Sometimes the only substitute for experience, …is more experience. Dear Mr. Traynor: The American Guild of Appraisers has long been on record in opposition to the original requirement for a college degree to become any level of real estate appraiser. This was never a requirement of Congress at all, but rather one developed by the AQB over time. While we are pleased AQB has abandoned the college degree at the licensed and residential certification levels, we are disappointed to see it is still being proposed at the general certified level. We repeat for the record; there is nothing involved in...
Appraisers were simply order takers… A friend that refers a lot of commercial work to me forwarded the following communications from an AMC. He’s been telling to ‘go away’ for some time now. This time he played along to see exactly what it is they are hustling. I’ve redacted my friends name and eliminated excessive line spacing and repetitive email signatures. I also bold highlighted references to John Brenan & AQB communications. Otherwise it’s as copied from my email. We’ve all heard enough about hybrids so you can either read the copied emails or skip them. It’s the article from...
Cap on AMC fees & Compensation Disclosure… VaCAP was informed of Senate Bill 655 introduced on January 10, 2018 in the General Assembly by Senator McPike. The bill limits the amount an AMC can charge a consumer for their services at 20% and also requires the AMC to disclose the amount charged for their services. We do not know who is behind this bill, but we thank Senator McPike for introducing it. We will share more information as we obtain it. See the bill here or below. BILL to amend the Code of Virginia by adding a section numbered 54.1-2022.2,...
VaCAP has been asked by our neighbors in Maryland to help promote their AMC legislation. HB 64 was introduced into the General Assembly by Delegate Michael Jackson on January 10, 2018. The bill reduces the amount of time an AMC has to pay an appraiser from 60 days to 30 days. The current language of the bill is as follows: Article – Business Occupations and Professions (a) Except in cases of breach of contract or substandard performance of services, an appraisal management company shall pay an appraiser for the completion of an appraisal or valuation assignment within [60] 30 days...
Like many other appraisers I received a copy of paperwork filed in conjunction with the Louisiana Real Estate Appraisers Board / FTC and Real Estate Valuation Partners (REVP) aka Valuation Partners. (Thank you VaCAP!) To me it’s a bombshell, but before I go into the story of who did what to whom, and for how much let’s start off by asking all readers to click this link to see who the players are. Even if you read the article elsewhere please read the following link. Got it? Great. Just so we are clear, one of the Chief players appears to...
In the case of the FTC vs Louisiana Real Estate Board, Real Estate Valuation Partners (REVP) was issued a subpoena by Louisiana to provide some documents. They have filed a motion to quash the subpoena and not provide documents. When you read through the 11 page document, and we highly recommend you do, it appears REVP is hiding crucial documents that may be incriminating to themselves and other appraisal management companies. There are 12 specific items being requested. Take a look for yourself here. It is very telling! b. Requests No. 4, 5, 6, and 11 ask for REVP’s internal...
If AMCs used escrow accounts, no appraiser would ever go unpaid. Go Ahead, Just Ask… There is a lot of talk going on about AMCs that are in serious financial trouble. We have heard from many appraisers about past due payments and have heard some very concerning situations where AMCs owe appraisers millions of dollars in unpaid invoices for appraisal services. We have heard stories of AMC credit lines being cut off and demand notices being issued by the bank. There are also discussions of several AMCs shutting their doors in the coming weeks. We all know how rumors spread and...
Topics getting a lot of attention… Life can be hectic around this time of the year and we wanted to remind everyone of a few items that need your attention and action: First: The AQB has another exposure draft out concerning appraiser licensing qualifications. The big issues are Degree Requirements, Alternative Tracks, Practical Applications and Experience Requirements. These topics have been getting a lot of attention as the “perceived appraiser shortage” card is being played by lenders and AMCs. Please take a few minutes and share your thoughts. The exposure draft and comment instructions can be found here. VaCAP urges every appraiser to comment on these topics. The deadline...
Solidifi has taken the disrespect to another level… Appraisers Pushing Back Against AMC Bad Behavior! Appraisers have finally had enough of bad behavior by AMCs. VaCAP received the following email from an appraiser, who by the way is not located in Virginia. VaCAP spoke to the author concerning the email and found out a few more details. First, the author does not do residential work as they are a Certified General nor do they work for AMCs and are not on any AMC roster. Somehow, this nonresidential appraiser received this email from Solidifi. VaCAP commends our colleague for stepping up...
If you do work for Clarocity Valuation Services, you definitely should pay attention… Simple Wall St reports: “Clarocity has limited growth and a worrying balance sheet” On November 26, 2017 VaCAP shared an issue with one of our members not receiving communication from Clarocity Valuation Services concerning past due invoices. Due to our research and public sharing, our member was paid. During that time, VaCAP learned some things about Clarocity and we continued to follow the company. We are not going to tell anyone who to do business with or how to operate their business, but we ask that the analytic...
