In virtually every single case of alleged racism to hit the media recently, admitted staged events were in play. One could argue staging was necessary to identify if a valuation difference resulted from perceptions of what race the occupants are. Fair enough. Provided that the staging itself does not alter the value scenarios. Provided that the results are being honestly reported. I’m skeptical. I’ve researched each case as far as can reasonably be done from the information provided. The American Guild of Appraisers has also offered (repeatedly) to conduct thorough reviews of each and every appraisal involved in the reported...
…other states will also modify their appraisal license renewal CE class requirements to include some form of anti-bias training… Folks, I attended the ACTS Conference in Bay St. Louis, MS, sponsored by National Association of Appraisers, last week. While there, enjoying the interactions of ~150 attendees, a primary topic of conversations and presentations was the impending impact to appraisers regarding anti-bias training and bias attitudes. The onslaught of negative news articles, and legislation at state and federal venues was a direct result of the ‘hijacking’ of the Congressional Hearing in 2019 which was supposed to focus on “Appraisal Modernization.” Instead,...
An appraiser shared the following with us. Amrock is requiring all appraisers on their panel to complete a diversity, equity and inclusion training by April 19, 2021. Amrock Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Training Requirement: You’re Cordially Required to Take Part in This Training Hello, As an organization, we firmly believe in the importance of diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I) for everyone – and we’ve taken a stance through the implementation of our DE&I Strategic Plan. As part of that plan, all Amrock team members have completed an online Cultural Competency Training. We’re now extending that requirement to all our Amrock...
What once was a ‘three year’ project to redesign and implement revised appraisal forms has morphed into one taking far longer. Actual implementation and use of ‘new forms’ are not scheduled to happen until (presumably) early in 2024, but could be extended even further. By 2024, the currently used ‘forms’ will be 19 years old, and the current UAD overlay entering ‘teenage hood’ at 13. For context, the current Planet Mars Perseverance Rover mission to successfully plan and land scientific instruments took only 9 years! Details for the ‘forms redesign extension’ are based on the announcement from Fannie Mae (and Freddie...
The most weighted technique in most automated valuation programs comes down to one over-simplified formula, based on a guesstimation from an outside source that has no interest in the real estate system… Dear FHFA: Please accept the following comments in regard to Question A1.4. The response also includes comments on several additional questions. Thank you for taking the time to review these thoughts. Technology has made so many improvements in the last decade and we now have the chance to truly improve our home valuation system. With that being said, the last piece of the quality puzzle starts at the...
The Appraisal Foundation has issued an exposure draft for Advisory Opinion (AO) 16. Advisory Opinion 16 is Fair Housing Laws: Avoiding Bias in Real Property Appraisal and Appraisal Review Development and Reporting. Unlike other exposure drafts, the text of the AO opinion has been rewritten. The traditional strike through of word or phrase changes is nonexistent. The Appraisal Foundation acknowledges “the Advisory Opinion was extensively rewritten”. Comments on the changes are due to The Appraisal Foundation by March 31, 2021 via SurveyMonkey or email, asb@appraisalfoundation.org. Although an Advisory Opinion is not a standard of practice, it does express what is...
…laying bricks today, putting up a wall, or are you building a cathedral?… If you have been doing appraising for any time at all, you have likely experienced some of the more irritating aspects of our profession: the AMCs, the call backs, or one of my personal favorites, a Realtor’s protest “the idiot appraiser doesn’t know it’s supply and demand! I have a buyer!” An old folk story helps me through days like these, and it goes like this: A traveler came upon three men working. He asked the first man what he was doing, and the man said he...
I heard from a number of appraisers about their adverse situations involving CoStar… It was announced on Feb. 4, 2021 that CoreLogic will be sold, with the transfer happening in the April-June 2021 time frame. See Inman news service article, “CoreLogic Acquired By Stone Point Capital, Insight Partners For $6B – Inman”. From the article: The deal is expected to close in the second quarter of 2021, subject to shareholder approval. See another news source here. CoreLogic currently owns several companies with ties to appraising: A la mode – appraisal report software Columbia Institute – appraiser education service provider Matrix...
Last week we received an email from an AMC PR company. The email stated that Incenter Appraisal Management (IAM) has implemented a new 24-hour fast pay model and is paying their appraisers within one day of completing the appraisal report. Has anyone heard of or done business with Incenter Appraisal Management? Do they pay C&R fees or do they blast orders to find fast and cheap appraisers? Do they have a scoring system, tech upload fees, background check fees, etc.? The email stated they do not bid or charge tech fees. Back in November, VaCAP published their email solicitation where...
Dude, I Reserve the Right Not to Serve You Anymore! OK, let’s face it: real estate appraisers are in the service business. We provide a service – real estate appraisals. We provide those services to anybody willing to pay for them. That’s what service providers do. To which you say, “Dustin, you have a deep grasp of the obvious.” Well, let’s go a little deeper. Part of what I do is stay in touch with local real estate brokers and appraisers. Some of us have a local restaurant we frequent. At the front door is a sign letting all patrons...
