Category: Trending

Valuing the Contribution of Solar Panels 39

Valuing the Contribution of Solar Panels

How to value the appraised property with solar panels Appraisers, Valuing the contribution of solar panels on homes has become one of the trickiest aspects of our work over the past decade. Attached is a very well written 45 page report that will help all appraisers better understand this issue, and perhaps lead you in the right direction when you encounter homes with solar panels. I strongly recommend that you print a copy for your library. Oh, and actually read it! The basis of the report is how to value the appraised property with solar panels, when no comps have...

Appraisal / Appraisal News / Appraisers News / Trending

Dreaded Fannie Mae Certified Letter Regarding Condition Ratings - Imagecredit Flickr - Mehta12 32

Dreaded FNMA Letter RE Condition Ratings

Certified Letter From Fannie Mae Regarding Condition Ratings And then it happens, the moment we all know is coming – the dreaded certified letter from Fannie Mae. My door bell rings and the mailman is standing on my porch with pen in hand.  Now don’t get me wrong, we have all been warned. They have the super computer comparing all of us and if you are the outlier you’re getting notified!  If a majority of Appraisers give a specific house a certain rating and you disagree, you must be wrong – BOOM – letter.  I assume this is the case as I...

Appraisal / Appraisal News / Appraisal Quality Monitoring / Appraisers News / AQM / Collateral Underwriter

Free Enterprise an Appraisal Myth 40

Free Enterprise an Appraisal Myth?

Is THAT free enterprise? I’m surprised anyone in the business today sees any minimum pricing proposal as being anti-free enterprise. Contrary to popular belief we have not had free enterprise in the GSE appraisal process since HVCC first reared its ugly head. AMCs ‘telling’ us to pick a number from $250 to $350, or that ‘THEY pay’ $325 per 1004 is NOT free enterprise. I’m an old timer (1986) that was brought up on what used to be AIREA (now the AI) & SREA (now gone) positions that free enterprise and the Sherman Anti-Trust Act prohibited us from ‘even discussing’...

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

It takes a “special” type of appraiser to work with AMCs 40

“Special” Type of Appraiser

It takes a “special” type of appraiser to work with AMCs. While inspecting a property I received a cell phone call from a lender wanting to add me to their panel. I was unable to discuss the matter at that time and requested that she send the information to my email. I received nine pages of application. The invitation starts out telling me how their AMC is a LEADER in the field (I never heard of them). They strive to assist all appraisers who are looking to maximize their time and quality. Their website allows them to monitor appraiser’s efficiency...

AMC / Appraisal / Appraisal Management Companies / Appraisal News / Appraisers News / Trending

AMC's “My Way or the Highway” Attitude 47

AMC’s “My Way or the Highway” Attitude

Apparent appraiser abuse by AMC’s… As Chairman of the American Guild of Appraisers (AGA) National Appraiser Peer Review Committee, I have had the opportunity to see and hear directly about many cases involving alleged, as well as apparent appraiser abuse by AMC’s. These cases ranged geographically from California, Arizona, Michigan, Illinois, Florida, North Carolina, Louisiana, New Jersey, Virginia, New York, Maryland, and District of Columbia. As a QC consultant to a smaller appraiser owned AMC, I have also seen low fee spreadsheets from a variety of lenders that had 90% listed at the SAME APPRAISER fees: $495.00 (which INCLUDED the AMC...

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

27

Appraisal Fees ARE Being Manipulated

Gas prices in California were $4.25 to $4.50 when oil was last at $100 a barrel. A week ago they were $50+/- a barrel and our pump prices were still over $4.00 a gallon. We are told ‘environmental’ mandated blended methanol is the cause of the $1.30 higher pricing than anywhere else in the Continental US. When those environmental laws were being passed we were told they’d only add from $0.05 to MAX of $0.15 per gallon-NOT $1.30 or 43% more! We KNOW that California politicians have also very recently heavily increased gas taxes in their never ending war against internal combustion....

AMC / Appraisal / Appraisal Management Companies / Appraisal News / Appraisal Organizations / Appraisers News

Customary but NOT Reasonable Fees 28

Customary but NOT Reasonable Fees

REASONABLE needs to become the appraiser’s operative word Appraisers, It’s time to grow a pair as some people say, or to stiffen the backbone, and quit caving in to the low ball fees being offered by some in this crazy “industry.” Another true statement is “you are what you are worth”. If you, as an business person, only know how to say yes to low fees, you won’t be worth anything higher to the majority of clients. Further, your self image and actual net worth are negatively impacted. You cannot expect to earn a certain income, then wonder why you gave yourself...

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

xml sitemap
blank