Category: Appraisers News

September 12, 2014

HVCC Impact on Appraisal

Impact of the Home Valuation Code of Conduct on Appraisal and Mortgage Outcomes During the housing crisis, it came to be recognized that inflated home mortgage appraisals were widespread during the subprime boom. The New York State Attorney General’s office investigated this issue with respect to one particular lender and Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The investigation resulted in an agreement between the Attorney General’s office, the government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs), and the Federal Housing Finance Agency (the GSEs’ federal regulator) in 2008, in which the GSEs agreed to adopt the Home Valuation Code of Conduct (HVCC). Using unique data sets...

Appraisal / Appraisal News / Appraisers News / Fannie Mae - Freddie Mac / Federal Housing Finance Agency / FHFA

CFPB Fines AMC for Inflated Appraisal Fees

September 10, 2014

CFPB Fines Lender, AMC for Inflated Appraisal Fees

The CFPB has ordered Amerisave and Novo to pay $14.8 million… The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced Aug. 12 that it fined mortgage lender Amerisave Mortgage Corp., its affiliate, Novo Appraisal Management Company, and the organizations’ collective owner, Patrick Markert, $19.3 million for allegedly luring prospective borrowers with misleading interest rates and trapping them with inflated appraisal fees. The CFPB claimed that the lender and its affiliated AMC violated the Truth in Lending Act and Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act by enticing tens of thousands of borrowers with deceptive advertising and then illegally overcharging them for third-party services. The...

AI / AMC / Appraisal / Appraisal Institute / Appraisal Management Companies / Appraisal News

September 8, 2014

Free FHA Webinar on Most Common Appraisal Deficiencies

On September 18, 2014, the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) is offering a 120-minute webinar on Most Common Appraisal Deficiencies. This session will provide an update and overview of FHA Single Family mortgage insurance appraisal requirements. It will address the most common appraisal questions and appraisal deficiencies. Property inspection requirements, appraisal validity period, case numbers, REO, manufactured homes, well and septic, attic and crawl spaces, lead-based paint, termite

Appraisal / Appraisal News / Appraisers News / Federal Housing Administration / FHA / HUD

September 2, 2014

Who are Mutual First, LLC and Savant Claims Management? Why is Mutual First Suing Appraisers?

Some appraisers are now being targeted in lawsuits by an entity named “Mutual First, LLC.” It has filed at least 35 lawsuits since May. Mutual First is not a bank, credit union or any kind of regular financial institution. It’s an entity aiming to make money for investors by suing appraisers. Based in Texas, it acquires foreclosed loans for small fractions of the original principal amounts. It then files lawsuits against the appraisers who performed appraisals years ago for the original lenders who made the loans. In its lawsuits, Mutual First claims that the appraisers are liable to Mutual First...

AMC / Appraisal / Appraisal Management Companies / Appraisal News / Appraisers News / E&O

August 22, 2014

The Shady Truth About HVCC Comes Out

HVCC… the shady truth We all got gut punched by Andrew Cuomo’s HVCC, the most of which were the appraisers. Well now the shady truth about it’s conception is here. HVCC. We all remember it. Basically is was a total drag. Unless you owned a huge AMC that is. Which by the way virtually all the banks did. It was totally counter productive to the industry and real nuclear bomb to our collective equity as a nation. Well as it turns out, one of Cuomo’s buddies actually got the ball rolling on it as long as he and his company got total immunity. Which...

AMC / Appraisal / Appraisal Management Companies / Appraisal News / Appraisers News / Home Valuation Code of Conduct

Fannie Mae re-evaluate appraisers adjustments

August 18, 2014

Fannie Re-Evaluating Your Adjustments & VA Hiring Appraisers

Fannie Mae’s Murphy stated that over the past year, the GSE had been focusing on “quality” and “condition” ratings of comps used in multiple appraisals by the same appraiser and found many cases where the appraiser has changed the quality and/or condition ratings on the same comparable from appraisal to appraisal. Now, based on the examination of the Uniform Appraisal Dataset (UAD) data, Fannie Mae’s focus for the next 12 months will be on adjustments. The data indicates that many appraisers are not using…

AMC / APB / Appraisal / Appraisal Management Companies / Appraisal News / Appraisal Organizations

August 14, 2014

Why Most Purchase Appraisals SHOULD come in Just Above the Purchase Price

“…You come in just above the purchase price…” How many times have you had this comment from someone who knows relatively little about the appraisal process, “I am not so sure about you appraisers. Seems like every time there is a purchase transaction needing an appraisal, you come in just above the purchase price. If the house is selling for $200,000, you come in at $202,000. If it is selling for $450,000, you come in at $460,000. Seems a little rigged to me.” Ever had a client get really upset when you asked to see the purchase contract before you...

Appraisal / Appraisal News / Appraisers News / Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice / USPAP

August 12, 2014

FHA Issues Draft of New Appraisal Requirements

The Federal Housing Administration on July 31 issued drafts of four new appraiser policy documents that it plans to add to its Single-Family Housing Policy Handbook. The FHA is seeking feedback before the documents are finalized. The draft documents relate to FHA appraiser eligibility requirements and the application process, as well appraiser responsibilities and compliance actions, eligibility guidelines for appraisers performing appraisals and reporting results, data delivery requirements related to the FHA Uniform Appraisal Dataset and instructions to help appraisers accurately complete FHA appraiser forms. FHA developed the documents in an effort to provide appraisers a more consistent approach to...

1004MC / Appraisal / Appraisal News / Appraisers News / Federal Housing Administration / FHA

August 11, 2014

Drop in US Real Estate Appraisers Slows: AI Research

80,500 Total number of active real estate appraisers CHICAGO (July 31, 2014) – The number of active real estate appraisers in the United States fell less than 1 percent in the first half of 2014, the Appraisal Institute announced today, lower than the average annual decrease of 2.6 percent over the past six years. Research conducted by the nation’s largest professional association of real estate appraisers found that as of June 30, the total number of active real estate appraisers in the U.S. stood at 80,500, down from 81,050 on Dec. 31, 2013. A broader analysis suggests the rate of...

AI / Appraisal / Appraisal Institute / Appraisal News / Appraisal Organizations / Appraisal Subcommittee

August 8, 2014

E&O Coverage at No Additional Cost

Alliance Allows San Diego-Based Property Data Service to Offer E&O Coverage at No Additional Cost to Qualified Residential Appraisers SAN DIEGO, CALIF. (July 28, 2014) – National Data Collective (NDC), a San Diego-based property data company serving real estate professionals, announced today that it has formed a strategic alliance with CRES Insurance, LLC, a leader in protecting the real estate industry with risk management services and insurance solutions. NDC offers a subscription-based data service to appraisers, providing access to a database of full property profiles, assessor records, deed history and comp reports for more than 130 million properties nationwide. NDC has joined...

Appraisal / Appraisal News / Appraisers News / E&O / Errors & Omissions