appraisal assignments - Appraisers Blogs

The Great Debate on Appraisal Fees

Isaac Peck — Mon, 28 Oct 2024 12:30:09 +0000

She included several different fee split examples indicating AMCs retained as much as 70 percent of the total appraisal fee paid by the borrower, which prompted her to stop working with AMCs because of the lack of transparency. The appraisal industry is abuzz with a discussion about appraisal fees. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) recently issued a Request for Information Regarding Fees Imposed in Residential Mortgage Transactions [Docket No. CFPB-2024-0021] in which it solicited feedback from the public and industry stakeholders on the fees charged to consumers by mortgage providers and related settlement services. The CFPB framed it as...

Appraisal Regulation Compliance Council Exposes… The Appraisal Regulation Compliance Council published a detailed breakdown to the CFPB, which showed the median average AMC fee being…
Lack of Fee Transparency: Exposing the AMC Exploitation By keeping the borrower in the dark about the true cost of the appraisal, the AMCs are able to charge…
AMCs Billing Scheme, Hidden Profits & Deceptive Practices Appraisers who do not agree to their hidden billing methods are excluded from the majority of the GSE lending marketplace…

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Fight Unfair AMC Practices – Leverage State Authorities

AppraisersBlogs — Wed, 14 Aug 2024 12:30:38 +0000

Alarmed by predatory practices among AMCs, a peer has drafted letters urging appraisers to call on state authorities to address unfair AMC conduct and potential regulatory violations. As appraisers, we have faced an ongoing challenge with Appraisal Management Companies (AMCs) offering fees that are well below the customary and reasonable rates for standard appraisal assignments. This practice has created a troubling trend of “bid wars” where AMCs pit appraisers against one another, driving down fees to unacceptably low levels. In response to this issue, a peer has provided two draft letters that can be easily modified and used by other...

Violating Appraisal Independence Through Harassment,… It shall be unlawful... to engage in any act or practice that violates appraisal independence... Appraisers, I have written the…
Lack of Fee Transparency: Exposing the AMC Exploitation By keeping the borrower in the dark about the true cost of the appraisal, the AMCs are able to charge…
Fastapp AMC Alleged Violations of AIR The following court documents in the case Naftali Horowitz v. [xxx], Fastapp AMC founder v. Fastapp AMC president, confirm what…

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Lack of Fee Transparency: Exposing the AMC Exploitation

Desiree Mehbod — Wed, 31 Jul 2024 12:30:07 +0000

By keeping the borrower in the dark about the true cost of the appraisal, the AMCs are able to charge exorbitant prices and pocket the difference (as shown in Figures 1 through 10), exploiting the consumer’s lack of knowledge. Thank you for the opportunity to comment on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s Request for Information on Fees Imposed in Residential Mortgage Transactions. The growth of Appraisal Management Companies (AMCs) in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis was driven by a well-intentioned but ultimately misguided belief that they could help “ensure the integrity and independence” of property valuations. The reasoning...

Exposing Predatory AMCs Exposing the inner workings of these predatory AMCs and their corrosive influence on the housing market. Cindy Chance's recent comments…
AMCs Billing Scheme, Hidden Profits & Deceptive Practices Appraisers who do not agree to their hidden billing methods are excluded from the majority of the GSE lending marketplace…
AMC Fee Impact on Appraisal Fee While the borrower was charged $695 for the appraisal, the appraiser was only paid $301. The AMC fee was $394. …

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Escaping the Black Hole: Appraisers Fleeing Mortgage Lending

Dave Towne — Mon, 13 May 2024 12:30:29 +0000

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...

Fannie Mae 'Census Block Grid' Adjustment Raises… "FNMA’s collateral underwriter tool has a line item adjustment it makes on every comparable called Census Block Grid." In a…
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…
Security Bars Removal Law Debunks Alleged Racial… Complainant stated appraiser told them they should remove security bars from windows. Complainant stated this is evidence of "racist discrimination"...…

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Is the Iceberg Turning?

Dave Towne — Fri, 05 Jan 2024 13:30:03 +0000

Appraisers, it seems this past year has been like furiously paddling against a giant iceberg containing frozen lending assignments in the North Atlantic ocean while in a rowboat with one paddle! The entire 2023 has been one chilling episode in terms of mortgage lending appraisal assignments for appraisers. While it’s too soon to tell for sure, a giant sea-going tug boat with high horsepower diesel engines powering twin propellers mounted on azipods has arrived on the scene to help direct and push that iceberg into warmer waters, releasing a flood of more assignments! I read lots of ‘stuff’ relating to...

The Town With No Bank: How Rural America Lost Its… For decades, we’ve been told that the problem is demand. That people don’t want to live in rural America anymore.…
The Great Debate on Appraisal Fees She included several different fee split examples indicating AMCs retained as much as 70 percent of the total appraisal fee…
The New & Improved Fannie Mae “FRAUDULATOR 2.0” Originally known as Fannie Mae’s Collateral Underwriter (CU), and subsequently Collateral Underwriter 2.0 (CU-2)i this always dubious product of Fannie…

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The New Appraisal Profession – Why bother!

Guest Author — Thu, 04 Jan 2024 13:30:22 +0000

As long as the new normal is reporting the appraiser when you don’t like the value continues, why bother? In today’s new and unimproved appraisal atmosphere, any appraiser that does not “hit the number” is open to detrimental consequences. Buyers, Sellers, & Refinancers – The U.S. Government from the top down have provided the media and the public in general with so much toxic misinformation and encouragement that any appraiser doing their job, a job that can lead to lower values than expected, can now be turned to HUD itself, or a state appraisal board for racial bias. So, why...

How to Destroy the Appraisal Profession Anytime the government gets involved in an issue, it tends to have more adverse effects than positive ones. It makes…
USPAP’s Typical Buyer Standard in the Fair Housing Era The Irreconcilable Conflict Between USPAP's Typical Buyer Standard and the Current Fair Housing Compliance Regime. Retain this document as a…
The Real Cause of the Home Value Gap Is the Income Gap Blaming appraisers for the income gap will never solve the real underlying problem... Blaming appraisers for the income gap is…

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Mortgage Application Volume Nearing Historic Low

Dave Towne — Fri, 22 Sep 2023 12:30:16 +0000

Appraisers, I’m almost reluctant to distribute this article, but the reality is what it is. Per the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA), the loan application volume is at another low point in our history. The article in Mortgage News Daily titled “Mortgage Application Volume at Lowest Levels Since 1996” in this link provides context. For a related perspective, the article contains a graph, which can be expanded to show mortgage rates and application volume for decades. The brown line in the graph shows 30 year mortgage rates – since early 1971. The light blue indicates the loan application volume, which corresponds...

Leaving the Appraisal Profession It’s a Great Time to Leave the Appraisal Profession. I can hear the chorus of my fellow appraisers rising up…
AMCs Take a Sizable Cut of the Appraisal Fee It still proves my point: Appraisal Management Companies take a sizable Cut of the appraisal fee... It was March 28th,…
'Clean-Slate' Laws, Bad Policy Could Dispatch More… The idea of unlicensed individuals being hired off the streets and paid a pittance to video and photograph the interiors…

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The Scam of Racial Discrimination by Appraisers

Michael Ford — Wed, 10 May 2023 12:30:40 +0000

More and more appraisers are retiring every day. Aside from that more and more are changing to lower liability careers. Eventually, the opportunists who have been promoting the scam of racial discrimination by appraisers such as career politicians, and ‘anti-discrimination’ software hucksters like Black Knight will be shown to be what they truly are. Recently, a highly respected appraiser who is also a senior designated member of a well-known national professional peer association, wrote an article about a new proposed law in New York ostensibly targeting New York appraisers. Mr. Bagott’s article had an unusual amount of hyperbole within it...

Why is Only One Side of This Story Being Told? There are always two sides to every story; however, understanding is a three-edged sword: your side, their side, and the…
HUD Dismisses Claims Alleging Racism ...white America (government) keeps trying to 'fix' Black People who are not broken in the first place! We’ve all heard…
Promoting False "Racist Appraiser" Narrative Some Lenders promoting false "racist appraiser" narrative to optimize profits via AVMs Like most businesses lenders want to optimize their…

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Speed Regardless of Accuracy Under the Banner of Modernization

Dave Towne — Wed, 08 Mar 2023 13:30:54 +0000

Appraisers, something – comparing and contrasting – dawned on me last week, after reading another news release titled “Dean Kelker: Appraisal Modernization is Starting to Gain Momentum“, which is basically pushing an “Enterprise” singular ‘agenda’ of valuation speed regardless of accuracy. Under the banner of “modernization.” VA does not demand appraisers complete assigned appraisal assignments extraordinarily quickly. They give appraisers 7 – 10 days (depending on location) to submit the report after assignment. VA expects good quality and accurate information. FHA/USDA/ONAP also expects appraisal accuracy using an inspection protocol that many appraisers object to, and some choose not to do...

Modernization Should Only Be Determined by the… The appraisal professions should be the only ones to determine any modernization; whatever that is... When Things Don’t Go as…
Expert Wants to “Eliminate” Appraisers Mortgage Industry Expert Wants to “Eliminate” Appraisers – A Response The National Mortgage News website just published an interview with…
Exactly How Are Property Data Collectors… Somebody explain to me exactly how Property Data Collectors are “professionally trained” per Fannie Mae directives. The fact is, Fannie…

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‘Opportunity’ to Work for Free is Not a Plan

Dave Towne — Thu, 23 Feb 2023 13:30:50 +0000

I gave this ‘opportunity’ further critical analysis in terms of time spent versus the fee income potential. Appraisers, I’d like to disclose a personal ‘opportunity’ that was presented to me last fall, early winter. A company with AMC roots was, or is, recruiting people to become “property inspectors” with the resulting reports potentially fed to other appraisers who do HYBRID, or maybe even DESKTOP reports. The GSEs never intended the DESKTOP report to incorporate separate ‘property inspections’ from a hired third party, but that’s been the evolution because they just look the other way. Last fall, due to the slowdown...

Smartphone Measuring Technology This new measuring technology claims the software to be ANSI compliant. Appraisers, over the past couple of years, there have…
Uncovering Flaws in FHA Appraisal & Loan Review Process The story of this single mother's harrowing experience with a defective home purchase and HUD's negligent oversight exposes deep flaws…
It’s Time to Take Out the Junk: AMC Practices Exposed Appraisers have spent years carrying the weight of broken AMC practices, and this article pulls every one of those practices…

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Bringing More People Into a Dying Profession!

Dave Towne — Mon, 23 Jan 2023 13:30:13 +0000

Some people want to bring more people (primarily of color, which is great) into a dying profession. But the profession is being killed off by (mostly white!) people who think technology is the golden spoon to accurate valuations. Appraisers, I’ve been studying, and writing about since 2006, all kind of issues surrounding our profession, and frankly some currently does not make sense. As many know, ‘we’ have been accused of not having “enough black people” in appraiser ranks. The claim is that blacks only represent 3% or so of the total population of appraisers. The people engaged in blaming appraisers...

What Is My Incentive? Why would I bother taking on the added risk of an inconvenient process? Where is my incentive again? As an…
Anti-Appraiser Agenda Money may have been used to buy influence and promote the current anti-appraiser narrative being embraced by key public servants…
The Real Cause of the Home Value Gap Is the Income Gap Blaming appraisers for the income gap will never solve the real underlying problem... Blaming appraisers for the income gap is…

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Appraisers Should Voluntarily Follow ANSI for Desktops?

Dave Towne — Mon, 25 Jul 2022 12:30:26 +0000

Can someone explain how we should voluntarily follow ANSI standard on desktop appraisals? Appraisers, Fannie Mae has released a new FAQ document to help you understand how to implement and adhere to their ANSI measuring and reporting requirement. See the PDF document below or here. Normally these documents are informative and provide good information. But in reading this one, I’m particularly puzzled by Q13, and I’m not sure if that’s a bad omen or not! Q13 discusses DESKTOP appraisals, for which NO adherence to ANSI is required. It says so, right there, in Q13. And most of us now know...

The Town With No Bank: How Rural America Lost Its… For decades, we’ve been told that the problem is demand. That people don’t want to live in rural America anymore.…
ANSI & Floor Plans Goofiness "...if you the appraiser are not required to inspect the property yourself, don’t you want to have a more detailed…
Solving the ANSI Measuring Dilemma ...a brilliant ‘work around’ to solve the subject & comps adjustment issues, which Fannie Mae thinks is no big deal...…

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No Mandatory AMC Use

Dave Towne — Fri, 10 Sep 2021 12:30:53 +0000

When you work with UWM Appraisal Direct… if a borrower pays $500 for an order, the entire fee goes to you. UWM doesn’t make $1 on the order. No appraisal management fees… This announcement just popped into my email, from HousingWire: UWM launches AMC-free appraisal program UWM to coordinate appraisals in-house United Wholesale Mortgage (UWM) announced today that it will no longer require its brokers to use appraisal management companies to complete appraisals. The Pontiac, Michigan-based wholesale lender will instead coordinate appraisals in-house, contracting with appraisers directly, offering appraisers and brokers a way to bypass AMCs altogether, which UWM CEO...

Animosity Between Appraisers and AMCs AMCs control the money. We hear a lot about animosity between appraisers and AMCs and this doesn’t make for a…
Influencing the Appraiser The AMC control over the appraiser and the content of the appraisal report... The biggest issue that threatens the appraisers…
The Reality There is no shortage of appraisers, only appraisers willing to work for Appraisal Management Companies, but there will be a…

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REVAA No Fan of the New NY AMC Law

Jonathan Miller — Fri, 26 Apr 2019 12:30:31 +0000

The NY State Coalition of Appraisers wants you to to know that there is a new AMC law coming into effect at the end of the month and REVAA doesn’t like it. Last December New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo signed Senate Bill S9080 into law, effective at the end of this month. REVAA‘s biggest concern is that it requires all valuations to be performed by appraisers AND invoices must be attached to the report so the consumer knows what the appraiser was paid. This is groundbreaking for our industry. Let’s hope that the word spreads and the consumer is...

Fannie Mae Filed a Complaint Against Me An appraiser shared the following with us which was posted on one of the appraisers’ groups. Fannie Mae filed a…
Uncovering Flaws in FHA Appraisal & Loan Review Process The story of this single mother's harrowing experience with a defective home purchase and HUD's negligent oversight exposes deep flaws…
The Great Debate on Appraisal Fees She included several different fee split examples indicating AMCs retained as much as 70 percent of the total appraisal fee…

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AMCs Have Failed

Guest Author — Mon, 19 Feb 2018 13:30:57 +0000

…it will be the appraisal management companies that are going to be held to the fire, not the appraiser… In the spring of 2002 my wife and I bought our third house; an older cape cod in a great school system where our son would start kindergarten in the fall and his sister the year after. This house literally was 1970 inside. It had deep red shag carpet in the family room and sculptured avocado green carpet upstairs. Not to worry, it blended well with the sunshine yellow stove, bright orange counter top and turquoise and pink bathrooms. After 3...

Enough Already, Nobody is Listening AMC technology is not about efficiency of the appraisal process... I am very tired of reading all the articles from…
Lie - Ability Tax payers should not be LIE-ABLE for the actions of greedy bad players! Michael Simmons, Principal and founding Director of…
The Reality There is no shortage of appraisers, only appraisers willing to work for Appraisal Management Companies, but there will be a…

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New Hybrid Desktop Hucksters

Michael Ford — Thu, 18 Jan 2018 13:30:33 +0000

What could lure these successful 'professionals' from their chosen careers? Fellow appraisers, I just received an advertisement for a company that wants to pay ‘me’ $50.00 an hour to do desktop appraisals. Actually, probably not me, because they prefer a degree. Now, my routine hourly rate for complex appraisal assignments is $150 ($500 for EW and something variable in between for pretty much everything else). So they are asking me to take a cut of 2/3… assuming I could meet their degree requirement “preference”. It got me thinking. I cannot always command my hourly rate for 8 hours a day,...

The Town With No Bank: How Rural America Lost Its… For decades, we’ve been told that the problem is demand. That people don’t want to live in rural America anymore.…
The New & Improved Fannie Mae “FRAUDULATOR 2.0” Originally known as Fannie Mae’s Collateral Underwriter (CU), and subsequently Collateral Underwriter 2.0 (CU-2)i this always dubious product of Fannie…
Fannie Mae Filed a Complaint Against Me An appraiser shared the following with us which was posted on one of the appraisers’ groups. Fannie Mae filed a…

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Appraisers Pushing Back!

VaCAP Board — Thu, 21 Dec 2017 13:30:27 +0000

Solidifi has taken the disrespect to another level… Appraisers Pushing Back Against AMC Bad Behavior! Appraisers have finally had enough of bad behavior by AMCs. VaCAP received the following email from an appraiser, who by the way is not located in Virginia. VaCAP spoke to the author concerning the email and found out a few more details. First, the author does not do residential work as they are a Certified General nor do they work for AMCs and are not on any AMC roster. Somehow, this nonresidential appraiser received this email from Solidifi. VaCAP commends our colleague for stepping up...

Fannie Mae Filed a Complaint Against Me An appraiser shared the following with us which was posted on one of the appraisers’ groups. Fannie Mae filed a…
Dear ASC: Details... Why They Matter DETAILS... NO MATTER HOW SMALL OR BIG NEED TO BE PRESENTED. If not, you failed. ASC, today you failed us…
It’s Time to Take Out the Junk: AMC Practices Exposed Appraisers have spent years carrying the weight of broken AMC practices, and this article pulls every one of those practices…

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Clear Capital’s Push For Hybrid VA Appraisals

AppraisersBlogs — Mon, 10 Apr 2017 12:30:41 +0000

Clear Capital suggests that the VA consider the use of a desktop appraisal On April 4, 2017, the House Committee on Veterans Affairs held a hearing on “Assessing VA Approved Appraisers And How To Improve The Program For The 21st Century.” The hearing was designed to “assess VA’s current appraisal process, as well as specific difficulties for timely appraisals in highly rural areas”, as well as to investigate possible technological solutions to mitigate timeliness issues. Much of the hearing focused on two areas: The requirements for becoming a member of the VA appraiser panel, and the baseline requirements for comparable...

Modernizing Appraisals & Being Stuck in 1989 Modernizing Appraisals: It seems we're stuck in 1989... On November 16, 2016, the Housing and Insurance Subcommitte held a hearing…
Hybrid Appraisal Products & Public Trust Are busy appraisers doing Hybrid Appraisal products? Appraisers, The article titled First American launches new appraisal solutions technology popped in…
Appraisers Are NOT Invited! "No room” for any additional expert witnesses representing appraisers' interests... Who are the Valuation Professionals? Appraisers are unbiased and impartial…

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Understanding the Appraisal Profession

Guest Author — Mon, 13 Feb 2017 13:30:35 +0000

AMCs communication have failed consistently…. As a Certified Residential Appraiser that started my career as a loan officer in the early 1990’s, I am baffled how many who claim to be mortgage or valuation professionals that are just clueless. Don’t get me wrong, I am not talking about any one person, group or business type, but a true lack of understanding of the underlying principle of Real Estate… that is each property is unique. Even in cookie cutter subdivisions where every third home is the same model, there are differences both in the land and the improvements. If you don’t...

The Great Debate on Appraisal Fees She included several different fee split examples indicating AMCs retained as much as 70 percent of the total appraisal fee…
It’s Time to Take Out the Junk: AMC Practices Exposed Appraisers have spent years carrying the weight of broken AMC practices, and this article pulls every one of those practices…
Fannie Mae Filed a Complaint Against Me An appraiser shared the following with us which was posted on one of the appraisers’ groups. Fannie Mae filed a…

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AMC Non Grata

Dave Towne — Tue, 17 Jan 2017 13:30:39 +0000

I’m coining the phrase AMC non grata… Appraisers, There’s an old, accepted diplomatic term being used by US government folks these days: “persona non grata‘. It refers to a diplomat or other approved foreign nation person being involuntarily removed from the host country, on very short notice. In the most recent case it applies to Russians being expelled from the US due to the alleged actions of their government in the last election. ‘Persona non grata’ got me to thinking. We have instances in our profession where AMC’s become expelled from our businesses. So I’m coining the phrase AMC non...

Fannie Mae Filed a Complaint Against Me An appraiser shared the following with us which was posted on one of the appraisers’ groups. Fannie Mae filed a…
USPAP’s Typical Buyer Standard in the Fair Housing Era The Irreconcilable Conflict Between USPAP's Typical Buyer Standard and the Current Fair Housing Compliance Regime. Retain this document as a…
Uncovering Flaws in FHA Appraisal & Loan Review Process The story of this single mother's harrowing experience with a defective home purchase and HUD's negligent oversight exposes deep flaws…

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appraisal assignments - Appraisers Blogs

The Great Debate on Appraisal Fees

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Fight Unfair AMC Practices – Leverage State Authorities

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Lack of Fee Transparency: Exposing the AMC Exploitation

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Escaping the Black Hole: Appraisers Fleeing Mortgage Lending

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Is the Iceberg Turning?

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The New Appraisal Profession – Why bother!

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Mortgage Application Volume Nearing Historic Low

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The Scam of Racial Discrimination by Appraisers

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Speed Regardless of Accuracy Under the Banner of Modernization

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‘Opportunity’ to Work for Free is Not a Plan

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Bringing More People Into a Dying Profession!

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Appraisers Should Voluntarily Follow ANSI for Desktops?

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No Mandatory AMC Use

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REVAA No Fan of the New NY AMC Law

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AMCs Have Failed

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New Hybrid Desktop Hucksters

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Clear Capital’s Push For Hybrid VA Appraisals

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