Awards

2020 HW Woman of Influence: Annette Cotton

DataTree by First American, Vice President of Data Operations

Annette Cotton

With more than 30 years of industry experience, Annette Cotton possesses expert knowledge of real estate data.

She earned her leadership status by working in every role that supports data manufacturing, including source acquisition, data extraction, research, quality and delivery. In her role as vice president of data operations, Cotton leads more than 150 employees and manages client fulfillment, captive offshore production and vendor oversight. She actively contributes to building the market-leading suite of data assets serving the financial services market segment. For example, Cotton led a revolutionary change to the methods used to manufacture data with modern tools and technology, collecting 60% more data at a reduced cost and achieving higher quality standards than manual methods. Under her leadership, First American has become the largest provider of title plant data, which represents the deepest, regionally sourced collection of public records available. As a result, clients experience the highest data accuracy and completeness of any source and see a competitive advantage when they use DataTree products like the national HOA database and PACE loan monitoring. Internally, Cotton advocates for female executives and created the Future Women in Leadership program.

Most Popular Articles

Smith Douglas Homes Doubles Down On Pace And Growth

While many homebuilders, such as D.R. Horton and Tri Pointe Homes, significantly reduced the number of new home starts over the last quarter amid sluggish homebuyer demand, Smith Douglas Homes Corp. is taking a different approach, akin to that of Lennar. Pace over price.  The builder’s strategy reflects a commitment to affordability and serving the […]

Mar 18, 2026 By

Latest Articles

HousingWire Mortgage Rankings have arrived, bringing data-driven benchmark to originator performance

HousingWire on Tuesday announced the launch of the HousingWire Mortgage Rankings, a new performance intelligence product designed to provide a clear, data-driven view of mortgage origination activity across the U.S. The rankings benchmark mortgage originators based on observed production, offering a standardized view of performance across geographies, loan types and channels. Historically, the mortgage industry has lacked […]

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