Bye Bye AMC: A Script to Sideline Appraisal Middlemen
In the high-stakes arena of real estate appraisals, where precision tangoes with red tape, a sharp SQL script named “Bye Bye AMC” is poised to shake up the status quo. Crafted by Chase Pursley, founder of Appraisal Inbox, this code isn’t just a string of queries — it’s a potential death knell for Appraisal Management Companies (AMCs) that have long profited by squeezing appraisers, meddling in valuations, and padding their pockets at the expense of consumers. Let’s dive into why this script could change the game.
Appraisal Management Companies emerged post-2008 financial crisis, promising to keep lenders and appraisers at arm’s length to ensure unbiased valuations. Noble in theory, but in practice? Many AMCs have become the appraisal world’s equivalent of a tollbooth on a one-lane road. They’ve been accused of slashing appraiser fees to bare minimums, pressuring appraisers to rush or skew reports, and skimming hefty cuts from consumer-paid fees — sometimes pocketing up to 84% without adding clear value. All this happens behind a curtain of opacity, leaving borrowers and appraisers alike frustrated. Enter Chase Pursley, stage left, with a solution that’s as elegant as it is disruptive.
“Bye Bye AMC”: The Code That Could Change Everything
Pursley’s “Bye Bye AMC” SQL code is a masterclass in precision and fairness, designed to match appraisers to appraisal jobs without the AMC middleman. Picture it as a digital matchmaker for real estate valuations, but instead of swiping right, it uses geospatial calculations, workload analysis, and round-robin logic to pair properties with the best-suited appraisers. Here’s the magic in a nutshell:
- Smart Selection: The code evaluates appraisers based on certifications, proximity to the property (using geospatial data — White House coordinates, anyone?), and relevant experience with similar properties. It even calculates travel time and local expertise within a 5-mile radius.
- Fairness First: A balanced scoring system weighs workload (35%), availability (20%), local experience (25%), property-type expertise (15%), and distance (5%). Then, a round-robin twist prioritizes appraisers who haven’t been assigned recently, ensuring equitable work distribution.
- Transparency and Efficiency: By automating the process, it delivers a ranked list of appraisers — complete with contact info, experience, and scores — ready for direct assignment. No AMC to siphon fees or muddy the waters.
This isn’t just code; it’s a manifesto in SQL, saying, “We don’t need overpaid intermediaries when data can do it better.” The script could empower lenders and mortgage companies that rely on AMCs — often those without dedicated in-house appraisal teams — to bypass them entirely, keeping fees fair and valuations independent. Even for lenders with appraisal teams managing assignments internally, it offers a streamlined, data-driven tool to enhance efficiency.
The AMC Problem Exposed
The Appraisal Regulation Compliance Council (ARCC) has blown the lid off AMC predatory practices, revealing how these firms pocket up to 84% of appraisal fees while appraisers scrape by, undermining the impartiality they’re meant to protect. This fee skimming hits consumers hard, who often pay hundreds of dollars believing the appraisal fee compensates the appraiser for their expertise, unaware that most of it lines AMC pockets. A 2025 class action lawsuit against Rocket Mortgage and AMCs like Clear Capital echoes these concerns, alleging deceptive fee practices that shortchange appraisers and gouge homebuyers. “Bye Bye AMC” sidesteps this quagmire, offering a transparent alternative that could force AMCs to rethink their ways or face obsolescence.
The Bigger Picture: A Future Without AMC Overreach
The implications of “Bye Bye AMC” are seismic. For appraisers, it could mean fairer pay and less pressure to cut corners, as direct assignments eliminate the AMC’s fee-grabbing middleman. For consumers, it promises lower appraisal costs, higher quality appraisals and greater transparency — imagine your $500 appraisal fee going entirely to a skilled appraiser with local expertise who spent hours analyzing your home, rather than AMCs pocketing most of it to pay the cheapest bidder with little regard for quality or market knowledge. For lenders, it’s a streamlined, data-driven way to ensure compliance and quality without the AMC baggage. And for AMCs? Well, they might need to rethink their business model or risk becoming the Blockbuster of real estate.
This code also arrives at a pivotal moment. With ARCC’s findings and ongoing lawsuits spotlighting AMC overreach, Pursley’s solution offers a merit-based path forward. By automating fair, efficient appraiser assignments, “Bye Bye AMC” proves that technology can outsmart profiteering middlemen. If this script gains traction, it could spark a fairer, more transparent appraisal process, leaving AMCs scrambling to justify their tollbooth existence.
For those eager to peek under the hood, click here to see the script on GitHub
- Bye Bye AMC: A Script to Sideline Appraisal Middlemen - May 15, 2025
- Appraisal Institute’s Harassment, Tests, and Dance with AMCs - May 9, 2025
- The PAREA Program: Costly Promises, Empty Support - May 6, 2025
The AMC model was never about quality or consumer protection. It existed to siphon profits from the professionals doing the real work. This script lays out exactly why they need to be sidelined. Cutting out the middlemen means better fees, faster turn times, and a return to local market expertise. This is the shift appraisers have been waiting for.
I’ll believe it when I see it!
The end of AMC’s would without doubt rekindle and heal most of the issues we face in the appraisal world. But the proposed criteria of the system needs a major rehaul. The proposed criteria would also be detrimental to the profession by what appears to indicate cherry picking who pays extra for the most letters behind their name and some far too narrow criteria which will be the end of most appraiser careers. For example, a five mile radius. If we work only within five miles, those of us in ‘Suburbia’ and rural areas will be starved out quickly and be in the unemployment line. That will only work for those in large Cities. Big congrats on the idea but I hope they will be open to suggestions and criteria before fully launching things. Please, continue on the path of the idea, but expand and make it fair to all qualified appraisers, not just those in the Appraisal Institute or those who ‘pay yearly’ to random other organizations to buy letters after their names.
That’s why I left the industry just wasn’t worth making $120 for appraisal’s the amcs were paying. Ya crooks.
Honestly speaking, if AMC’s are a vehicle for various parties and interests to make more money why would this be a solution? I’d imagine something like this could have already been implemented years ago if it was desired.
Marcus Knight many lenders are unaware that AMCs are NOT mandatory (unbelievable I know, but it is true). We need to keep educating. Giving them a better alternative with higher quality and less delays.
And the lenders that do know that AMCs are Not mandatory – most of them, also know that the alternative it is very expensive, to implement a compliant inhouse direct engagement platform and process. From my past management in two direct appraiser engagement platforms, I understand it’s much cheaper for a lender to outsource the appraisal to an AMC where it cost them nothing, versus implementing an appraisal dept and staff that meets required independent-firewall criteria.
About time!!! They are sleazy crooks.
The AMC is nothing but a leetch on the mortgage industry. It provides almost nothing of value.
The VA has had a solution for 16 years. Was it implemented to replace AMCs?
Fast forward to the year: 2035
Appraiser:
“Whatever happened to Chase Pursley?”
Appraisal Nation (Largest AMC in the US):
“He’s on vacation with Jimmy Hoffa”.
Both are wearing cement shoes and a Columbian necktie.
Realistically, who is going to actually use it?