Message from the CEO | Deep Freeze to Spring Blossoms

The national news painted a grim, but accurate, scene in Texas last month. There were rolling blackouts lasting anywhere from two hours to two days. Temperatures dropped to single digits and our homes became refrigerators. Then water pipes began to freeze and burst, causing many communities to experience water shortages and restrictions. And in many areas, residents were instructed to boil the water that eventually arrived at their tap. This latest disaster seemed like the perfect bookend to a very abnormal and unusually difficult year. Twelve months of increasingly scary news together with heartbreaking personal losses. 

Then a glimmer of hope. The vaccine began to rollout, Covid cases began to drop, and losses subsided. Unemployed numbers are still too high, yet the economy affecting our industry is thriving. And now spring has sprung, warmer weather is ahead of us, and the title industry continues its amazing roll. Spring is also the time for 2020 earnings reports—and the Big Four did not disappoint. $2.8 billion in profits from one and records for all of them. Their timing and models were right, and they took advantage of the rising title revenue pond in 2020.  Congratulations to all the companies that worked hard to grow their business, their market share, their revenues, and their profits. I hope that your company and your efforts brought you the success you deserved. First National Title Insurance Company (FNTI) had its share of success too. Our growth in new territories and additional revenue from new and existing customers firmly planted us as the ninth largest underwriter in the country. Thank you for giving us that honor. 

Where do we go from here? FNTI is continuing its expansion plans. We have more IT projects, connectivity initiatives, and strategic goals than I can keep track of. The analysis, decisions, and challenges are extremely stressful and far reaching. Yet through it all, the main driving force in every one of our decisions is the ability to connect with you and your staff in a more personal and meaningful way. We know the importance of the personal relationships you share with our underwriting counsels, agency managers, and support staff. And we know that is why you choose FNTI as your trusted partner. The technical parts of our business are being improved, and we are developing the latest bells and whistles, which is very exciting. But this is a people business. We do business with those we know, like, and trust. And we try to earn your business every day, just like you do with your customers. FNTI is not a corporate conglomerate—it is a family owned business with values and ideals that probably closely match your own. Just like you, we are entrepreneurs trying to succeed on a very unlevel playing field.

2021 is shaping up to be another year of change, challenges, opportunities, and success.   FNTI will continue to grow our brand of underwriting on a national level, and we will continue to try to level the playing fields for all of us. Help us help you achieve your goals in 2021.  Thank you for your support.

Chris Phillips