Appraisal News and Appraisal Tips For Real Estate Appraisers - Your source for appraisal industry news, appraisers' opinions, and discussions of appraisal issues
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...
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...
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...
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...
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,...
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...
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
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...
Solidifi and Kirchmeyer complete deal positioning Solidifi as 3rd largest independent provider of residential real estate appraisals Companies consolidate offices in Buffalo, New York Solidifi Inc., Buffalo, New York, January 7, 2013 — Solidifi and Kirchmeyer, two leading independent real estate appraisal management companies, have joined forces in a deal that will see Solidifi become the third largest independent provider of residential real estate appraisals in the country. The company is a trusted, well-capitalized alternative to traditional appraisal management companies servicing more than 50% of the nation’s top lenders. “Following a $22 million financing in 2012, Solidifi is in growth...
The National Association of Independent Housing Professionals (NAIHP) led by Marc Savitt is petitioning the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and is asking those harmed by the Interim Final Rule on Appraiser Independence to sign and forward the online petition. To Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), Richard Cordreay, CFPB Director: Allow NMLS loan originators to order appraisals directly from appraisers Consumers and small business are being significantly harmed by the Interim Final Rule on Appraiser Independence. Consumer costs have increased by over 2.8 Billion dollars a year; thousands of small business residential appraisers have gone out of business, as the rule diverts...
