First National Title Insurance Expands Legal Staff

First National Title Insurance Company (FNTI) recognizes that the services you need to grow your business must involve the support of a strong legal team.  A team that is available to answer your underwriting questions and find the solutions you need to close your transactions.  When we formed FNTI, our initial priorities were to hire the best underwriting counsel in the business.  We were extremely fortunate when Ellen Wied joined our nascent organization as our first underwriting counsel.  She had the experience and knowledge to be the underwriting resource for the agents joining our network.  Ellen knows the business from all sides and advises our agents with her innovative approach to getting transactions closed.  Her dedication to the industry and our agents is evident as she responds to the myriad questions and unique scenarios posed to her daily.  She finds solutions.

By the middle of July 2013, FNTI continued to recruit new agents and expand to new states.  The stars aligned, and we had the opportunity to add David Hays to our underwriting team. His experience working in an independent agency and owning a fee office—as well as the time he trained as an underwriting counsel—were exactly what we needed.  The underwriting team needed to grow to support the needs of the agency network.  David is always accessible to answers underwriting calls, texts, and emails at all hours of the day. He serves in a variety of capacities, including claims counsel—an area that has grown in importance over the years.

Our underwriting team expanded again in August 2015.  With close to 80 agents in three states, we needed another experienced underwriting counsel and NolaAnn Waggoner joined the team.  Her previous tenure at two national underwriters and a history rooted in the title industry made her a perfect fit for FNTI.  NolaAnn’s attention to detail and knowledge of the Texas Title Insurance Basic Manual provides a valuable resource to our office and to our agents.  We are extremely fortunate to have this team of professionals available to answer and solve your underwriting concerns.

January 2017—the underwriting team expands again with the addition of Sean A. Everest as our newest underwriting counsel.  Sean’s experience is as varied as the rest of the team.  His introduction to the title industry was through a direct operation in San Antonio where he learned the escrow and title examination side of the business.  He then spent time in the oil and gas industry and as a football coach, before returning to the title industry as underwriting counsel for a title agency in San Antonio.  His most recent endeavor involved a real estate brokerage firm.  With that broad base of knowledge, we knew we had the right candidate to join the FNTI underwriting team.  I am proud to introduce you to Sean and look forward to him getting to meet each and every one of you.

FNTI is successful because of people.  The people we service and the people we call our team.  Thank you for allowing us to be a part of your organization and for allowing us the opportunity to earn your business.  Our underwriting counsel will help support you as 2017 shapes up to be another extremely busy year of growth and success.