Author: Guest Author

Simplicity is Genius 1

Simplicity is Genius

As the title states, simplicity is genius. Every once in a while I read reports where the appraiser wishes to blazon their diction; demonstrating their professional expertise and industry knowledge to such a degree that absolutely no one can understand their findings or opinions of value. Also what he said was “Simplicity is Genius”.It is at those times that I remember a very simple, humble man who taught me to appraise and to live and enjoy my life. He would say to me, ”Never look too sharp, or speak too wise.” Also what he said was “Simplicity is Genius”. In...

Appraisal / Appraisal News / Appraisers News

Why are Appraisers Furious at Fraud by their Peers while Corporate Lawyers are Complacent? 1

Appraisers Furious at Fraud by their Peers

Why are Appraisers Furious at Fraud by their Peers while Corporate Lawyers are Complacent? I have done a series of articles about the efforts of honest appraisers (which began in 2000) and loan brokers to alert the lenders, the markets, and the government to the twin fraud epidemics (appraisals and “liar’s” loans) committed by lenders’ controlling officers that drove the financial crisis. Honest appraisers could have profited greatly by becoming dishonest appraisers who would be given the lucrative assignments by fraudulent lenders’ controlling officers and their agents. Instead, honest appraisers suffered serious losses of income because they refused to succumb to...

Appraisal / Appraisal News / Appraisers News

Review Appraisers Need to be the Voice of Reason 9

Will the Madness Ever Stop???

Review Appraisers Need to be the Voice of Reason Having spent the day commiserating with my fellow appraisers, I have to admit the policies and procedures of most reviewers, underwriters and lenders have finally crossed the line from insane to inexplicable. It was bad enough, 23 years ago when an appraiser was asked to document two independent sources of data or to provide interior photographs to show each room. Then not to long ago some appraisal management companies started to believe that when FHA asked for two photos to show an oblique view, they actually meant the appraiser had to...

AMC / Appraisal / Appraisal Management Companies / Appraisal News / Appraisers News / Federal Housing Administration

Extinction of the Appraisal Industry - Image courtesy of Nujalee / FreeDigitalPhotos.net 23

The Imminent Extinction of the Appraisal Industry?

Late yesterday afternoon a bill was introduced in the House of Representatives that would alter the mortgage process and ultimately the way millions of Americans receive a mortgage. HR 1108 would eliminate the need for an appraiser to appraise a home prior to the funds being disbursed to the

AMC / Appraisal / Appraisal Management Companies / Appraisal News / Appraisal Organizations / Appraisal Technology

Real Estate Appraisers Warned us About the Crisis but We didn't Listen 2

Appraisers Warned Us but We Didn’t Listen

Federal actors could have responded to the appraisers’ warning and prevented the crisis On July 9, 2013 I participated in a radio interview with a lobbyist for the 100 largest financial firms. The San Francisco radio program host asked me what question I would ask the lobbyist and I said that any discussion should begin with allowing him to state his view of what caused the crisis. In the course of his explanation, he bemoaned the fact that there was no warning about the crisis. I found this ironic because I had just published that morning an article about how the...

Appraisal / Appraisal News / Appraisers News / Fannie Mae - Freddie Mac / FDIC / Petition

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Valuing Energy Efficiency in Appraisal and Underwriting

We thought there would be some association between energy efficiency and mortgage risk… In March, a joint study by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Center for Community Capital and the Institute for Market Transformation (IMT) found that owners of ENERGY STAR-rated homes are one-third less likely to default on a mortgage than the average borrower. Home Energy Efficiency and Mortgage Risks used a sample of 71,000 home loans from 38 states and the District of Columbia, all derived from CoreLogic’s mortgage database. The sample was restricted to single-family, owner-occupied houses whose loans originated during 2002–2012 and were used...

Appraisal / Appraisal News / Appraisers News / NAR / National Association of Realtors

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Appraiser Independence

Hire an Independent Property Appraiser for an Unbiased Evaluation Dealing in real estate requires a lot of knowledge about property markets. Not all buyers and sellers are well-acquainted with such matters. In such cases, it becomes important to hire a third party like a property appraiser who holds expertise in such matters. Why an Appraiser? Involving a property appraiser brings an element of impartiality in property dealings. When you deal directly with the opposite party

Appraisal / Appraisal News / Appraisers News

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E&O & Claims Issues for Today’s Appraiser

The significant increase in insurance claims and disciplinary complaints against appraisers over the last few years is directly related to the foreclosure phenomenon and subsequent pattern of appraisal reviews performed during the last decade. The validity of both the process and results of these forensic reviews may have little relationship to the subsequent actions by those seeking the deep pockets of the appraiser and their insurance carriers to recover monies lost in bad loans. This trend shows no sign of diminishing. It remains incumbent upon appraisers to understand their errors and omissions insurance policies, any available risk management services available...

Appraisal / Appraisal News / Appraisers News / E&O / Errors & Omissions / Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice

Client Clarification Requests Already Stated In Appraisal Reports 2

Clarification Requests Already in Reports

More than Half of Appraisers Responded They Get Clarification Requests from Clients Already Stated in the Report AppraisalPort Weekly Poll Analysis I receive a lot of e-mail from appraisers commenting about the time they spend working on requests for clarification on appraisals they have submitted to their clients. That prompted me to post two polls related to these client requests. The first poll asked, “What percent of your assignments result in a request for clarification from the client?” The results were a little different than expected with nearly half (45%) of the 4,691 respondents stating that they only get a...

Appraisal / Appraisal News / Appraisers News

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FloodInsights Provides National Flood and Florida Sinkhole Reports

Sinkholes have become a very hazardous and costly risk in Florida. There are certain counties: Pasco, Hernando, and Hillsborough where the land is inundated with sinkholes. However over the last few years the risk of sinkhole and subsidence events has been spreading geographically. According the state of Florida, 211 property insurers noted that claims increased from 2,360 in 2006 to 6,694 in 2010.  The total dollar amount of those claims was near $1.4 billion dollars. There has not been a simple answer to why sinkhole incidents have been on the rise in Florida.  It is believed that

Appraisal / Appraisal News / Appraisal Technology / Appraisers News / Business Development

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