Online Estimates - Appraisers Blogs https://appraisersblogs.com/category/valuation-technology/online-estimates/ Appraisal News and Tips for Real Estate Appraisers Mon, 17 Aug 2026 04:01:09 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=7.1 https://i0.wp.com/appraisersblogs.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/ABfavicon.png?fit=32%2C32&ssl=1 Online Estimates - Appraisers Blogs https://appraisersblogs.com/category/valuation-technology/online-estimates/ 32 32 52046035 The Other Side, Racism in Appraisals https://appraisersblogs.com/the-other-side-racism-in-appraisals https://appraisersblogs.com/the-other-side-racism-in-appraisals#comments Tue, 15 Jun 2021 12:30:51 +0000 https://appraisersblogs.com/?p=25394 …the other side of things, the appraiser profession side since no other news media and organizations are willing to do so… Note: The following blog article is not to defend anyone or to place blame. It is simply a blog looking at this issue from the other side of things, the side that hasn’t been discussed in the media. A couple weeks ago, I was privileged to speak on The National Real Estate Post about appraisal issues. One of the issues we discussed briefly was the ever-growing number of articles being written about allegations of racial discrimination in the appraisal...

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]]> https://appraisersblogs.com/the-other-side-racism-in-appraisals/feed/ 26 25394 Statistically Supported Appraisal https://appraisersblogs.com/statistically-supported-appraisal https://appraisersblogs.com/statistically-supported-appraisal#comments Wed, 09 Jun 2021 12:30:57 +0000 https://appraisersblogs.com/?p=25317 Lenders are convinced that a statistically supported appraisal is a more reliable valuation. Wow! Does anyone that understands the home valuation process really think a “statically supported” appraisal makes for a better quality report? This is not that hard to understand. What does “statically supported” really mean? It means you get a computerized report, similar to what Zillow or Trulia provides, based on the information in public records. Statistically speaking, the margins of error are frightening!!! Great products for entertainment, NOT for determining the value of your home. This all comes down to the Golden Rule. Lenders are looking for...

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]]> https://appraisersblogs.com/statistically-supported-appraisal/feed/ 14 25317 Will Big Data Put Appraisers Out of Business? https://appraisersblogs.com/zestimate-vs-appraiser-will-big-data-zestimates-put-appraisers-out-of-business https://appraisersblogs.com/zestimate-vs-appraiser-will-big-data-zestimates-put-appraisers-out-of-business#comments Mon, 13 Jul 2020 12:30:46 +0000 https://appraisersblogs.com/?p=24158 Part of the boom in the availability of data has led to companies such as Trulia and Zillow who claim they can “Zestimate” a home’s value instantaneously. But can your potential customers trust such value? In the old days, if a homeowner really wanted to find out how much their property was worth in the current market, they called an appraiser. Our customers understood that a licenced and qualified appraiser is trained, experienced, knowledgeable, and unbiased in his or her own marketplace. In the past few years, the Information Age has flooded us with data; lots of data. Big data...

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]]> https://appraisersblogs.com/zestimate-vs-appraiser-will-big-data-zestimates-put-appraisers-out-of-business/feed/ 21 24158 Appraisal Reform or System Reform https://appraisersblogs.com/existing-regulatory-burden-on-appraisal-proven-failure-system-reform https://appraisersblogs.com/existing-regulatory-burden-on-appraisal-proven-failure-system-reform#comments Tue, 30 Jul 2019 12:30:14 +0000 https://appraisersblogs.com/?p=22463 It is my hope that the Subcommittee on Housing, Community Development and Insurance consider long-term impact. The existing regulatory burden, a proven failure, may insure a repeat of the past. The body of a letter to the U.S. House Committee on Financial Services about systems reform. Appraisal reform or Appraisal industry reform? It is critical to understand that ‘appraisal’ does not equal ‘valuation’, or risk analysis, or anything else.  It is a precise definition of a nebulous product. The current U.S. House Committee on Financial Services is asking the question: “What’s Your Home Worth? A Review of the Appraisal Industry.” I believe it is...

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]]> https://appraisersblogs.com/existing-regulatory-burden-on-appraisal-proven-failure-system-reform/feed/ 6 22463 Weird Science https://appraisersblogs.com/weird-science-appraisal-technology https://appraisersblogs.com/weird-science-appraisal-technology#comments Tue, 17 Apr 2018 12:30:50 +0000 https://appraisersblogs.com/?p=17722 …technology to make a doll real? Remember the movie Weird Science where the two guys develop technology to make a doll real? If you’re my age, I’m sure you do. If not get to googling Kelly LeBrock. She did some amazing things. She looked great, was sexy and had odd powers that turned the older brother into a pile of emoji poop. Weird huh? Everything about her was amazing on the outside, but something was weird. That’s how I feel about new technologies that AMCS, Zillow and others have offered the public. On the outside, it looks great but what’s really happening...

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]]> https://appraisersblogs.com/weird-science-appraisal-technology/feed/ 7 17722 Realtors® Giving Too Much Power to RPR® https://appraisersblogs.com/automated-listing-price-bad-4-consumers https://appraisersblogs.com/automated-listing-price-bad-4-consumers#comments Mon, 04 Dec 2017 13:30:32 +0000 https://appraisersblogs.com/?p=15878 ….getting a suggested listing price based on a computer and not a licensed professional’s skill, is the new trend and it is very bad for consumers…. “Since then, we’ve become RPR’s biggest fans. It has helped grow our business because it has given us more credibility.” A recent article talks about the benefits of using the Realtor® edition of online home valuations. This growing trend is frightening for home owners as more and more agents rely on computers to price real estate instead of using their time, skill, and research to calculate home values the right way. When it comes to...

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]]> https://appraisersblogs.com/automated-listing-price-bad-4-consumers/feed/ 10 15878 Freddie Mac Criminal Aspects of Its Appraisal Free Mortgages https://appraisersblogs.com/freddie-mac-free-appraisals-controversy https://appraisersblogs.com/freddie-mac-free-appraisals-controversy#comments Mon, 14 Nov 2016 13:30:23 +0000 https://appraisersblogs.com/?p=12820 Freddie Mac is opening itself up to over 150,000± potential individual lawsuits… This is a response from Mike Ford to Kenneth Harney’s article, “Freddie Mac planning appraisal-free mortgages”. I represent the American Guild of Appraisers, #44OPEIU, AFL-CIO, and the real estate appraisal-related consumer and taxpayer interests of our more than fifteen million± AFL-CIO members, retirees and their families. I’m prompted to write this open letter regarding your recent well written & researched article, titled “Freddie Mac planning appraisal free mortgages”. Regrettably, it was too brief to cover several additional critical aspects of the issue, but I assume the Chicago Tribune’s...

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  • Simply too BIG to Say No to... If they can’t even get their own PACE Pro form right, how are these alternative “valuation” providers going to get…
  • Software Provider Conflict of Interest(s)? ACI software & “restricted appraisals” that suffer from schizophrenia... It’s been awhile since I reviewed or researched influences affecting products…
  • Fannie Mae Waiving Appraisals Property Inspection Waiver, getting back to the old days of fogging a mirror... Appraisers, Effective 12/10/16, FNMA will have a…

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]]> https://appraisersblogs.com/freddie-mac-free-appraisals-controversy/feed/ 38 12820 Automated Revolution, the Valuation Imposters https://appraisersblogs.com/automated-revolution-valuation-imposters https://appraisersblogs.com/automated-revolution-valuation-imposters#comments Tue, 08 Nov 2016 13:30:29 +0000 https://appraisersblogs.com/?p=12809 Along comes the automated valuation revolution… The appraisers we need, to keep consumers protected, are the very ones being driven out of the business. They are being forced out by big banks and AMCs (who much too often provide zero benefits to consumers). Everyone seems to have forgotten that these services (provided by AMCs) used to be part of the bank’s responsibility for every loan. It was just the cost of doing business. Then came the AMCs and banks’ profits had to go up. After all, they lost a whole department. Now they pass the expenses along, mostly on the...

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]]> https://appraisersblogs.com/automated-revolution-valuation-imposters/feed/ 14 12809 The RPR® Epidemic – Online Valuations vs Trained Appraisers https://appraisersblogs.com/online-valuations-vs-trained-appraiser https://appraisersblogs.com/online-valuations-vs-trained-appraiser#comments Mon, 24 Oct 2016 12:30:28 +0000 https://appraisersblogs.com/?p=12758 Consumer protection goes right out the door as consumers learn to trust these online valuations over a local, highly trained appraiser. Realtor Property Resource® is a private automated system just for Realtor® members. They are making great strides in promoting this service, and more and more agents are using this system to create their CMAs to present to owners. I recently reviewed a report provided by the listing agent which included sixty-nine pages of every imaginable piece of information. To an owner, this must look very impressive. However, to anyone who understands what a “Comparable” sale is, this report was...

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]]> https://appraisersblogs.com/online-valuations-vs-trained-appraiser/feed/ 11 12758 The Fuzzy Math of Home Values https://appraisersblogs.com/appraisal/the-fuzzy-math-of-home-values/ https://appraisersblogs.com/appraisal/the-fuzzy-math-of-home-values/#respond Fri, 18 Nov 2011 16:33:21 +0000 https://appraisersblogs.com/?p=1709 Fuzzy Math In a housing market that’s been mostly a cause for gloom, so-called home-valuation technology has become one of the few sources of excitement. After years of real estate pros holding all the informational cards in the home-sale game, Web-driven companies like Zillow, Homes.com and Realtor.com are offering to reshuffle the deck. They’ve rolled out at-your-fingertips technology via laptop and smartphone to give shoppers and owners an estimate of what almost any home is worth. And people have flocked to the data in startling numbers. Vigilant homeowners check their values to help decide whether it’s worth the hassle of...

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