Trying to survive under the economic oppression of a greedy national bank called Bank of America and their Appraiser Economic Oppressor Landafe. Did you know they held a deal for 3 days to save themselves $10.00?

“I consider it a shame that the majority of the appraisers cannot organize…”

“I consider appraisers the dumbest smart people there are”

My God you echo my sentiments towards both appraisers and the appraisal profession for the last seven years!  Where hath my twin been for all of these years?

Good for you Chris! Too many of us just accept no vacations as a necessary part of the business. Many I know have to rebuild their ties with the same clients when they go. Seriously. Its as though they are punished for not being available; even though they may be preferred appraisers with exemplary work quality.

Chris we’ve all said it over and over again. We are in fact our own worst enemies.

I was reading the NAR comments from appraisers the other day. One said we ought to form a union! Now if I could just reach out and smack him! Where has HE been for five+ years?

(For those that do not know, there IS an appraisers union and Im not talking about the one that caters to government appraisers only formerly headed by an embezzler either!

I AM talking about the American Guild of Appraisers, OPEIU/AFL-CIO and for those that don’t know (apparently there are a few still), the reason we get things done is (1) we are lead by volunteers-not high salaried opportunists. (2)  We are in fact lead by appraisers. (3) The key to our success is commitment AND a membership that includes not only the appraiser members, but over thirteen million members, their families and retirees a well!

Those thirteen million members are also tax payers and consumers. Right or wrong, when THEY speak, even Congress has to listen.

Chris, you have a great time over there. Hopefully other appraisers will follow your lead!

PS anyone else notice that Blog Hosts fixed the annoying capchas? THANK YOU!

Mike,

I am currently in Thailand for 3 weeks. I have decided to live life. I gave 23 years to an industry that showed us no respect unless the deal was made. I had a hundred clients none of which ever called to say hello after hvcc. I was then absorbed by a National Bank who treated us with less respect than janitors. They maximized their income by making us drive an hour North, South and an hour East. When we got back to the office there were three more assignments 1 to the North, south and east. You may have heard that we’ve won a fifty-million-dollar class action settlement against them. I am currently working for the VA. The system is extremely Fair yes I do complex assignments but we also get cookie cutter assignments. I consider it a shame that the majority of the appraisers cannot organize themselves. While the nude models that stand in front of the art classes organized themselves across the country for better wages, warmer working conditions as well as other things. I consider appraisers the dumbest smart people there are. I did reviews for The Big funders in his country for 5 years I saw the most deplorable reports ever.  The elimination of these appraisers is warranted. While the level imposed is extreme at least we will get appraisals that are properly written. I just heard from a friend that conventional appraisals fees were raised to 425. These companies are now afraid of being taken to court over customary and reasonable fees.

Times Are A-Changin.

We are almost done with the A & B paper. FHA has geared up their inspection for only one reason. They are going to lend to the C and D’s.  They are the ones that cant afford to fix their appliances.

Our industry was taken over for 1 reason….Money. Not better appraisals, Better appraisals are the result of lawyers handling mortgage buybacks. We write them now to AVOID the dreaded mortgage buyback.

They want to pay us $30/ hr. And keep the rest. That is what bit them, you can NOT run a company after all the overhead and all the time spent to run such company without being able to set your fee’s.

Simple economics. They don’t get it, they don’t care. They just want that statistic to say less than 5 day turn time. And by the way, we save so and so on appraisal fees by shopping the job around….ya…and pat themselves on their backs while they drown out the appraisers.

When the appraisers are gone, or not enough to handle the industry is when THEY will throw Millions of OUR dollars at the congressman to pass National AVM’s. That’s what they are after, faster turn times so the borrowers don’t have time to SHOP the deal around to other lenders.

Our congressmen WILL take their money and WILL pass the bill.

But will the investors out their want loans based on a computer……I know they wont, especially the C and D paper.

Stick to your fee’s. Say NO to the lower paying clients WHEN you can. Good paying companies are out there. When the lower ones can’t find appraisers THEIR clients will look for other AMC’s to handle their work.

Hurry up and retire you old timers, Simple Supply And Demand will solve ALL of our problems. Every One !

I know an appraiser who was raised to $375 a job (without asking) from $330. HMMMM….I guess they don’t have a lot of appraisers to call anymore. I begged her to do it 6 months before though.

Wait till spring boys, just wait till spring.

You ARE aware of course that they are trying to raise the threshold for federally regulated transactions to $1,000,000 before a full appraisal is required, aren’t you? Right now it is $250,000 but few will lend with nothing in the file; hence we see AVMs and AAVMS. Everyone-ask yourself the same thing P. Turner of Virginia asked me last night: “WHEN was the last time you had a simple cookie-cutter assignment?”  Neither of us could remember one.

For those that can wait it out, (ten years or so) the normal market forces MAY correct the current low fee problem, but don’t count on it.

In the mean time, you may be better advised to join some of us “old guys” at the American Guild of Appraisers (AGA) OPEIU-AFL/CIO. I am seeing more and more requests for responding to state board complaints where appraisers did a decent job with value; left themselves mildly vulnerable on technicalities where the lenders turn them in for no other reason than to justify their own actions in “shopping” the appraisal after it came in low (meaning at market value)!

Frankly, I COULD spend full time forty hours a week dealing with these and similar problems for Guild members if I hadn’t developed such a fondness for eating and a roof over my head. Chris, why don’t you join me and lend a hand? (Same offer goes to any other seasoned appraisers out there that want to help their peers). The pay is non existent; hours are long, but the rewards are priceless.

You and me buddy!

*G* RA I’d also add Flagstar to that list for anyone that read WorkingRE’s article on LREAB and C&R fees today. Excellent article by Mr. Peck. Not likely my comments will get posted since as some may be aware, I AM just a tad too windy for them. Anyway, well worth the read.

Generally though, I oppose boycotts until those being boycotted prove themselves to be deliberate, knowing scoundrels.

Turn down low paying clients. They need us more than we need them.

Don’t think your fellow appraisers are doing jobs for $200-$275, that’s what they WANT you to think.

The days are coming back where we will be giving them OUR Service Level Agreements for them to sign. NOT the other way around. They turned us into THEIR agents and pay THEIR costs.

Hurry up and retire you old guys. The faster we get to a shortage of appraisers the sooner we can get back our profession. ITS ALREADY HAPPENING !

You’ve just taken your first baby step towards the real solution to the fee problem; boycotting AMCs en masse.  I am firm believer that given enough time even the most die hard opponent of boycotting will at least come to see the solution. (I am not saying that they will participate in solution).

In the end I expect that it will come down to the last two appraisers standing.  One will choose to quit while the other is still accepting $50 AVM confirmation inspection orders.  We all know that there is no chance these last two appraisers will agree to boycott AMCs in an attempt to increase their fees.