Flush with new private equity, real estate valuations and e-closing provider Accurate Group has made its second acquisition of the year, this time targeting eMerge Property Solutions, a provider of broker price opinions (BPOs) and other alternative valuation solutions.
Cleveland-based Accurate Group — which announced a strategic investment by Canadian private equity firm Novacap in September — acquired Florida-based Coast to Coast Title & Escrow and its title and closing technology platform in May.
The company said eMerge will operate as a standalone division, leveraging Accurate Group’s property inspection technology and deepening its nationwide broker network.
Paul Doman
“Accurate Group has been reselling eMerge BPO solutions for many years, and we are excited to add the product as a direct offering,” said Accurate Group CEO Paul Doman, in a statement. “The acquisition comes at a time when we are realizing unprecedented demand for digitization of appraisal, title, closing and compliance services. With the investment and sales support of Accurate Group, and with the rise in servicing market volumes, we expect eMerge to accelerate its growth quickly.”
Doman said eMerge co-founder and CEO Brandon Winters will continue as CEO and “quickly become a key asset to our team.”
Brandon Winters
“I am excited about the opportunity to lead eMerge as a division of Accurate Group,” Winters said, in a statement. “The timing of the transaction is perfectly suited to allow our combined businesses to take advantage of anticipated growth in both servicing and investor-driven transaction volumes.”
Accurate Group’s offerings include an appraisal management and title platform, Archer, and GroundWorks, a property inspection mobile app. The company touts its ValueNet appraisal suite as an alternative to traditional appraisals, employing certified local appraisers with access to MLS data. The company says most of the largest U.S. banks are now using iValueNet, which adds an interior property inspection, photos and measurements.
Accurate Group says its technology platform and “transformative approach to appraisal management, alternative valuation methods and e-closing technologies” have helped it land business from most top banks in the U.S., as well as credit unions, non-bank lenders and capital markets firms.
The influx of capital from Novacap will enable the company to expand its AppraisalWorks platform and software-as-a-service business, “make transformative acquisitions, and further invest in technology innovation and client service initiatives to better serve banks, credit unions, non-bank lenders and capital markets firms,” Doman said.
Tony Pistilli
As part of a strategic growth plan, last month Accurate Group announced the addition of former Computershare Valuation Services executive Tony Pistilli as director of valuation operations and chief appraiser.
Pistilli leads Accurate Group’s valuation operations, compliance, valuation strategy and product innovation functions, including traditional appraisal, BPO, inspections, data and analytics, and ValueNet appraisal suite.
“Accurate Group’s latest influx of capital has perfectly positioned the company in the real estate technology industry and I’m excited for the opportunity to work with management to accelerate the company’s growth through continued use of innovative technology and state-of-the-art appraisal products,” Pistilli said in a statement.
Get Inman’s Extra Credit Newsletter delivered right to your inbox. A weekly roundup of all the biggest news in the world of mortgages and closings delivered every Wednesday. Click here to subscribe.
