Fidelity Buying 4 Companies to Expand Its Real Estate Services

IRVINE —  Expanding its base of real estate-related services, Fidelity National Financial Inc. said Thursday that it has signed agreements to buy four companies that provide real estate closings and other services.

The acquisitions, for undisclosed amounts of cash and stock, are expected to give the operator of the nation’s fourth-largest title insurer $46 million more in revenue next year.

Fidelity said it signed definitive agreements to buy Credit Reports Inc. in Scottsdale, Ariz., and Ifland Credit Services Inc. in Lexington, Ky. It plans to merge the two into a new unit called Fidelity National Credit, based in Scottsdale.

Fidelity also signed a definitive agreement to buy Express Network Inc., a courier and attorney service operating in Southern California. Fidelity said the new unit will help defray $6 million a year it spends on courier services.

In addition, Fidelity signed a tentative agreement to buy Bron Research Inc., a flood certification service based in Austin, Texas, that would be renamed Fidelity National Flood Inc. The purchase would mark the title insurer’s entry into the business of certifying whether homes are in flood areas and need flood insurance.

Fidelity, like other major title companies, has been expanding services related to real estate closings to offer one-stop shopping and broaden the firm’s revenue base.