Send it to India & Save Billions!

Send it to India & Save Billions!

Appraisal? Obviously its only worth ten bucks – off to India with it…

Most appraisers (and consumers) know the difference between ‘right and wrong’. We don’t need the tortuous, twisted ambiguities of ASB straddling the fence, on all issues to know what is and is not okay. So far ALL they do is hypothesize that bad products can theoretically be used, IF they conform to all the USPAP rules that we all already know they fall short of.

As in every single exception being sought for regulatory exceptions in the financial sector, only impractical, not very probable, best case scenarios are held up as examples of how the ‘exception’ services or products will work.

Only a damn fool thinks a fully USPAP compliant hybrid appraisal can be credibly developed and reported for $25, let alone $10! Stop the pretense ASB! It’s time to look at the entire process rather than viewing issues through a narrow straw in the context of conditions that simply don’t exist in the real world.

Maybe if TAF/ASB had addressed C&R fees back when it might have done some good, there’d be an accepted public record of WHY it is necessary for fees to be commensurate with the probable time and complexity of appraisal assignments. Remember that little obligation about protecting and preserving the Public Trust?

Using a narrowly focused straw sized aperture lens like ASB uses, we could save the banking interests and consumers billions rather than mere millions.

  1. Start listing property using Outsourced Indian brokers! Instead of 6% commissions, they could be as low as 1/10th of a percent. I mean all agents do is open doors and say “This is the kitchen”, right? We can pay the guys doing the appraisal picture taking $10 over their picture taking fees and they can show the houses at same time.
  2. CMA for the pricing? Heck Zillow, Trulia and CoreLogic can take care of that. No charge at all!
  3. A Bangalore Bandito could write up the contract, submit it and negotiate counter offers. Say, for around $10.
  4. Escrow fees are too high. All escrows could be handled through the Bank of India (which now has a presence in America) and they could sub the work out to the real estate experts back in Bangalore. Maybe another $10 for escrow costs!
  5. Title insurance is one of the biggest costs in an escrow. It’s really not necessary is it? Everything is in a title plant database already. Let’s contract the title officers job to india too! Say another $10.
  6. Appraisal? Obviously it’s only worth ten bucks – off to India with it (they will have been done at the first property showing to save money; anyway, see #1 above)!
  7. Funding and closing services, (recording, etc.) why that’s mindless drone work isn’t it? Send it to India!

Whole package under a couple hundred bucks or so except for the commission of 1/10th of 1%.

ALL that would be necessary for any of these functions is to modify a few state and federal laws; and ASSUME THAT LEVERAGING BIG DATA AND WORLDWIDE COMPETITIVE PRICING will produce services that are just as good as the traditional ones established after many decades of experience with America’s unique real estate issues, and established laws.

When the collapse hits, taxpayers and consumers can always go back to the folks in India for loss reimbursement, right?

 

Michael Ford
Latest posts by Michael Ford (see all)
Michael Ford

Michael Ford

Over 28 years appraising all property types and interests, in Southern California real estate. VP/Chairman National Appraiser Peer Review Committee, American Guild of Appraisers, #44OPEIU/AFL-CIO. - Michael Ford on e-AppraisersDirectory

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10 Responses

  1. Avatar Fritz Vogel CREA,CRS,CEI,GRI NY Cert. Apopraiser says:

    Keep on crying. It won’t end soon. Zillow is replacing buyers agents, Corelogic owns everything necessary to replace appraisers for refi’s. We are too small and too broke as a group to do anything but just SAY NO!!!! when asked for a discount, asked for anything for Free, If we did it would eliminate 1/2 of our problem, most AMC systems would be gone, no more $$$ to scrounge off the top.

    7
  2. Baggins Baggins says:

    The problem with outsourcing is that the applicable laws do not carry over from one country to another.

    Here, this is an article detailing the actual job listing for bpo producers in India;

    International BPO. Zero years’ experience. 40% ENGLISH required. ONE-DAY training. Fast CAREER Growth – a LIFE is what you make.

    And then something about 86% of tech center jobs revolving around scam agencies. I personally became aware of this with the (apparently infamous) “IRS is investigating you” scam phone call. This is an article from only a few days ago, mind you.

    Trust anyone in India to handle anything? No and hell no, they need to clean their own house before we give them a single key. Read the article, you’ll be shocked. Any business with India is bad business at this current point in time.

    The scammers gaming India’s overcrowded job market. Google; India legal scamming

    4
  3. Y’all will be pleased to hear that Craigslist advertisers have apparently heard of our plight ad are going  into direct competition with India right here in the good ole U.S. of A.!

    seattle.craigslist.org/sno/rej/d/real-estate-photographers/6473979766.html

    Who said we wont do the jobs only foreigners will do? I am so proud right now ~wiping tear~

    Of course there is still that little issue of an appraiser signing an online report claiming information is provided from sources deemed to be credible.

    The very next time TAF or any others start promoting hybrids and evaluations send them the article above AND this link.

    I KNOW Federal Regulators read this blog. Hopefully some Members of Congress do as well. PUT AN END TO THIS DESIGNED BOUTIQUE FRAUD!

    9
  4. Avatar Adascalitei Lucian says:

    Amazing article

    2
  5. Baggins Baggins says:

    Related. Sound familiar? The outsourcers are outsourcing to other outsourcers, whom outsource again. The site is also known as bpo professionals. Just one of dozens really.

    http://bpophotoflow.com/clientinfo.php

    Many appraisers, amc’s and realty agents will be happy to know the pricing is coming down and they can get a better rate with this company. Only 8.50 per ‘photo shoot’. No need to go all the way to India for third world labor rates.

    Craigslist is always packed with bpo photo takers. The providers and requestors have cleaned up their image with glorious labels of professional photo takers and showing associates, etc. Not surprisingly they are completely unregulated out of the box businesses. Create website, hire below minimum wage labor, source work from volume client like appraiser, realty firm, amc, similar, profit. The margins are too slim to allow professional labor companies to seek quality help, hence the constant ‘principals only’ reference.

    The various forums are rich with debate but usually this boils down to one simple premise; it’s unethical and cheap to outsource essential duties. Doing so diminishes the value of licensing for everyone. The beat skips on.

    3

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Send it to India & Save Billions!

by Michael Ford time to read: 2 min
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