth Warren, the Obama administration adviser charged with setting up the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), said the agency will soon release model mortgage forms that may become the basis of new regulations on home finance.
“We’ve come up with a couple of prototypes,” Warren said today during a meeting with community bankers in Louisville, Kentucky. “In a few weeks, we’ll be ready to share those prototypes.”
Warren, 61, has made simplification of mortgage disclosure forms a centerpiece of her work at the new agency, which is scheduled to officially begin work in July. Warren has said that many of the forms now in use are duplicative.
Warren has touted mortgage disclosure as a way community banks can make inroads against larger rivals like JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM) and Bank of America Corp. (BAC) If disclosure is simpler and less costly, community banks can compete based on their close ties to customers, she said. Read the full story.
NOTE: ALTA’s RESPA Implementation Task Force met last month with staff from the CFPB to discuss the model mortgage forms. ALTA’s RESPA Implementation Task Force is composed of 11 members, including TLTA members Jim Gosdin, Stewart Title Guaranty Company; Mary Schuster, RamQuest Software, Inc.; and Celia Flowers. The group will continue working with the CFPB as the new department develops and we will keep you posted of any updates.
Fed Proposes Minimum Standards for Home Loans
The Wall Street Journal
During the housing boom, many lenders and mortgage brokers didn’t operate with consumers’ best interest in mind.
They enabled and sometimes encouraged borrowers to take out loans with interest rates that shot upward after an introductory period — even ones in which the principal balance rose over time.
The Dodd-Frank financial overhaul passed last year aims to prevent these practices from coming back, mandating that lenders ensure that all borrowers have the ability to pay back their home loans.
As required by the Dodd-Frank law, the Federal Reserve on Tuesday proposed a set of minimum standards for home lending, creating an “ability-to-repay” requirement for most home loans, as part of an effort to make sure that U.S. lenders don’t return to the shady practices of the housing market boom. Read the full story.
Congratulations to our New Certified Professionals!
TLTA is proud to announce the Spring 2011 class of certified title insurance designees. The following thirteen individuals have met all of the requirements, passed the examination and are now part of an elite group of 106 certified title industry professional designees. They will be honored during the Annual Conference and Business Meeting, June 16 – 18, 2011. Congratulations!
EJ Brent, CESA - First American Title Insurance Company
Deanna Dean, CESA - LSI Title Agency, Inc.,
Shari K. Foster, CTIA - Fidelity National Title Group-Southwest Agency Division
Taresa Hale, CTIA- Alamo Title Company
Sharon Kennedy, CESA- Independence Title Company
Mona McMahan, CTIA - Independence Title Company
Julia Neely, CESA - B-D-R Title Corporation of Texas, Inc. Melinda Becker Skillern, CESA - Lone Star Title Company of El Paso
Jean Taylor, CESA - Archer Title of Texas, Inc.
Janis Thomas, CESA - Alamo Title Company
Amanda Gibson Tidmore, CESA - Providence Title Company
John Voyles, CAEA - Commerce Title Company
Wende Wood, CESA - Independence Title Company
Preparing for the Coming Talent Boom
Birkman International Inc.
The war for talent is no less real today than it was in 1998 when McKinsey first coined the term. Even with a surplus of people right now in the market finding talented people continues to challenge many organizations. Boomers are retiring (and more often 'rewiring') in increasing numbers with the potential to leave a talent and knowledge gap in some organizations. Younger generations lack the numbers, and sometimes experience, to fill the gap. In this white paper, 75% of respondents believe there is or will be a talent shortage and 63% view retention as a significant challenge. Read the full white paper.
Fortunately, TLTA promotes growth in the industry through the more than 200 title professionals in our Young Professional Network as well as our Job Bank, which brings together qualified title professionals looking for employment and offers employment postings for member companies at discounted prices. Visit our Job Bank, or if you or someone at your company would like to join TLTA’s free Young Professional Network, email
[email protected].
TLTA BOARD UPDATE
Board Approves Routine Changes to TLTA Bylaws
On April 7, the TLTA Board of Directors voted to amend the TLTA Bylaws. Many of the changes are housekeeping items including changing language to reflect recodification of Texas Insurance Code from Chapter 9 to Title 11, updating staff titles, and correcting nominating delegating references. There are also amendments aimed to reflect current practices regarding initiation fees, issuing member certificates, Individual Membership dues renewal and special government rates. View the redline version of the approved Bylaws amendments. View the final updated version of the approved Bylaws. If you have any questions, please contact Leslie Midgley or Mary Beth Kiser at the TLTA office.
MEETING YOUR NEEDS-TOOLS & RESOURCES
Join TLTA for a South Texas Seminar!
TLTA is making a trip to South Texas to hold its annual seminar on timely topics to help you deal with today’s title industry issues. Our experienced speakers will cover several topics including:
Going Beyond the Basics of the Basic Manual
Fraud Prevention
Involuntary Liens
TLTA Update and Legislative Report
Short Sales and Workouts
Survey Reviews and Title Insurance
Bring your entire team – a multiple registrant discount is available! The program is $99 for members and $149 for nonmembers. Get more information here and then register online.
Register now for TLTA’s Annual Conference and Business Meeting in San Antonio June 16-18 and you’ll be automatically entered in our Early Bird drawing for a free conference registration – that’s a $395 value! You must register for the conference by May 16 to be eligible.
This year’s conference will be held at the beautiful JW Marriott San Antonio Hill Country. New this year is a redesigned schedule to maximize educational programming while still allowing time for networking, doing business and a little downtime to enjoy the surroundings – and don’t forget about the Annual Bert Massey Classic Golf Tournament on June 16 at the TPC San Antonio, the newest addition to the PGA Tour’s TPC Network of premier clubs.
View the Conference Schedule | Register Online | Hotel Information
NEWS FROM THE TLTA COMMUNITY
Last Chance to Nominate Your Peers for an Award
This is your last chance to nominate your peers for TLTA’s Professional Excellence Award! Is there one special person who you work with in the title industry who contributes above and beyond? The person everyone looks to for ideas or help? The person who contributes through attitude, character and deeds far more than their required job description?
Nominate this special person for TLTA’s Professional Excellence Award today! Please make your nomination by April 29.
National Volunteer Week is in April and it’s the perfect opportunity to recognize and celebrate the 300 plus TLTA volunteers who accomplished amazing things for the industry last year. It also means it's that time of the year again to sign up for TLTA committee service. We need volunteers for 2011-2012 committee service, special opportunities and resource groups. Whether you are a veteran or new volunteer, we want you to participate.
June van Etten, Brazos County Abstract Company, has served on more than 30 different TLTA committees. She said that she enjoys serving on TLTA committees because it gives her an opportunity to meet other title professionals, discuss stories and see how different companies do things.
“It has been an inspiration being able to work on the committees to help in every way that I can,” she said. “I would encourage everybody to sign up for a committee at least once, as it’s a learning experience you’ll never forget.”
Here’s how to get more information and volunteer: Go to TLTA.com and click the LOGIN icon in the upper right-hand corner of the screen. Your user name is and the default password is tlta123.
Click on “My Profile” then click on “Committee Volunteer Form”. Please submit your form by April 29, 2011.
Texas is Burning – Make a Donation Today
Lynne Baldwin | Jeff Davis County Abstract & Title Co.
As I'm sure many of you have seen on the national and local news, Texas is dealing with fires across the state. Fort Davis, TX suffered a devastating fire on Saturday afternoon, April 9th. The fire started in Marfa, TX around 2:00 p.m. and pushed by wind gusts of up to 50 mph. it traveled across ranch land and reached Fort Davis in less than two hours, where it burned homes, livestock, wildlife, fences and anything else that happened to be in its path.
The fire was moving so fast that fire fighting equipment could not get in front of it to control. Once it reached the town of Fort Davis, it split up and rolled through town in three different paths making it impossible for one little town's fire company to fight the fire at all locations. We lost 20+ homes but no one was injured and no lives were lost.
Please let all your title friends in Texas know that Fort Davis is still standing! If anyone would like to donate, please, pass on the information below:
Jeff Davis County Relief Fund
c/o Fort Davis State Bank
P. O. Box 1336
Fort Davis, TX 79734
Acct. #321028
If your area is also suffering from these fires and you have information about how others can help, please let us know and we'll include it in our next newsletter.
Welcome to our New Members!
We would like to welcome our newest members to TLTA. A list of new members approved by the TLTA Board of Directors in February can be viewed here.
University Title Company Celebrates Aggie Victory
Prior to the NCAA Women’s Basketball championship game between Notre Dame and Texas A&M, University Title Company employees decorated the front of their building and wore Aggie gear to show support for the team. Employees also wore plus signs on the back of their hands, like the Aggie Coach Gary Blair. Blair does this to remind himself to stay positive, and University title Company employees wore plus signs to keep it positive for the Lady Aggies as well as themselves, their team, their customers and the title industry. That same night, the Lady Aggies defeated Notre Dame 76-70 to win the first national championship in school history. If your office has held a special event that you would like to share with our members, email Ryan Poulos at
[email protected].