Category: Appraisal

Appraisal Institute Releases Enhanced ‘Green’ Addendum 0

What is the Value of ‘Green’?

An academic study released last year found that homes with green labels provide a market premium of 9 percent compared to similar homes without the labels. The study, “The Value of Green Labels in the California Housing Market,” examined how green and energy efficient features impacted the sale price of homes in California. It was published by Nils Kok, Maastricht University, Netherlands/University of California, Berkeley; and Matthew E. Kahn, University of California, Los Angeles. The study also found: The premium associated with green labels is highest in areas with hotter climate. The premium is positively correlated to the environmental ideology...

NCRC Statement on CFPB Appraisal Rules 0

NCRC Statement on CFPB Appraisal Rules

Washington, DC Jan 18, 2013 – Today, in reaction to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) release of new appraisal rules, NCRC President and CEO John Taylor made the following statement: “The CFPB’s new appraisal rules promote transparency and fairness for consumers. In a step that NCRC has long called for, all consumers will now receive copies of appraisals and automated valuation model (AVM) reports and will be able to check them for errors. Further, consumers and industry alike will benefit from the use of responsible valuation professionals in high cost loan origination. We are very pleased that the CFPB...

Consumer Access to Appraisal Report 0

CFPB Adopts Rule to Improve Consumer Access to Appraisal Reports

CFPB Rule gives consumers additional rights to information on how a home value is determined Washington, D.C., Jan 18 2013 – Today the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) adopted a new rule that requires mortgage lenders to provide applicants with free copies of all appraisals and other home-value estimates. The rule will ensure that consumers can receive information prior to closing about how the property’s value was determined. “This rule will guarantee consumers can receive important information on how a lender determines the value of the home,” said CFPB Director Richard Cordray. “Having this information available promptly makes it easier...

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There’s An App For That!

There’s An App For That! Finance Management Apps For Your Appraisal Business Americans love their mobile devices!  We use them to browse the Internet for information, text our families and friends, email our business colleagues, post statuses in social media platforms, and much more. To put things into perspective, consider the recent data provided by Business Insider. It shows the landscape of the US smartphone market, its popularity, and usage. Let’s look at the numbers. There are approximately 310 million people in the United States. Comscore.com says 114 million used smartphones in July 2012. Flurry.com reports that there are at least 165...

Higher-priced mortgage loans 0

Final Rule on Appraisals for Higher-Priced Mortgage Loans

Agencies Issue Final Rule on Appraisals for higher-priced Mortgage Loans Washington, D.C. – Six federal financial regulatory agencies today issued the final rule that establishes new appraisal requirements for “higher-priced mortgage loans.” The rule implements amendments to the Truth in Lending Act made by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010 (Dodd-Frank Act). Under the Dodd-Frank Act, mortgage loans are higher-priced if they are secured by a consumer’s home and have interest rates above certain thresholds. For higher-priced mortgage loans, the rule requires creditors to use a licensed or certified appraiser who prepares a written appraisal...

Appraisal Today Blog 0

Ann O’Rourke Launches Appraisal Today Blog

Ann O’Rourke, MAI, SRA, MBA, Appraiser and Publisher of Appraisal Today newsletter, recently launched the Appraisal Today Blog. In an email to her subscribers, she writes: I have been wanting a place where readers can post comments for quite a while.  Several years ago I tried using wordpress. But, my newsletter web site and wordpress were hosted on a shared server with my ISP, and I had lots of problems – hundreds of spams, very slow connection, etc. So I gave up until now and use wordpress.com to host my blog. WordPress is not easy but is very flexible, and...

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The Help for Appraisers

I love movies, but I did not enjoy going to ‘The Help’ this past year with my wife. It probably stems from the fact that I wanted to attend the other theater (which was playing Captain America), but it was her turn to pick. The movie did, however, remind me of a time in our history where certain individuals were treated less than others. Not cool, and it made me very uncomfortable. There is another kind of ‘Help’ that many appraisers also find not so cool and makes them feel uncomfortable; that is… ANY HELP WHATSOEVER! For some odd reason,...

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...

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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

CoesterVMS Flat Fee Appraisal Structure Controversy 3

CoesterVMS Flat Fee Appraisal Structure Controversy

Lately, there has been some controversy surrounding the announcement of CoesterVMS implementation of a flat fee appraisal structure which went into effect on January 1. The announcement appeared on CoesterVMS Blog on January 7: CoesterVMS, a nationwide appraisal management company, has implemented the appraisal industry’s first ever flat fee model for residential appraisals. Under the flat fee model, which took effect on January 1, 2013, all conventional appraisals for mortgage lenders are priced at $450 while FHA appraisals are $475*. Customarily, appraisal management companies utilize a tiered fee structure, whereby prices are determined based on the property type or the...

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