Tagged: VA

FRT Not Reflecting the Majority of the Mortgage Lending Environment

April 2, 2018

Watering Down FRT Definition

Definition of FRT simply does not reflect the majority of the mortgage lending environment… So what exactly is a “federally related transaction”, or FRT for short? Wait, that’s not the right question. Let’s start here: What is NOT an FRT? It’s not a mortgage loan insured by the Federal Housing Administration. It’s not lending underpinned by the Department of Veterans’ Affairs home loan program. It certainly isn’t a loan that’s sold to a Government Sponsored Enterprise (or GSE), like Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. Just considering a loan for sale to those two entities is enough to fall outside the...

American Society of Appraisers / Appraisal / Appraisal News / Appraisal Organizations / Appraisers News / ASA

March 29, 2018

When is Enough, Enough?

Yet another expert who is making gazillions of dollars using "virtual assistants and outsourcing"… I have been blessed in my life with more than my share of good friends. I’m talking about the lifelong kind. The kind we maintain friendships over 30; 40 or even 50+ years. My Mother and Father have always told me you can never really have too many real friends. They were right. So, at my age I don’t need or consciously seek to make enemies. Just as I have had more than my fair share of true friends, I’ve probably also had my share of...

AGA / Appraisal / Appraisal News / Appraisal Organizations / Appraisers News / The American Guild of Appraisers

The Way Things Used To Be - Appraisal fees unchanged in two decades

127

March 12, 2018

The Way Things Used To Be

“We haven’t had a raise in two decades.” Give me a break! It’s a common complaint in our industry that real estate appraisers haven’t had a raise in two decades. The argument goes that twenty years ago, the standard fee for an appraisal was $350. Fast forward twenty years and it’s still $350. That’s a great sound bite, but the actual logic is deeply flawed. In real terms, we’ve had a huge raise thanks to the massively reduced amount of time we spend on our appraisals. It’s something I’ve written about before (Never Had a Raise in 20 Years), but...

Appraisal / Appraisal News / Appraisers News / Trending / Valuation Technology

March 7, 2018

If I Could Turn Back Time

Community Banks want to bypass appraisals in rural area… Evaluations are the answer, right? There have been lots of discussions lately concerning property inspection waivers, waivers of appraisals in rural areas, and allowing appraisers to complete Evaluations outside of USPAP standards. Doesn’t this all sound familiar? It should, we have already lived it 30 some years ago, prior to FIRREA. Back then Savings and Loans had staff appraisers to complete appraisals. The appraisal was not completed by a licensed appraiser, because licensing to protect the public did not exist. Today Community Banks want to bypass appraisals in rural area. Their...

Appraisal / Appraisal News / Appraisers News / Trending / Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice / USPAP

Stop Senate Bill 2155 in the Senate, Fake Claim of an Appraisers Shortage

March 5, 2018

Stop S.2155 in the Senate

Call to action to oppose Senate Bill 2155, also opposed by an overwhelming majority of Americans… Appraisers, We are placing an immediate nationwide call to action to oppose Senate Bill 2155 currently in the United States Senate. Senate Bill 2155 has a provision, (sec 103) which allows a bank to waive an appraisal in rural communities. This will be detrimental for homeowners and communities in rural areas. A loss of income will also occur for appraisers who cover rural counties. To see the text of S.2155, click here. The Independent Community Bank Association has been hard at work promoting this bill....

Appraisal / Appraisal News / Appraisal Organizations / Appraisers News / Customary & Reasonable Fees / Dodd-Frank Act / C&R Fees

February 19, 2018

AMCs Have Failed

…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...

AMC / Appraisal / Appraisal Management Companies / Appraisal News / Appraisers News / Fannie Mae - Freddie Mac

February 14, 2018

AMC Abuses? What’s Your Story?

Many of you have filed formal complaints against AMC abuses with State appraisal boards… The place was a small subdivision developed with coastal style homes on the Ocean side of route 12 in the Outer Banks of North Carolina. The bank was Bank of America. The AMC was LandSafe and the time was just before Corelogic purchase of Landsafe for $122 million. I was asked by this AMC to appraise a home for a purchase transaction. My comparable sales consisted of one recent sale of the next door neighbor, one on the same street, and two closed sales in the...

AMC / Appraisal / Appraisal Management Companies / Appraisal News / Appraisers News / LandSafe

ClearVal Value IS So ClearCut - What IS a “ClearVal Appraisal”

162

January 31, 2018

What IS a “ClearVal Appraisal”?

Clear Capital ClearVal… Value Not So ClearCut… I’ve finally had an opportunity to read a hybrid ‘appraisal’ start to finish. All may read the unedited, non-redacted version in all its glory… or infamy, as the case may be. Please click here (report also embedded below) and read it first. I’ll wait right here. Finished? Great. One thing is clear. It is not an appraisal by any current accepted definition that I am familiar with. Ironically, there is also very little that is clear as far as support for the opined values is concerned. (I’m old fashioned and think it should...

AGA / AMC / Appraisal / Appraisal Management Companies / Appraisal News / Appraisal Organizations

Professionals With No Appraisal Experience Cornering The Hybrid Market

January 18, 2018

New Hybrid Desktop Hucksters

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,...

AGA / AMC / Appraisal / Appraisal Management Companies / Appraisal News / Appraisal Organizations

AMC Business Model is Based on Lies That Hurt The Consumer

January 12, 2018

The Reality

There is no shortage of appraisers, only appraisers willing to work for Appraisal Management Companies, but there will be a shortage if the current toxic business climate does not change. The AMC business model is based on lies that hurt the consumer and your constituents. There are many voices that have agendas to reduce the qualifications to become a Real Estate appraiser, whether it be a Licensed Appraiser, Certified Residential Appraiser or a Certified General Appraiser. There are also voices that would like the requirements of an appraisal by a person licensed by the state to be waived as there is a...

AMC / Appraisal / Appraisal Management Companies / Appraisal News / AppraiserLoft / Appraisers News