Headlines

For the first time in two years rents grew 4 percent year-over-year, beating out home values in April, which appreciated at an annual rate of three percent, according to Zillow Real Estate Market Reports. This intensified a “rental crisis” and signaled that home values increasing at a normal rate.

According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR) recent press release, existing-home sales declined in April in all major regions except for the Midwest, but remained above an annual sales pace of five million for the second straight month.

Data from the Census Quarterly Starts and Completions by Purpose and Design and National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) analysis found that median single-family square floor area increased from 2,445 in Q4 2014 to 2,521 square feet in Q1 2015.

This week, Stewart Lender Services, announced the creation of a Due Diligence Solution Suite, created though the integration of several services. This included enhancements to their Due Diligence System (DDS).

As preparations continue across the industry for the impending August 1 TILA/RESPA Integrated Disclosures (TRID) deadline, International Document Services, Inc. (IDS) announced it has achieved four of its five major development milestones for TRID implementation.

United Guaranty Corporation has promoted Mimi Eaton to be the VP of the strategic accounts team, according to a recent press release. The strategic accounts team serves a large volume of customers by providing them with customer service in the mortgage insurance industry, United Guaranty says. Team members work with leadership of lender customers to create and enhance solutions for borrowers

This week Stewart Title, a global title insurance and real estate services company, announced they were partnering with ZixCorp, an email encryption provider, to offer ZixMail—a secure email solution.

In a joint announcement, the U.S. Census Bureau and HUD revealed new residential construction statistics for April 2015. This announcement included pertinent information on building permits, housing starts, and housing completions.

W.J. Bradley Mortgage Capital (W.J. Bradley), a privately held mortgage banking firm, recently announced in a press release the promotion of John Sadler to be the company’s chief information officer (CIO).

Credit Plus announced today that it has hired Darleen Aragon, an experienced industry professional as the new regional account executive. Aragon will be offering lenders throughout the U.S. the full range of Credit Plus’ third-party verification tools in her new role.