First American Title Insurance Company Acquires Florida-Based Guardian Title Services, Inc.
June 18, 2002
Secures Leading Market Share Position in Region
SANTA ANA, Calif., /PRNewswire/ -- First American Title Insurance Company has acquired Guardian Title Services, Inc. of Fort Myers, Fla. Terms of the acquisition, which closed June 1, 2002, were not disclosed.
"The addition of Guardian's six south Florida offices and its staff of highly respected real estate professionals clearly fits our strategic plan for Florida," said Mike Conway, regional vice president for First American Title Insurance Company. "Combining Guardian's excellent reputation and market share with First American's establishes us as the leading title company in the region and among the most prominent in the state of Florida."
Guardian Title serves the counties of Lee, Collier and Charlotte along Florida's Gulf Coast, one of the fastest growing real estate markets in the United States. According to recent census data, Lee County's population has grown at a pace of more than double the national average over the past decade. Richard McKinlay, who has run Guardian Title since establishing it in 1981, has been named a vice president of First American Title Insurance Company and will continue to oversee operations at Guardian Title.
"We've done a good thing here," said McKinlay. "Just two weeks after the acquisition, the entire Guardian Title team is already recognizing the value of the added horsepower that First American brings. The combination of a close match in corporate culture and the introduction of innovative new tools now available to us as a member of the First American family is helping form a solid foundation for the continued, profitable growth of Guardian Title in southwest Florida."
Source: First American Title Insurance Company
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