102 Search results

For the term "racial bias".

Race Never Considered... Emerging Narrative of Appraisers Being Racists

June 24, 2019

Appraisers Don’t Use Race

Appraisers don’t use race… Race is NEVER considered during a valuation Last week in a congressional hearing on the future of the appraisal profession, some research was used to suggest appraisers are showing racial bias and essentially undervaluing black neighborhoods. I was not expecting the conversation to go that way during the hearing and I’ll admit I’m deeply concerned about the emerging narrative of appraisers being racists… In the congressional hearing a panelist talked about a study that shows black neighborhoods are devalued by $48,000 compared to otherwise similar white neighborhoods. That’s alarming and society needs to have some serious...

Appraisal / Appraisal News / Appraisers News / Political Action / Trending

June 17, 2024

Gov’t-Indulged Middlemen Are Wrong RX for Battered Borrowers, The Infirm

The U.S. government impoverishes homebuyers as it does the chronically ill – by promoting the use of middlemen who prey upon them. A cadre of such middlemen was created decades ago as a firewall between Big Pharma, the insurance companies and the pharmacy chains. Called “pharmacy benefit managers,” they were to negotiate drug prices, streamline distribution and manage lists of prescription drugs covered by insurance plans. But since the government has gone whole-hog into health care under the Affordable Care Act and into drug-price controls under the Inflation Reduction Act, things have gotten crazy at the slop trough. Today, according...

AMC / Appraisal / Appraisal Institute / Appraisal Management Companies / Appraisal News / Appraisal Organizations

May 13, 2024

Escaping the Black Hole: Appraisers Fleeing Mortgage Lending

Climbing out of that black hole is nearly impossible. It’s one reason why many appraisers are vacating mortgage lending appraisal assignments. This “discrimination settlement” hit the fan last week in a news feed I get. Another appraiser (in CA) settles a discrimination complaint: Oakland homeowner settles with appraiser, lender after $300,000 lowball appraisal The entire case is based on allegations by the homeowner, who had decided the value of the home was more than the appraised amount, before the appraisal was done. But when one reads through the story, one has to question whether the appraiser truly was biased against...

Appraisal / Appraisal News / Appraisers News / Trending

Low Value = Material Deficiencies? New HUD ROV Policy

May 3, 2024

Low Value = Material Deficiencies? New FHA ROV Policy

The implication that if the VALUE is too low, then there must be “material deficiencies” present, is deeply troubling! Up until recently, there has never been a standardized policy for mortgage loan related Reconsideration of Value (ROV) requests after an appraisal has been submitted. Now there is, per the attached PDF HUD/FHA mortgage letter. The GSE’s have similar policies. I’m not opposed to having a standardized ROV policy. However, these policies are in keeping with the new initiatives surrounding alleged and often unproved appraisal bias and discrimination claims. But when one reads deeper into the reason for implementing these procedures,...

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

April 18, 2024

The One-Mile Rule: Prudent Policy or Modern Day Redlining?

…whether through redlined maps or implicit “one-mile rule,” the result can be undervalued properties in historically marginalized neighborhoods. Throughout the history of mortgage banking and lending in the United States, underwriting policies have significantly influenced the appraisal process for home purchases and refinances. Appraisers must follow underwriter appraisal review guidelines meticulously to ensure their appraisal reports are accepted by the lender. Unfortunately, in the past, these policies became the basis for redlining, wherein certain communities were systematically denied access to mortgage credit. In this article, we delve into the historical context of underwriting policies and their influence on the appraisal...

Appraisal / Appraisal News / Appraisers News / Automated Valuation Models / AVM / Collateral Underwriter

March 28, 2024

LoanDepot Appraisal Discrimination Settlement

Connolly and Mott v. Lanham, 20/20 Valuations, and loanDepot.com, U.S. District Court, Maryland. This is one of the appraisal discrimination cases that has received significant attention – among appraisers, the media and government agencies. A Black couple in Baltimore – Dr. Connolly and Dr. Mott, both university professors – filed suit in August 2022 alleging racial discrimination against loanDepot.com and the appraiser it engaged to appraise their home for a refinance. They alleged that the appraiser had taken into account their race in his valuation of their home in violation of the federal Fair Housing Act and other laws prohibiting...

AMC / Appraisal / Appraisal Management Companies / Appraisal News / Appraisers News / Trending

January 22, 2024

False Claims of Racism Against Appraiser

…my career, business, and health at risk due to false claims made by a homeowner. As a professional real estate appraiser with many years of experience, I have seen my fair share of disputes between homeowners and appraisers. However, the situation I am about to share with you is one that has left me shocked and appalled. It is a story of false claims, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and the damaging effects of a homeowner’s actions on an appraiser’s career, business, and health. It all started when I appraised a veteran’s home for a potential refinance. From the very...

Appraisal / Appraisal News / Appraisers News / HUD / The US Department of Housing and Urban Development / The US Department of Veterans Affairs

January 10, 2024

Biden’s Remark on Home Values Sparks Backlash

President Biden’s recent comment about the discrepancy in home values between Black and white families has sparked backlash on social media, with many accusing him of being a “divider”. During a campaign speech at Charleston Church in South Carolina, Biden stated that homes owned by Black families are often valued at less than those owned by white families, even if they are built by the same builder. “Today, a home owned by a Black family on one side of a highway, built by the same builder on the other side of the highway & a white guy living in it,...

Appraisal / Appraisal News / Appraisers News / Political Action / Trending

January 8, 2024

Appraisers Destroying Goliath’s Messaging

Goliath’s strength is in his messaging. It is appraisers who are destroying the message. The seeming destruction of the appraisal profession by the federal government, GSEs and lending stakeholders is a collective action problem. Appraisers are responding to new GSE and lending dictates with reactions based on our own personal well-being. Not enough people speak up or stand up to change the trajectory of the narrative. Or so it seems. Appraisal waivers, hybrid appraisals, automated valuation models, all based on the last 13 years of data collection by an entity I will call Goliath has created a paradoxical inversion of...

Appraisal / Appraisal News / Appraisers News / Automated Valuation Models / AVM / HUD

December 22, 2023

New Jersey Draconian Penalties on Appraisers

“Well, I guess no one will be doing appraisals in New Jersey… or maybe the standard fee is going to be $10,000?” said one appraiser. The bill proposed by New Jersey Senate lawmakers to create steep penalties for real estate appraisers who undervalue homes because of the owner or buyer’s protected characteristics has been met with both praise and criticism. Supporters of the bill are lauding its potential to combat discrimination in housing transactions, while critics worry that it could lead to unintended consequences due to its disregard for appraisers’ motives. Violators would pay $10,000 on a first offense, $25,000...

Appraisal / Appraisal News / Appraisers News / Trending