The 24-Hour Appraisal Diet: Slim on Time, Light on Credibility
Brian Zitin’s declaration that the appraisal “bottleneck” has been obliterated by Reggora’s 24-hour turnaround reads less like a breakthrough and more like a tech startup’s victory lap around a profession it barely understands. According to the post, decades of valuation nuance, regulatory compliance, and boots on the ground expertise have now been solved, at no extra cost to the borrower, in every location, and without compromising standards. All it took, apparently, was a few million dollars and a launch video.
It’s a bold claim, not because speed isn’t desirable, but because speed without substance is just marketing. The idea that rural appraisals, where town records are locked behind part-time clerks, and urban or suburban assignments, where tenant access is more art than science and rarely on demand, can all be completed in 24 hours without cutting corners is a fantasy dressed in venture capital. If this were truly USPAP compliant, it would mean appraisers are now clairvoyant, able to verify data that hasn’t been shared, inspect properties they haven’t entered, and reconcile comps that don’t exist, all while maintaining the same fee structure. Miraculous.
Of course, we’re told not to worry, actual appraisers are involved, and the reports are “real.” But the profession has heard this tune before. Every few years, a new tech solution promises to streamline valuation, only to quietly admit later that it’s really just an AVM with lipstick. The difference this time is the insistence that nothing is being replaced, just… accelerated, as if the problem was never complexity, but simply a lack of hustle.
The irony is rich. Appraisers have long been pressured to work faster, cheaper, and with less autonomy, all while absorbing the liability. Now, the same industry that squeezed them dry is promising to respect their expertise, just as long as it fits into a 24-hour window. It’s not that appraisers can’t work quickly, it’s that quality takes time, and time is the one thing no algorithm can fabricate.
If Reggora has truly cracked the code, if they’ve built a system that supports appraisers in meeting every standard, verifying every detail, and delivering credible results in a single day, then let’s see it. Not in a sizzle reel, but in a full report, from a real assignment, in a real town. Until then, the applause will remain on mute, because in the real world, valuation isn’t a bottleneck, it’s a safeguard, and some things are worth waiting for.
- The 24-Hour Appraisal Diet: Slim on Time, Light on Credibility - September 5, 2025
- The Harbor Model: Where Appraisers Take the Helm - August 8, 2025
- FOIA, AI, & the Appraiser’s Defense: A Blueprint for Fighting Back - June 13, 2025
Someone on another forum made an astute observation – this 24-hr time is probably based on the clock beginning to tick after the property inspection has been completed by a PDC (ie., bifuricated appraisal) and where most of the report is prefilled (including comp selection) by data integrations and AI? Because even getting the property access person to reply within 24hrs just to set up the inspection, let alone, inspect it – is near impossible. Who knows – maybe reggora really cracked the code because they sure convinced the coastal VCs to throw a bunch of money their way for this. Guess we’ll see if they can pull it off…
And if that is the case, may the states and more come down hard on those participating in this hot mess -including the appraisers. Hyrbrid type appraisals and data collected by unlicensed, unregulated, untrained data collectors aren’t worth being the lining in the bottom of a bird cage. Not to mention the potential dangers of allowing data collectors access to property and people.