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The Latest News from WFG National Title Company
ryantate
134
WFG News
January 24, 2015

New York Times baking editorial content into real estate search

The New York Times will integrate editorial content including neighborhood videos and written pieces into its real estate search platform to help homebuyers get a better sense of what it might be like to live in different areas of the city. To build up its video library for the new initiative,…
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ryantate
102
WFG News
January 24, 2015

Mortgage lenders settle RESPA kickback charges for $35.7M

Wells Fargo has agreed to pay $34.8 million to settle allegations that more than 100 loan officers in at least 18 branches steered thousands of mortgage borrowers to a Maryland-based title company in exchange for kickbacks in the form of valuable marketing services and cash. JPMorgan Chase will also pay…
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ryantate
136
matterportrand realtySelectsurefieldTechnology
January 23, 2015

Another broker hops on 3-D virtual tour train

Better Homes and Gardens Rand Realty’s more than 800 agents will showcase sellers’ homes using  3-D virtual tours that give buyers browsing listings online the feeling that they’re walking through the home. Rand Realty says it’s the first brokerage in New York’s Hudson Valley to provide Matterport’s 3-D Showcase tours,…
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ryantate
164
WFG News
January 23, 2015

Zillow, Trulia changes could foreshadow post-merger strategy

Zillow CEO Spencer Rascoff snapped a photo of Zillow’s headquarters glowing with a “12” on Friday evening ahead of the Seattle Seahawks’ astonishing comeback victory against the Green Bay Packers that secured the team a trip to the Super Bowl. Go #ZillowTower lit up with #12 #Seahawks. And glad to be home. pic.twitter.com/VHSV1XzPEy —…
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ryantate
152
WFG News
January 23, 2015

US mortgages are the Gazinta!

A wild story still unfolding, most of it overseas. The result here at home: mortgage rates near 3.75 percent and the lows of the year — and the tilt in chart-pattern witch-doctoring to lower yet. Rates will rise only on substantial good news, somewhere. The only domestic economic data of…
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ryantate
133
WFG News
January 23, 2015

Why responsive website design could be sabotaging your lead generation efforts

Here’s a hard truth: For many in the real estate industry, mobile strategy isn’t paying off. Too few leads are being generated, and most mobile apps have, unfortunately, failed to achieve any real market adoption. We all know the homebuyer is increasingly mobile-focused, and we see it everywhere we look:…
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ryantate
153
listing agentMarketingreal estateSelectshiftTim Harris
January 23, 2015

Feeling buyer burnout? Become a listing agent

We get lots of inquiries from agents looking for a change — they’re tired of buyer leads, tired of doing the same things hoping for a different result. One of our clients, Bart, just arrived after a decade in a referral-type coaching program, and his results are starting to drop. He…
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ryantate
136
mergerSelectTechnologytruliaZillow
January 23, 2015

Zillow, Trulia share prices jump on talk FTC has approved merger

Share prices in Zillow and Trulia have posted double-digit gains today, suggesting investors have gotten wind that the Federal Trade Commission intends to sign off on the companies’ proposed merger. Trading in Zillow and Trulia has been heavy, with twice as many shares changing hands before noon Eastern time than…
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ryantate
153
mbapre-printed contractsreal estateRegulationsSelectTodd Ewing
January 23, 2015

Preprinted real estate contracts could get you fined

It’s a seemingly innocuous practice, some say a convenience, but many real estate agents are steering their brokerages toward enormous fines and unwanted attention from state and federal regulators — and they don’t even realize it. Preprinting the names of third-party service providers onto your real estate contracts when your brokerage…
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ryantate
119
real estatereal estate hackersSelectTechnology
January 23, 2015

Duke Fan: ‘Our vision is to build the ultimate platform for matching buyers to homes’

Vice president of product, RealScout Time at RealScout: 3 months What he does: Leads a team geared to redefining the online home search experience and the connection between agents and homebuyers. Age: 43 Degree, school: MBA Marketing and Finance, University of Southern California Location: Pleasanton, California Social Media: LinkedIn and…
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