Appraisal Time Killers To Avoid!

Excerpt: What’s one thing you wish you could STOP doing to save time in your workday?

Answering phone calls (28%)

“Phone calls usually are from another client and slow down the task I am trying to accomplish.”

“Phone calls interrupt train of thought and emails aren’t any better. It’s hard to work when parties are micromanaging your work.”

Providing status emails (23%)

“Some clients are sending multiple emails daily on the same property with status update requests. I know some of these are automated, and they can really be annoying and are clogging my inbox.”

“Often, almost everyone involved in the transaction calls or emails for a status. That includes two agents, the processor and loan officer. That situation is very burdensome.”

To read all the challenges plus appraiser comments, click here

My comments: Worth reading. Good tips. I have always had an office assistant to handle these types of problems, since my third month in business in 1986. I had never had a clerical job and was ready to quit appraising. I hired someone to help me. My current assistant has been with me for 18 years.

Appraisal Business Tips 

Humor for Appraisers

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To read more of this long blog post with many topics, click Read More Below!!

NOTE: Please scroll down to read the other topics in this long blog post on non-lender appraisals, home inspector strange thinks, appraisal license problems, unusual homes, mortgage origination stats, etc.

Excerpt: You can hardly post anything on an appraisal forum or social media without the first 17 comments stating, “I do non-lender work.” This response reminds me of the fitness culture several years ago, when it felt as though everyone I met would first tell me that they did CrossFit, sometimes before even stating their name. Despite the way such statements are often delivered, it’s important to admit that these people are on to something.

To read more, click here

My comments: Good to hear that more appraisers are giving up on the lender grind, mostly those who work for AMCs I suspect. I quit res. lender appraising in 2005 and can hardly recognize what has happened to it post-HVCC.

I have been doing non-lender appraisals since I started my business in 1986. I started writing about it in 1987 for my local appraisal chapter newsletter. My appraisal career began with an assessor’s office in 1975. I had never done lender appraisals and could never overcome my dislike for lenders telling me how to do my appraisals.

Excerpts: In addition to the off-kilter main house, there’s also a small cottage on the property. 1,133-square-foot home. All of the walls are at an angle

The home was built in 1974, and when the deal closes, the new buyer will be only its third owner. The utilities are a little different, to match the home’s asymmetrical angles. For example, all the pipes are under the house, instead of running through the walls.

The home sits on 8.41 acres with frontage on two roads, and there’s room to subdivide the property and build another house. The acreage provides plenty of seclusion.

For more info and photos, plus a link to the listing with 39 photos, click here

My comment: I have seen other tilted homes, but nothing as unique as this one!

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Excerpt: Inspector AJ, a certified professional home inspector in Tennessee, hilariously called out the builders selling a $500,000 house for all of the ridiculous and unsafe shortcut fixes they made around the home. This list includes lots of caulk around fixtures that are either broken or not even attached to the house at all, uneven flooring, loose railings, a garage opener that was installed but not attached, a dangerous support for a water heater, and loose electrical outlets.

If you get ready to drop half a million dollars on a brand new house you should probably get the outlets to not be loose. …you should also not use a wood pallet to support a water heater. The hose bib is not even attached to the house. It’s completely loose and we have a damaged window and instead of actually just replacing the trim, they just used caulk.

To see the 2-minute video of lots of strange things done to this home, click here

My comment: Hmmm… Lotsa crazy defects!

Excerpts: …Peters began working as a state-registered appraiser – an entry-level job – in 2016. She worked under the supervision of a certified appraiser to get the experience necessary to apply for her own residential appraiser certification…

In September 2019, Peters applied to become a Certified Residential appraiser. But in late July 2020, the Appraiser Certification Program moved to deny the license, according to a July 27 letter from Peters’ supervisor… The certification is denied when an applicant’s work samples don’t meet minimum compliance with national standards, according to the agency’s upgrade procedures.

To read more, click here

My comment: Interesting tale of getting a license. Having a parent as governor can help… maybe. Note: don’t be distracted by the “politics.”

Excerpt: #1 Pretty Joe Rock, FL

Price: $2.5 million

This island in the Florida Keys has been featured on HGTV. It’s apart from the mainland, yet close enough to civilization to have shore electricity and city water.

The wooded island measures 9,190 square feet and is one of 1,700 islands in the Florida Keys but one of only 34 offshore properties with a home. Covered deepwater dock. Two-bedroom house, but the listing indicates that you may want to build your own “dream home.”

For more photos, click on the 5 property addresses on the web page. To read more, click here

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Excerpt: 38427 S. Nobles Rd, Drummond Island, MI

Price: $239,000

Clark Island home: Accessible by bridge or boat, this island is located near the Canadian border on Lake Huron. The two-bedroom home is an ideal spot to watch the freight ships pass by. For boaters, there’s also a sturdy dock with room for a variety of watercraft.

For more photos, click on the link to the 9 properties on the web page To read more, click here.

My comments: Posted 8-20 but fun to check out. I live on a mostly developed island, about 1 mile by 6.5 miles, on San Francisco Bay (2 sides are on the bay, and two sides have small canals, “human-made,” to allow circumnavigating around the island. Three bridges and an underwater “tube” with an 80,000 population. 10 miles from San Francisco.

I had never lived on an island before. There is definitely an “island mentality” – raise the bridges and flood the tube if there are big problems nearby! Also, we hate to leave the island for shopping, doctors, sports, etc. I have been playing pickleball for 5 years. Very few of the local players ever leave the island to play in other cities.

In 1986, when I started my business, my goal was to only appraise in Alameda. Finally, I started appraising only here about 5 years. Not much driving!!

HOW TO USE THE NUMBERS BELOW. Appraisals are ordered after the loan application. These numbers tell you the future for the next few weeks. For more information on how they are compiled, go to www.mbaa.org

WASHINGTON, D.C. (September 29, 2021) – Mortgage applications decreased 1.1 percent from one week earlier, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending September 24, 2021.

The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, decreased 1.1 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Index decreased 1 percent compared with the previous week. The Refinance Index decreased 1 percent from the previous week and was 0.4 percent higher than the same week one year ago. The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index decreased 1 percent from one week earlier. The unadjusted Purchase Index decreased 2 percent compared with the previous week and was 12 percent lower than the same week one year ago.

“Increased optimism about the strength of the economy pushed Treasury yields higher following last week’s FOMC meeting. Mortgage rates in response rose across all loan types, with the benchmark 30-year fixed rate reaching its highest level since early July 2021,” said Joel Kan, MBA’s Associate Vice President of Economic and Industry Forecasting. “The increase in rates – mostly later in the week – led to a decrease in both purchase and refinance applications, with a prominent decline in government loan applications. Conventional loan applications increased, driven by a rise in conventional refinances. This was perhaps a sign that some borrowers reacted to higher rates and decided to refinance.”

Added Kan, “With home-price appreciation continuing to run hot, increasing more than 19 percent annually in July, applications for larger loan amounts continue to outpace lower-balance loans. The average loan size for a purchase application reached $410,000, its highest level since May 2021.”

The refinance share of mortgage activity increased to 66.4 percent of total applications from 66.2 percent the previous week. The adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) share of activity increased to 3.4 percent of total applications.

The FHA share of total applications decreased to 10.4 percent from 11.5 percent the week prior. The VA share of total applications decreased to 10.2 percent from 10.4 percent the week prior. The USDA share of total applications decreased to 0.4 percent from 0.5 percent the week prior.

The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($548,250 or less) increased to 3.10 percent from 3.03 percent, with points increasing to 0.34 from 0.30 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent loan-to-value ratio (LTV) loans. The effective rate increased from last week.

The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with jumbo loan balances (greater than $548,250) increased to 3.14 percent from 3.11 percent, with points increasing to 0.33 from 0.25 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans. The effective rate increased from last week.

The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages backed by the FHA increased to 3.09 percent from 3.07 percent, with points remaining unchanged at 0.25 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans. The effective rate increased from last week.

The average contract interest rate for 15-year fixed-rate mortgages increased to 2.43 percent from 2.34 percent, with points increasing to 0.29 from 0.24 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans. The effective rate increased from last week.

The average contract interest rate for 5/1 ARMs increased to 2.77 percent from 2.51 percent, with points increasing to 0.16 from 0.12 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans. The effective rate increased from last week.

The survey covers over 75 percent of all U.S. retail residential mortgage applications, and has been conducted weekly since 1990. Respondents include mortgage bankers, commercial banks and thrifts. Base period and value for all indexes is March 16, 1990=100.

Ann O’Rourke, MAI, SRA, MBA

Appraiser and Publisher Appraisal Today

1826 Clement Ave. Suite 203 Alameda, CA 94501

Phone 510-865-8041

Email  ann@appraisaltoday.com