Santa Ana’s First American Corp. is among several big title insurers being investigated by New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer, the Wall Street Journal reported Thursday.
Spitzer and the New York State Insurance Department are looking into whether the title companies paid rebates to favored customers and referral fees to agents.
Other companies being investigated include Jacksonville, Fla.-based Fidelity National Financial Inc., Richmond, Va.-based LandAmerica Financial Group Inc.,both of which have a sizeable Orange County operations,and Houston-based Stewart Title Co.
The title companies are alleged to have paid millions of dollars in rebates to real estate developers and national chain stores, as well as illegal referral fees to title agents, mortgage brokers and attorneys who delivered clients.
The rebates could have raised fees for those buying or refinancing a home in New York, according to Spitzer.
Title insurers write policies protecting buyers of homes and other real estate from claims contesting ownership.
California, Colorado and Washington, D.C., officials have investigated similar alleged issues in recent years. First American took a $24 million charge last year as a result of its settlement Colorado State Division of Insurance.
The company is cooperating with the New York investigation, First American officials told the Wall Street Journal.
