Emerging Markets
The First American Commitment To Affordable Homeownership
Every American deserves the right to achieve the dream of homeownership. Yet a disproportionate percentage of Americans are unable to qualify for home purchases, due in part to the cost of the process and the conventional methods used for credit scoring.
First American Corporation, the nation's leading diversified provider of business information and related products and services, is addressing these challenges. We believe that more should be done to remove these barriers and open these doors to increase homeownership for minority and low-to-moderate income families.
Step 1: The First American Affordable Housing Settlement Services Package
Under a special First American program, low-to-moderate-income families who seek to purchase a home may be eligible for a bundled and discounted package of title insurance and related closing and settlement services. This program, established in California in 2003 and eventually available nationwide, is intended to help simplify the home-buying process and reduce closing costs by an average of 25 percent for eligible California homebuyers.
Step 2: Alternative Credit Scoring Products
First American is developing alternative credit-scoring products designed to expand the availability of A-grade mortgage financing to many applicants who would likely have been considered ineligible by traditional scoring methods.
These products, particularly in conjunction with the First American Affordable Settlement Services Package, may help clear the way for tens of thousands of potential new homeowners to qualify for home purchases. This will be especially true for minorities, recent immigrants, and low-to-moderate-income families.
Step 3: Opening Doors
The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) projects that by the end of 2010, minority home purchases will account for as much as 60 percent of all first-time home purchases in the United States.
First American and our industry partners are committed to helping open doors to homeownership for this rapidly growing segment of home purchasers. Please contact your First American Builder Services representative for more information or contact First American Title Insurance Company, National Homebuilder Services, 1-800-854-3643.
Contact your NHS Regional Director for more information.
