Author: Guest Author

The Appraisal Management Company Business Model, Deceitful Little Lies 29

Deceitful Little Lies

At some point, appraisers need to take a stand against the appraisal management company business model. There are simply no benefits to appraisal management companies and there is no accountability for their actions. Haven’t we all been abused enough? Do the lenders really understand they are responsible for every action of the appraisal management company? Do the lenders really know the questionable ethics of the appraisal management companies? Are the appraisal management companies lying to the lenders? Deceitful, liars, bait and switch, trickery, fee shoppers, bottom feeders, empty promises and illegal activity are some of the nicer terms used to...

AMC / Appraisal / Appraisal Management Companies / Appraisal News / Appraisers News / Trending

Big Data is the BuzzWord. Can We Trust Regression in Amenity Valuation? 14

Can We Trust Regression…

I would like to give a background as to what prompted this article. A few years back, word on the street was that the Collateral Underwriter was going to be using big data collected directly from our reports from the inception of UAD to aid in determining what should be “reasonable adjustments”. In order to be preemptive, I consulted an acquaintance of mine who just so happened to have a PhD in Statistics from Princeton. We worked through a number of real case scenario data sets to try and figure out if there was a way I could use regression...

AMC / Appraisal / Appraisal Management Companies / Appraisal News / Appraisers News / Collateral Underwriter

Sports Stadiums & Home Value 6

Sports Stadiums & Home Value

Impact of Sports Stadiums on Home Value In mid-size towns and bigger cities, there are all sorts of community and neighborhood elements that can factor into home value. And often, we don’t separate them from one another; we think instead about city attractions in general, or the public transportation available in bigger towns, etc. Last year though, The Atlantic published a piece that highlighted one aspect of city living in particular as being worthy of consideration: the presence of a major stadium. The article made the claim that sports stadiums are a bad deal for cities. It cited heavy tax...

Appraisal / Appraisal News / Appraisers News

Race Never Considered... Emerging Narrative of Appraisers Being Racists 75

Appraisers Don’t Use Race

Appraisers don’t use race… Race is NEVER considered during a valuation Last week in a congressional hearing on the future of the appraisal profession, some research was used to suggest appraisers are showing racial bias and essentially undervaluing black neighborhoods. I was not expecting the conversation to go that way during the hearing and I’ll admit I’m deeply concerned about the emerging narrative of appraisers being racists… In the congressional hearing a panelist talked about a study that shows black neighborhoods are devalued by $48,000 compared to otherwise similar white neighborhoods. That’s alarming and society needs to have some serious...

Appraisal / Appraisal News / Appraisers News / Political Action / Trending

Score Card, Turn Times, Undue Pressure & Appraisal Independence 16

Appraisal Independence

Most appraisers could care less about an amc score card… Professionals don’t treat other professionals like they are in grade school… What exactly is appraisal independence? Dodd Frank requires appraisal independence and associates it with pressure against the value of the property. But what about other areas of the appraisal process in which appraisers receive pressure? Let’s take turn times for example. Normal turn times in a steady market average 5-7 business days in most markets. Market activity, location, complexity, etc. will require longer turn times. First let’s define a business day. This is Monday through Friday and excludes Federal...

AMC / Appraisal / Appraisal Management Companies / Appraisal News / Appraisers News / Dodd-Frank Act / C&R Fees

We the Owners Are the Only Ones that Can Fix Low Appraisal Fees 59

Customary and Reasonable Fees?

…appraisal firm owners roll up your sleeves & hold the line on fees… I have been the owner of HF Appraisal Ltd since 1993 and I have sat on the sidelines in regards to Customary and Reasonable appraisal fees. I can no longer stand by and read nor hear about this issue. It is amazing to me that over the past five to ten years our fees have remained the same and in some cases are lower than they were 10 years ago. The more that I read about this and talk to appraisers across the country in classes and...

AMC / Appraisal / Appraisal Management Companies / Appraisal News / Appraisers News / Customary & Reasonable Fees

Let Appraisers Train their Own Inspector Personnel for Desktop Appraisals 64

Let Appraisers Train Their Own Inspectors

If we are to make a third party inspector liable for the data they provide… FNMA’s recent newsletter states that a third party inspector should be hired to deliver photos, sketches, etc about a property to them. After their review, if they believe an appraisal is needed then they can forward that information to the appraiser and a desktop can be performed with ease and accuracy. In their words, this is no different than an appraiser relying upon other forms of data in the report such as public records, MLS, etc. I really do appreciate the perspective of some who...

Appraisal / Appraisal News / Appraisers News / Fannie Mae - Freddie Mac / Trending

Racial Bias: Redlining in the Modern Era 13

Racial Bias: Redlining in the Modern Era

…are they behind this modern day redlining?… The broad definition of an algorithm according to Merriam Webster’s Dictionary is “a step-by-step procedure for solving a problem or accomplishing some end.” It is pretty basic and fully understood, right? Now think back to those dreaded English classes. When did you learn about acronyms? Grade School, High School, College? Regardless, let’s just say it was a while back, so I will refresh your memory. According to Merriam Webster’s Dictionary, an acronym is” a word formed from the initial letter of words of each of the successive parts or major parts of a compound...

Appraisal / Appraisal News / Appraisers News / Automated Valuation Models / AVM

Hybrids' Indicated Value & USPAP Coup de Grace, Better off at McDonalds 29

I’d Be Better off at McDonalds

…they provide no documentation as to how their algorithm produces this indicated value… I had to “jump in the pool” and see what these bifurcated appraisals are all about. The names have been withheld to protect the guilty. I recently completed a “bifurcated” report for one of the AMC’s providing this type of service. The form is to be completed on their site and they recently upgraded to the “new and improved” report on their portal as of January 1, 2019. The subject is sited in an urban location and while not an anomaly per se, does display features such...

AMC / Appraisal / Appraisal Management Companies / Appraisal News / Appraisers News / Trending

Is SmartExchange a Problem & Resulting in USPAP Non-Compliance? 27

Is SmartExchange Not USPAP-Compliant?

Is Smartexchange Resulting in USPAP Non-Compliance? This blog is likely going to stir up controversy. It is likely going to have a few folks calling me a loyalist to a la mode, or other similar things. Am I a loyalist? I do not see myself as such, but a la mode has been the only software that I have used in my career for residential form reporting. I do use ACI in the corporate setting as a reviewer and manager in my firm. I like and consider many of the staff at a la mode to be my friends, and I have had long relationships...

a la mode / ACI / AI / Appraisal / Appraisal Institute / Appraisal News

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