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First American Financial history
First American Financial company history timeline
First American Financial Corporation (NYSE: FAF) traces its roots to 1889, when Orange County, California—a rural, undeveloped area at the time—split off from the county of Los Angeles.
Original Company Founded in 1894
To serve the title abstract needs of Orange County two companies were launched, then in 1894 area businessman Charles Edward Parker combined them to form First American's direct ancestor, Orange County Title Company.
Starting in 1909 it would pay a cash dividend every year for the rest of the century.
In 1924, it became one of the first abstract companies in California to qualify to issue policies of title insurance.
Donald Parker Kennedy, grandson of the founder, joined the company after finishing law school in 1948.
In 1957, the board of directors authorized an expansion plan with the intent of becoming a powerhouse in the Southern California market.
1960: Name is changed to First American Title Insurance.
In 1963 Kennedy replaced his uncle, George Parker, as president of the firm, the highest ranking officer because the company had no CEO position.
Business was so strong that the company had to expand its Santa Ana headquarters in 1976.
In 1977 it was the head of the Los Angeles office of First American Title who hired Parker Kennedy, but not before making sure it was acceptable to his father.
By 1982, First American Title served every region of the country.
1986: Diversification program is launched.
In 1988, First American approached Canadian officials with a request to open title insurance offices in Canada.
In 1988 a subsidiary acquired a southern California thrift.
In 1990, in fact, less than 100 policies were written outside the country, despite the fact that for more than 20 years United States companies have been licensed to sell title insurance in a number of countries, including Canada and the United Kingdom.
In 1991 these ventures were merged with the tax monitoring service to create a new subsidiary, First American Real Estate Information Services, Inc.
The flood determination business was bolstered by the 1995 acquisition of Flood Data Services, Inc.
In 1995 the company began to construct a wide-area network to connect all of its offices in order to achieve end-to-end connectivity and system integration.
In 1996, to build on its real estate information products business, First American acquired Excelis Mortgage Loan Servicing System and its advanced real-time, online system, capable of being customized to fit user needs.
2000: Name is changed to The First American Corporation.
The monetary goal in this area was to post $1 billion in annual revenues by 2006, a number the company hoped to reach by acquisitions as well as internal growth.
In 2010, First American separated its newly developed real estate information businesses from its title insurance and financial services operations, thus creating two new independent companies—a strategy that will enhance the focus and strengthen the competitive positions of both companies.
From FORTUNE Magazine, March 1, 2019 ©2019 Time Inc.
© 2022 First American Financial Corporation and/or its affiliates.
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First American Financial competitors
| Company name | Founded date | Revenue | Employee size | Job openings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stewart Title | 1893 | $1.0B | 6,350 | 9 |
| Chicago Title Insurance | 1847 | $110.0M | 150 | - |
| Fidelity National Title | - | $16.6M | 75 | - |
| Fidelity National Financial | 1847 | $11.6B | 23,100 | 98 |
| Republic Title | 1991 | $49.9M | 600 | - |
| Allstate | 1931 | $44.7B | 45,780 | 968 |
| American Mortgage | 1975 | $21.0M | 48 | - |
| Old Republic Title Insurance Group Inc. | 1907 | $7.3B | 7,500 | 62 |
First American Financial history FAQs
Zippia gives an in-depth look into the details of First American Financial, including salaries, political affiliations, employee data, and more, in order to inform job seekers about First American Financial. The employee data is based on information from people who have self-reported their past or current employments at First American Financial. The data on this page is also based on data sources collected from public and open data sources on the Internet and other locations, as well as proprietary data we licensed from other companies. Sources of data may include, but are not limited to, the BLS, company filings, estimates based on those filings, H1B filings, and other public and private datasets. While we have made attempts to ensure that the information displayed are correct, Zippia is not responsible for any errors or omissions or for the results obtained from the use of this information. None of the information on this page has been provided or approved by First American Financial. The data presented on this page does not represent the view of First American Financial and its employees or that of Zippia.
First American Financial may also be known as or be related to FATCO Holdings, LLC, First American, First American Financial, First American Financial Corporation, First American Financial Foundation and First American Title.