Tagged: appraisal fee

The Lack of Transparency in Appraiser Compensation 12

The Lack of Transparency in Appraiser Compensation

The current system of bundling appraiser compensation with third-party fees can lead to confusion and frustration for both appraisers and consumers.  In their letter to the ASC, NAR highlighted the importance of appropriate compensation for appraisers. They stated that fair and reasonable compensation is critical to attracting and retaining high-quality appraisers, as well as allowing them to invest in their skills and education. However, the current system lacks transparency when it comes to reporting appraiser compensation. The issue lies in the TILA-RESPA Integrated Disclosures (TRID) form, which requires an aggregate appraisal fee to be reported. This means that the fee...

AMCs Billing Scheme, Hidden Profits & Deceptive Practices 72

AMCs Billing Scheme, Hidden Profits & Deceptive Practices

Appraisers who do not agree to their hidden billing methods are excluded from the majority of the GSE lending marketplace for appraisal orders.  Appraisal Management Companies (AMC’s) do not pass on cost savings for reduced appraisal services to consumers. Instead, they keep the savings for themselves without disclosing the amount to the consumer or the appraiser. What should have been cost savings for the consumer are pocketed by the AMC in secret. This is considered a junk fee or unearned fee billing scheme under current law. Appraisers who participate in this system are in violation of The Management Rule of...

NAR Concerns and Survey on Property Data Collectors 12

NAR Concerns & Survey on Property Data Collectors

NAR is conducting a survey and wants to know if you have any concerns regarding property data collectors, if the appraisal fees are higher since the involvement of data collectors, if borrowers are made aware of a fee for the appraisal and a separate AMC fee or were the fees bundled, if the property data collector gave the impression that they were the appraiser, whether you have any safety and privacy concerns with the data collection process, quality of data collected and whether they need to be licensed…  In a letter to the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) regarding appraisal...

AMC Fee Impact on Appraisal Fee 78

AMC Fee Impact on Appraisal Fee

While the borrower was charged $695 for the appraisal, the appraiser was only paid $301. The AMC fee was $394.  We often hear complaints from GSEs and lenders that appraisal fees are too high, hence the push for modernization. Yet they fail to acknowledge that this is due to an overly bloated middleman – the appraisal management company (AMC). As a consumer, you should be aware of the potential for being fleeced on appraisal fees. It’s possible that you could be paying more than double what the appraiser is receiving for actually doing the work, with the excess going to...

Average AMC Appraisal Fee 2021 vs 2022 134

Average AMC Appraisal Fee to the Appraiser

Average AMC appraisal fee to the appraiser: AMCs are taking far more of the borrower-paid fee this year than they did last year.  Appraisers, I recently sent out a message asking appraisers to send me three data points comparing borrower-paid appraisal cost, and average AMC paid assignment fees in October, November 2021 and the same months in 2022 – for SFR assignments. My intent was to provide actual useful AMC-paid fee data compared to what the borrower pays for ‘the appraisal’, without revealing specific fees in any particular location. Replies to that message were much less than I expected, and only...

Racial Bias in Real Estate: Is it the Property Appraisers’ Fault? 17

Racial Bias in Real Estate: Is it the Appraisers’ Fault?

In the past year, the appraisal industry has been under attack from various academics who claim “racial bias” on the part of real property appraisers providing appraisal services to lenders who provide home mortgages. These academics do not fully understand various types of valuation specialties, the appraisers who practice in these specialties, and the myriad of laws that must be followed. Help is needed to explain the appraisal industry, including the specialties and the types of reports. An understanding of the different components of the appraisal industry is necessary to assist various academics, journalists, the media, the public, and the public...

What If the Appraisal Comes in too Low? - Contesting a Low Appraisal... 17

What If the Appraisal Comes in too Low?

…how to prevent a low appraisal in the first place… As real estate brokers in New York City, many buyers ask us what options exist if the appraised value comes below the contract’s purchase price. We explain how the appraisal rebuttal process works and how to prevent a low appraisal in the first place. Here are the most frequent questions buyers ask us. For this reason, we will draft this article like a Q&A. What happens when the appraisal is below the purchase price? What to do when the appraisal comes too low? How to contest a low appraisal? Can...

Classless Class Valuation AMC Lives Up to Its Nickname Again! 22

Classless Class Valuation

Class Valuation has done some pretty horrific things in the past, but this one has earned them the true title of Classless… It finally happened… I was sent an email from Class Valuation. The subject line “New Benefits from Class Valuation – Just in time for Thanksgiving!” Well fellow appraisers, I can honestly state with 100% certainty, Class Valuation has lived up to its nick name given to them by so many… Classless! Class Valuation has done some pretty horrific things in the past, but this one has earned them the true title of Classless. You see, the benefits Class...

Fast Connections AMC Fined $2.8 Million - Don't Mess With Texas 9

Fast Connections AMC Fined $2.8 Million

Fast Connections USA, Inc. & its President, Towhindul Hussain, were found guilty of hundreds of violations… Well it must be true what they say… Don’t mess with Texas! The Texas Appraisal Licensing and Certification Board (TALCB) has issued a monetary fine of $2,801,500 against an appraisal management company. Fast Connections USA, Inc. and its President, Towhindul Hussain, were found guilty of hundreds of violations of Texas law and regulations. TALCB found Fast Connections contracted 274 appraisals in Texas without proper registration. These violations have a mandatory fine of $10,000 each. TALCB also found Fast Connections USA failed to pay appraisers...

Appraisal Nation Late Paying Appraisers Again 18

Appraisal Nation’s Payment Issues Again!

In July 2019, appraisers were having payment issues with Appraisal Nation. They were slow paying and when they paid, their checks bounced. Yesterday, they emailed the appraisers on their panel explaining that they have come up against a back log in their Accounts Payable team due to the threat of COVID-19. One has to wonder how are they capable of sending orders to appraisers, collecting the appraisal fees, asking for revision requests, etc. but paying appraisers on time is an issue during the pandemic? Dear Appraiser, We continue to find ourselves living through an unprecedented time as the situation with COVID-19 continues. As...

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