Yes, thank you. Just to be clear, not directed at you. I’m a free typing sort of person as well, the power of detailed language. Like many appraisers I’ve grown more than weary at the lack of expertise with so many of the various desk workers at assignment, origination, and management outlets. They could not muster a similar detail as your article presented with, they’re lucky to spell fee and turn time correctly, sometimes they miss that.

I’d be interested to learn about the required efforts on the processing side, what sort of minimum standards apply, etc. There is an obvious contrast for working mortgage lending appraisers, new client, completely different quality standards with processing and assignment. It’s such a free for all out there, one presumes that some of the purchasers of the loans really are not caring much about appraisal related compliance rules. How else could these 48 hour expectations and such continue to be so commonplace, unless there was a high quantity of appraisers whom are click and filling, using typing services, not actually putting unique writing into reports. What gets me is the disconnect where a quality reviewer at the end of the line has no influence regarding assignment trends and panel approval. I’ve gone through so many clients where if a quality reviewer could have just made the call, I would be ahead of so many others. Instead the expected rhythm is appease the underqualified person to attain the work, then cross fingers the qualified person at the end of the line approves the finished product one had to produce under such unpredictable high pressure circumstances. Thank you, great article.

“What’s your fee and turn time?” A quip directed at the management industry. Disregard for quality selection rules is so commonplace. Appraisers steeped in origination work understand off hand that’s directed at the shoppers.

Hello Baggins, I actually work both as a reviewer for a mortgage lender and am able to do some fee work (ERC mainly) on the side. As a reviewer, I love seeing explanations that tie loose pieces together, which is a main reason I wrote this piece. There are many reviewers who do read, and re-read, the report. It is, in my opinion at least, impolite to not do so. Doesn’t mean we catch every word, but those of us who take reviewing seriously do try to read the report. My method is read it back to front, and then front to back. Seems to work well, although sometimes walls of text (unbroken paragraphs in bold caps) make it impossible.

Do not want to discuss fees as that is a bad idea, but my typical turn time on ERC is 2-weeks. Most of the time the relocation companies are fine with that. I don’t do mortgage work because it would be a conflict with my day job, but I seem to go in and out of the field (lender jobs are not usually too long lasting, I happen to like mine a lot and hope I keep it). When I do, it is pretty typical to be two weeks out or longer on those as well. I am not a super efficient person as you can probably guess.

I could not agree more!

As mentioned above, the Appraisal Institute is also on that list. Not only did they do nothing to prevent the destruction of residential appraising, they have been promoting it. Why have they not made amends with TAF? Why did they walk away in the first place? Why haven’t their members insisted on positive change?

I mean no disrespect to you, Rachel, or your accomplishments, but how can you place those letters of designation behind your name when they represent an organization promoting the opposite of what you believe and write about?

Almost becomes a Catch-22 however; as we have to produce that excellence consistently for it to start to matter.

As a reviewer, I love it when an appraiser tells a story in a report. It makes me get up and fist bump the air with glee, because I am seeing something above and beyond the minimum. There are reviewers who read the reports, both backwards and forwards, and sometimes back again. It is just problematic when the report is 95% boilerplate. Give me good original content any day 🙂

Thanks for your comments folks.

Advocate, THANK YOU for saying that!

And I’ll keep saying this: the next crash will happen in most part due to what you say above. We can sit back, wait for them to ask us to clean it up because appraisers are warning them now and are certainly not going to let them blame us PERIOD!

It is a bit of an oxymoron though as this is not what the GSE’s want nor are they promoting. Take UAD for example, check boxes, The hybrid appraisals, again check boxes. Then there are the waivers, where they want nothing at all. Add in the suppression of fees by AMC’s and it is clear as day what the GSE’s want and think of a professional appraisal.

Even with a very good reconciliation, who is reading the reports? The reviewers are only interested in what the score is and what the check boxes are. Yes, that is general statement, but it does apply to most residential reports. After all 80% of them go through AMCs and most appraisers have experienced getting stips for additional comments when they are already in the report.

Let’s not forget about the push from the Appraisal Institute to lessen our standards with non USPAP compliant Evaluations.

So the question really becomes is your report good or good enough?