SANTA ANA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--First American Title Insurance Company, a leading provider of title insurance and settlement services and the largest subsidiary of First American Financial Corporation (NYSE: FAF), today announced expanded remote online notarization (RON) availability for residential real estate transactions via the company’s Direct and Agency division operations, offering home buyers, sellers and borrowers greater flexibility, convenience and the safety of closing their home purchase or refinance transactions remotely. As state laws governing the use of RON have evolved in response to both the pandemic and consumer preferences, First American has accelerated the use of RON with the company’s preferred RON platform, Notarize, and currently offers title insurance on RON-executed real estate transactions in 32 states, with additional states to follow.
“Providing consumers with the much-asked-for option to close their real estate transactions remotely reflects our commitment to leading the digital transformation of the title and settlement industry,” said Chris Leavell, chief operating officer, First American Title. “We’ve seen a dramatic increase in the adoption of RON across all our settlement operations and are now initiating and closing more than 1,000 RON transactions per month, in addition to the growing number of RON transactions lenders are initiating. This is an emerging industry norm, and we expect the overall volume of RON transactions to increase further in the months ahead.”
RON adoption has skyrocketed, with category-leading provider Notarize seeing real estate volume growth of 800% since 2019. Each month, RON volume grows as demand increases for a more convenient, cost-saving, and secure digital experience. While the adoption of RON is increasing across all types of real estate transaction closing scenarios, including those in which the lender initiates the use of RON as an option, First American has seen the greatest interest in RON in the seller-side of residential transactions, which involve fewer documents and do not include a promissory note.
First American Title’s Direct division offers RON closing options to buyers, sellers and borrowers through a centralized team of certified RON specialists. The company’s Agent Advantage team provides title agents with RON capabilities through a variety of options, including strategic partnerships with Notarize and other platforms. First American Title’s Agency division also offers an eClosing toolkit and a comprehensive collection of training resources to help title agents implement eClosings in their operations.
First American’s efforts to accelerate the adoption of RON builds on the company’s success providing eClosing services to lenders via First American Docutech and through First American’s broader settlement operations. As First American completes additional integrations and launches new innovative technologies, RON adoption is expected to further accelerate.
About First American Title Insurance Company
First American Title Insurance Company, the largest subsidiary of First American Financial Corporation (NYSE: FAF), traces its history to 1889. One of the largest title insurers in the nation, the company offers title services through its direct operations and an extensive network of agents throughout the United States and abroad. First American Title provides comprehensive title insurance coverage and professional services for real estate purchases, construction, refinances and equity loans. For more information, visit www.firstam.com/title.
About First American
First American Financial Corporation (NYSE: FAF) is a leading provider of title insurance, settlement services and risk solutions for real estate transactions that traces its heritage back to 1889. First American also provides title plant management services; title and other real property records and images; valuation products and services; home warranty products; banking, trust and wealth management services; and other related products and services. With total revenue of $7.1 billion in 2020, the company offers its products and services directly and through its agents throughout the United States and abroad. In 2021, First American was named to the Fortune 100 Best Companies to Work For® list for the sixth consecutive year. More information about the company can be found at www.firstam.com.
