If you believe the government should be accepting complaints from appraisers regarding Appraiser Independence Issues, then please send your comments Please respond to the call to action below! The IACF was developed for use by those who wish to file a formal, written complaint that an entity subject to the jurisdiction of one or more Agencies, the Board, or the NCUA has failed to comply with the appraisal independence standards or USPAP. The IACF is designed to collect information necessary for one or both of the Agencies, the Board, or the NCUA to take further action on a complaint from...
TSUNAMI! Before the Internet and YouTube, most of us read about or saw a few pictures of Tsunami’s in books. Reading about a tsunami though, will never be the same as actually being in a tsunami, or seeing a video of a tsunami. A YouTube video of the Japanese tsunami of 2011 truly captures what a tsunami is, and how destructive it can be. If you have never seen that video, take a look at it below. People die in tsunamis. Tsunami death pictures can be found all over the internet. But who were those people and why did they...
Smoke & Mirrors? Could it be as easy as updating your fee schedule? I got an email from an appraiser today. The only thing the email said was “Call Me 804-XXX-XXXX”. The email had a read receipt attached to it . My first thought, “What did I do now?”. With hesitation, I called the number. The appraiser said, I have to share something with you, but you have to promise not to mention my name or the AMC. I agreed. The appraiser received an order request from an AMC for a fee that was low, but not nearly the lowest...
Being a bad businessman is not an excuse not to pay me. Period. The borrower pays the AMC up front. The AMC HAS MY FEE FROM DAY ONE! If they do not have it on the date I complete the assignment, it is because they used MY MONEY for some other purpose. If they are too incompetent to operate a general ledger, then open a second checking account and make the fee deposits for the appraisers the same day they are received. Being a bad businessman is not an excuse for not paying me for work I do for you....
Desirable, banned or permitted? I was caught up in a minor ‘dispute’ last week when a review appraiser wacked my knuckles when I described a ‘neighborhood’ as being “Desirable.” My original message was re-distributed on various forums and I’ve tried to read all comments to see how I might learn from this episode. Lots of appraisers offered their input. Some supportive and positive, some cautionary, and some who believe much of what we have to deal with is pretty trivial. “Banned words” were originally identified in the Fair Housing Act law many years ago (not the EEOC law as I...
Fee for commercial appraisals cut in half Metro West is an AMC entering the Virginia Commercial world. They are coming on strong as they have viable operations in other states. I heard that in the states they are presently in, the fee for a commercial appraisal has been cut in half. Like I said before, it’s only a matter of time. Will Virginia establish a C&R fee for a commercial report? Customary & Reasonable Fee Since Virginia enacted the C&R fee rule, I have gotten a lot of emails from appraisers asking when can they charge more. “When can I...
AMC says sentence was unacceptable based on one word in that sentence Beware appraisers, big brother is watching what you write. This is the sentence in question. See if you can figure out what is considered to be ‘wrong’ about it: “Skagit County is centrally located between Seattle and Vancouver, BC, and is considered a desirable residential area with good appeal and has had continued stable growth for years.” Okay…now re-read that sentence again. Then, read this, which is from the FNMA Seller’s Guide, pg 567 in the Feb. 2016 edition: Unacceptable Appraisal Practices The following are examples of unacceptable...
Request for appraiser input on current and future educational / experience requirements… The AGA sent the below letter to the AQB in response to their outreach asking for comments. Please write them and tell them YOUR views. If you agree with what we have said, then just copy it and add your name to it saying “we agree”. Or don’t copy it, and just say “We agree with the AGA letter”. If there are any significant parts you disagree with, then please ‘except’ those. If you have additional thoughts or suggestions for them (civil ones), feel free to add them....
Homeowner was not comfortable with the apparent fraud that was committed… Folks, I am sometimes offered information about appraiser issues in a confidential nature by other appraisers. When that occurs, I do not distribute specific information about the issue, but may choose to reveal facts via the ‘big picture.’ This is one such case: A homeowner decided to refinance their home. Appraisal appointment was scheduled. ‘Someone’ showed up at the home to do the interior & exterior inspections and take photos, etc. When the homeowner asked who that ‘someone’ was, ‘someone’ provided a different appraiser name. Report was completed and...
