bankruptcy - Appraisers Blogs

Fannie Mae’s Conservatorship: A Babysitter’s Blunder

Guest Author — Mon, 28 Apr 2025 12:30:06 +0000

Calling the FHFA a babysitter for Fannie Mae doesn’t fully capture the dysfunction. What the general public doesn’t understand is that Fannie Mae has been under conservatorship since the 2008 market crash — a status far from ideal, just one step from bankruptcy. By definition, a conservatorship is a legal arrangement where a court appoints a conservator to manage the affairs of an entity unable to do so itself, due to financial distress or other incapacity. It’s a polite term for babysitting an organization that can’t handle its own affairs. A Babysitter Who Sparks Chaos Calling the Federal Housing Finance...

A Cry from the Appraisal Trenches: The Fall of GSE Oversight That could bring our best and brightest back to GSE lending, leveling the playing field with fairer work distribution. Picture…
Data Cancer Infecting the Real Estate Market They have created the phenomenon known as “data cancer” which reduces an appraisal to a rubber stamp that contaminates the…
Fannie Mae Fraud and Abuse Exposed History of waste, fraud & abuse at this rogue organization... Fannie Mae reported this week it had fired more than…

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Dazzled by Wizardry, Federal Mortgage Regulators Ignore Zillow Debacle

Jeremy Bagott — Mon, 12 Jun 2023 12:30:18 +0000

This rulemaking is one more sign that federal bureaucrats are all in on a whacky plan to use technical wizardry to tease out the value of individual properties across the country… Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara was a committed technocrat. Under his direction, a team of policy advisors descended into the Pentagon’s cavernous basement in 1967. They fed punch cards into the basement’s IBM mainframe computers with everything that could be quantified about the Vietnam War. Numbers of ships, tanks, transport helicopters, gunships, fixed-wing aircraft, artillery, troop strength, machine guns, ammo. They queried the computers, “What year will we win...

AVMs... Garbage In, Garbage Out Garbage data in means garbage results out every time! It's no secret that AVMs have been a thorn in the…
AVMs... The Not So Accurate Magic Bullet That article mentioned three on-line services which claim to provide accurate property values. In alphabetical order, those services were REDFIN,…
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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Slew of Negative Reviews for Appraiser Miller

AppraisersBlogs — Mon, 13 Mar 2023 12:30:00 +0000

Her Google & Yelp business pages have received a slew of negative reviews from people living as far away as New Zealand! As real estate appraisers, we understand the importance of accuracy and fairness in our work. We are expected to perform valuation services competently and in a manner that is independent, impartial and objective. We also know how important it is to uphold ethical standards in order to protect ourselves and our clients from potential legal action. The recent case of Austin v Miller serves as a reminder that even when we do our best, things can still go...

And Why Is the Second Appraisal Always the “Correct Value?” On Friday morning, May 19, I was one of five expert witnesses (and the only as an appraiser) to testify…
Appraiser Miller Wins Appraiser Miller wins important claim in racial discrimination lawsuit. Judge ruled Plaintiffs did not rely on Miller's appraisal. The other…
Woke 'Bounty' Bill Will Chill Speech of New York Appraisers A bill being crafted by the New York state Senate’s Finance Committee would, in effect, place a $2,000 bounty on…

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7 Myths of the Great Financial Crisis

Guest Author — Wed, 23 Sep 2020 12:30:40 +0000

1. Fraud is a distraction Elite fraud and predation drove the Great Financial Crisis (GFC). By 2006, about 40% of all the mortgage loans made that year were “liar’s” loans – loans that did not verify the borrower’s income. The mortgage industry’s own anti-fraud experts (MARI) warned that the fraud incidence in these loans was 90%. In response, the industry rapidly increased its liar’s loans. In 2006, the industry made over one million fraudulent liar’s loans. Thomas Herndon’s 2017 study found those loans produced 70% of the mortgage losses. Liar’s loans hyper-inflated the bubble, increasing over 800% from 2003-2006. State...

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…
Dear Representative, FNMA Has Gone Rogue! Dear representative, waiving/eliminating property appraisal for lending purposes is wanton recklessness. Fannie Mae’s decision to waive/eliminate property appraisal for lending…
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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Do You Feel the Rumble?

VaCAP Board — Thu, 29 Aug 2019 12:30:08 +0000

“Can you hear that? Do your hear the rumble? It’s a train going 80 mph toward a 25 mph curve” There is an excellent article by Richard Hagar, SRA that hit everyone’s email yesterday from Working RE Magazine. The title of the article is Why “Bifurcated” Won’t Work. This is an excellent read and we ask that you take the time to read it and pass it along to all your contacts. Lots of great examples of why these products are a danger to not only appraisers, but to communities. See the article here. The pressure has begun…all they need...

Are Bifurcated Appraisals Legal in Your State? Lately there has been a push for bifurcated (hybrid) appraisal products. Those promoting these questionable products claim it will reduce…
Diatribes Against Appraisers What’s even more frustrating to me is none of the well-known appraiser organizations have offered any public rebuttal to any…
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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Planet of Deadbeat AMCs!

Mark Skapinetz — Thu, 14 Feb 2019 13:30:14 +0000

So who is really responsible for payments to appraisers?… Where to start with this? Do I have to refer you back to my past articles like What’s Not in Your Wallet or Appraisers Outraged? Where do we even begin… We begin here. Another story of an Appraisal Management Company going out of business, owing tons of money to appraisers for services they provided. Coester VMS, once one of the biggest players in the game, closed its doors recently. They closed them leaving appraisers with thousands of unpaid invoices for services that who knows if they will ever be paid for....

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…
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…
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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Outraged Appraisers Owed Money by AMCs!

Mark Skapinetz — Thu, 31 Jan 2019 13:30:08 +0000

“I am owed $20,000”. “I am owed $2000”. “I am owed $500”. “I am owed $1500”. These are just some of the quotes pulled from various groups, message boards and forums from appraisers all over the country that are owed money for the appraisal services they provided. Services they provided for a Lender, Mortgage Company or Bank through an Appraisal Management Company or AMC as they are known. What’s an Appraisal Management Company you ask? Well for those that do not know, AMCs have been around a long time. Appraisal management companies (AMCs) are business entities that administer networks of independent...

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…
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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Bond Company for CoesterVMS

Dave Towne — Thu, 17 Jan 2019 13:30:02 +0000

…contact information for the bonding company… Appraisers, if any of you are owed money for unpaid appraisals from CoesterVMS, you might want to read and save this message. However, first…often, bonding companies require a Superior Court judgement in writing before they will pay up. So you may need to follow that process in your state. You will need to have invoices for all unpaid reports which document the property address, and report file number, plus lender name if known. A peer appraiser has provided me the name and contact information for the bonding company as filed with the CoesterVMS AMC...

Coester VMS Bank Accounts Seized! VaCAP has been informed the bank accounts of CoesterVMS have been seized. We have received the following email from one…
CoesterVMS in Bankruptcy? ...all payments on orders completed prior to 11/15/2018 cannot be paid... Appraisers, there is a body of evidence being disseminated…
Coester Surety Bond Claims Exceed Value Coester VMS Surety Bond Claims Exceed Value... Appraisers licensed in North Carolina received the following email by International Fidelity Insurance…

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CoesterVMS in Bankruptcy?

Dave Towne — Wed, 12 Dec 2018 13:30:51 +0000

…all payments on orders completed prior to 11/15/2018 cannot be paid… Appraisers, there is a body of evidence being disseminated via various sources that CoesterVMS, the AMC based in Maryland started by appraiser Brian Coester, is in bankruptcy. This message from CoesterVMS was circulated last week: “Due to financial difficulties all payments on orders completed prior to 11/15/2018 cannot be paid at this time, our BK attorneys will be in contact with all creditors. Coester can guarantee payment next day on all orders completed on or after 11/16/2018. We apologize for any inconvenience.” Does it make any logical sense to...

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…
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…
Attorneys General Shady Business Racket at Attorneys General Group Will Ring Familiar to Appraisers The nation’s licensed real property appraisers will recognize a scheme…

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You Are Out of Here…

VaCAP Board — Fri, 09 Nov 2018 13:30:48 +0000

The New York Stock Exchange has removed Ditech Holdings from trading due to their share value and volume of shares. According to a HousingWire article, Ditech shares are less than $1.00. It’s been a swift fall in the stock price department for Ditech. When the company emerged from bankruptcy, it began trading under a new symbol, “DHCP.” See the article here. Please watch your receivables. The market is slowing and there is chatter about late payments from several amcs and lenders in social media appraisal groups. Save the Date: The VaCAP conference will be held February 7-8th in Northern Virginia! More...

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…
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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Go Ahead, Just Ask…

VaCAP Board — Thu, 28 Dec 2017 13:30:14 +0000

If AMCs used escrow accounts, no appraiser would ever go unpaid. Go Ahead, Just Ask… There is a lot of talk going on about AMCs that are in serious financial trouble. We have heard from many appraisers about past due payments and have heard some very concerning situations where AMCs owe appraisers millions of dollars in unpaid invoices for appraisal services. We have heard stories of AMC credit lines being cut off and demand notices being issued by the bank. There are also discussions of several AMCs shutting their doors in the coming weeks. We all know how rumors spread and...

Another AppraiserLoft? If you do work for Clarocity Valuation Services, you definitely should pay attention... Simple Wall St reports: “Clarocity has limited…
Have AMCs Gone Dark? Clarocity May Have Gone Dark... VaCAP has learned from one of our members the Appraisal Management Company, Clarocity Valuation Services,…
TCValuations Ceasing Operations! TCValuations Paying Appraisers $0.25 on the Dollar! VaCAP has just learned TCValuations is ceasing operations. They are paying appraisers $0.25…

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Another AMC Folds

VaCAP Board — Sat, 16 Sep 2017 12:30:42 +0000

Transcontinental Valuations has gone out of business and stated that it can pay only 25% of the amount owed to each appraiser. VaCAP has been forwarded the following email from the North Carolina Appraisal Board. Please use this as a reminder to watch your receivables. No appraiser should go unpaid for their work! From: NCAppraisal Board [mailto:n…@ncab.org] Sent: Friday, September 15, 2017 10:20 AM Subject: Transcontinental Valuations (NC-1174) On August 23, 2017, we sent out an email letting you know that Transcontinental Valuations has gone out of business. Since then, the Board received a cancellation notice from the bond company...

TCValuations Ceasing Operations! TCValuations Paying Appraisers $0.25 on the Dollar! VaCAP has just learned TCValuations is ceasing operations. They are paying appraisers $0.25…
First the Borrower Fee. Now the Appraiser… Two lawsuits place Class Valuation’s fee transparency and staff-appraiser compensation practices under federal scrutiny. Most appraisal disputes examine only one…
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…

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TCValuations Ceasing Operations!

VaCAP Board — Tue, 08 Aug 2017 12:30:37 +0000

TCValuations Paying Appraisers $0.25 on the Dollar! VaCAP has just learned TCValuations is ceasing operations. They are paying appraisers $0.25 on the dollar! Some good advice: AMCs ceasing operation may be the beginning of a trend as more lenders stop using AMC’s. Stay on top of your receivables and be careful when granting credit. Dear Appraiser, It is with much regret, that I write this letter to inform you that TCV has commenced an orderly wind up and liquidation of operations. Unfortunately a significant downturn in revenue and the loss of part of our volume with two key clients in...

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…
Dear Representative, FNMA Has Gone Rogue! Dear representative, waiving/eliminating property appraisal for lending purposes is wanton recklessness. Fannie Mae’s decision to waive/eliminate property appraisal for lending…
Look in the Mirror The phrase “take a look in the mirror” is a common idiom used to encourage self-reflection and introspection. It is…

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What’s In a Relationship?

Guest Author — Wed, 02 Aug 2017 12:30:49 +0000

Salvaging Relationships with Appraisers… Wells Fargo, one of the oldest banks in the country, is working hard to salvage relationships, not with just customers and regulators, but appraisers as well. Wells Fargo recently stopped using Appraisal Management Companies and is aggressively trying to build an appraisal panel of their own. Appraisers are excited that one of the largest banks in the country is no longer using AMC’s. We give Wells Fargo high “Kudos” for making a change in the right direction. However, there is a bit of a dilemma when making an informed decision whether to have a relationship with Wells...

Bend Over and Ask for More... GUILTY of not using human brain power of thinking and communicating... More Please... How many of you can honestly state…
AMCs Are Not Part of The Appraisal Profession Foreign entities do not get a voice in what legislation is introduced... Let's think about this with an open mind...…
My Day as an Appraiser Big Corporations like CoreLogic are like sharks... This morning, as I do every morning, I made some coffee and began…

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Coffin Lid Closed on Defunct AMC

Dave Towne — Fri, 26 Feb 2016 13:30:40 +0000

AMC is indeed closed! Over the last number of days, I have sent messages about a Washington State Appraisal Management Company which was about to fail. This AMC is owing many appraisers thousands of dollars in unpaid appraisal fees. I performed an ‘autopsy’ on that AMC while it was still kicking and screaming. I now have confirmation from two separate appraisers, on two separate days, that the AMC office is now closed, with most furnishings removed. The AMC owner has not informed any appraisers about this action, or anything else related to the business closing. Because those of us involved...

Collecting Invoices from Problematic Clients Chasing unpaid invoices... Recently, I have been receiving numerous emails and phone calls from appraisers asking if they can factor…
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…
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…

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Beware of Appraiser Karma – Llano Cases

Peter Christensen — Wed, 14 Oct 2015 12:30:44 +0000

In our world of claims involving appraisers, we quite often see different versions of this same story — in this version of the story, an appraiser did a review appraisal that was used by Savant LG in a currently pending case against another appraiser in Florida. Just months later, that appraiser found himself named as a defendant in a lawsuit filed...

Dear Representative, FNMA Has Gone Rogue! Dear representative, waiving/eliminating property appraisal for lending purposes is wanton recklessness. Fannie Mae’s decision to waive/eliminate property appraisal for lending…
From Data to Value: How Mass Appraisal Delivers Fair… Behind every annual notice of assessments is a complex valuation system most property owners never realize exists. The Appraisal Foundation…
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…

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Ganter Brothers Versus Appraisers

Brian L. Trotrier — Tue, 15 Sep 2015 12:30:57 +0000

It’s been a few months since we issued our last update on our friends (and yours) the Ganter brothers (Chris and Ben). The Ganters have suffered what for most people would be a series of embarrassing setbacks in their blatant attempts to use the legal system to pressure appraisers and/or their E&O carriers into paying off what we view as frivolous claims to save the cost of litigating the underlying dispute. For those of you who are reading this for the first time, we have issued two other alerts about this in the past 18 months. Links to the earlier...

First the Borrower Fee. Now the Appraiser… Two lawsuits place Class Valuation’s fee transparency and staff-appraiser compensation practices under federal scrutiny. Most appraisal disputes examine only one…
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…
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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Some Good News…For a Change?

Guest Author — Thu, 27 Nov 2014 13:30:53 +0000

Some Good News…For a Change? – 2nd Annual List (A Work-In-Progress) Last year, around Thanksgiving, I had put together a list of some positive things going on for appraisers. It was/is all-too-rare that we hear positive news regarding the appraisal profession. There is an awful lot of complaining that goes on, most of it justifiable, but little good news that gets shared. Part of the problem is that there is no central source for information regarding our profession which appraisers might utilize in order to find out what is going on across the country and affecting our profession, and could be used to...

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…
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…
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.…

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Agencies AMC Rules Lack Guidance

AppraisersBlogs — Wed, 18 Jun 2014 12:30:12 +0000

Banking Agencies are Told Proposed AMC Rules Fall Short on Guidance In comments filed June 6 with several federal banking agencies, the American Society of Appraisers (ASA) and the National Association of Independent Fee Appraisers expressed our concerns that rules proposed to regulate appraisal management company (AMC) conduct lack sufficient detail to allow for effective implementation. Additionally, the organizations expressed concern that some provisions of the proposed rule depart from Congress’s intent when the enabling law was included in the Dodd-Frank Act, and could negatively affect the overall public policy goals. In the comment letter, ASA and NAIFA cover numerous...

Proposed Rule for AMCs Agencies Issue Proposed Rule on Minimum Requirements for Appraisal Management Companies WASHINGTON — Six agencies today issued a proposed rule…
Minimum Requirements for AMCs Proposed Federal Regulation of Appraisal Management Companies (Minimum Requirements for AMCs) I hear a lot from appraisers concerning their interactions…
Federal Register: AMC Final Rule AMC Regulation Rule Finally Published in the Federal Register Appraisers and others, On June 9, 2015, the Federal Register published…

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Appraisal Profession Decimated by AMCs

VaCAP Board — Mon, 09 Jun 2014 12:30:25 +0000

The Appraisal Profession & Appraiser’s Business Decimated by the Increasing Dominance of Appraisal Management Company Services (AMCs) For the past two months, VaCAP has participated in a networked council consisting of 13 professional state appraisal organizations in responding to the Agencies request for comments of the Proposed Rules on Minimum Requirements for Appraisal Management Companies: Dear Agencies; This letter is in response to the Agencies’ request for comments on the Proposed Rules on Minimum Requirements for Appraisal Management Companies. The undersigned represent a networked council of professional state appraisal organizations. We appreciate this opportunity to comment and thank the Agencies for...

Dear Representative, FNMA Has Gone Rogue! Dear representative, waiving/eliminating property appraisal for lending purposes is wanton recklessness. Fannie Mae’s decision to waive/eliminate property appraisal for lending…
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…
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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bankruptcy - Appraisers Blogs

Fannie Mae’s Conservatorship: A Babysitter’s Blunder

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Dazzled by Wizardry, Federal Mortgage Regulators Ignore Zillow Debacle

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Slew of Negative Reviews for Appraiser Miller

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Do You Feel the Rumble?

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Bond Company for CoesterVMS

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You Are Out of Here…

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Another AMC Folds

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