Appraiser Humor

Newz: Appraiser Humor, Data Cancer In Comps,
AMC Panel “Requirements”

December 20, 2025

What’s in This Newsletter (In Order, Scroll Down)

• LIA ad: AMC Panel “Requirements”

• 12 Days of Appraiser Christmas

• Santa’s House returns to Zillow with new ‘Let Santa Know You Moved’ feature

• The Town Where Santa’s Sleigh Is a Surf Boat in Mooloolaba Australia

• You Are Not a Business Owner!

• Data Cancer In Your Comps

• Mortgage applications decreased 0.7 percent from one week earlier

 

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12 Days of Appraiser Christmas

NOTE on video: Click on image and it opens in Youtube.

Very funny!! 3.5 minute video

Here are two of the days: 8 mega mansions, 5 REOs

Many thanks to Gary F. Kristensen, SRA, ASA, AGA at A Quality Appraisals in Portland, Oregon.

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Santa’s House returns to Zillow with new ‘Let Santa Know You Moved’ feature

NOTE : To see Santa’s House Click on the image above

One of Zillow’s most visited off-market homes, Santa’s House is now worth $1.2 million, up more than 2% since last Christmas. Zillow first calculated a special Zestimate® for Santa’s one-of-a-kind property in 2016 by using comparable homes in remote locations and adding a Santa premium. The iconic acreage has nearly doubled in value since then, appreciating at the same pace as the national housing market.

To see the “listing” details plus many photos of Santa’s House and click around for some fun stuff (same link is on the image above) Click Here

To read more Zillow comments on Santa’s House, Click Here

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The Town Where Santa’s Sleigh Is a Surf Boat in Mooloolaba Australia

Excerpts: Some years, the water is so choppy, Santa arrives on beach in a soaking wet red suit.

It was a typical Christmas Eve at a beach in Australia—80 degrees in the early evening and not a cloud in the sky. The year was 1997 and families were busy at grills cooking sausages, while suntanned kids played cricket on the beach and surfed the waves.

Out of the blue, the sound of a bell tinkling interrupted the happy scene. The chiming started getting louder and louder and everyone began pointing up to a small red figure in the sky: It was Santa Claus.

To read and see more, Click Here

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A brief AMC history from 1967 to now – from 5% to over 80% of the appraisal market

In the November, 2024 issue of Appraisal Today

Give Yourself a Christmas Present and get a 2024 tax writeoff!

Order the newsletter by December 31, 2024!! at www.appraisaltoday.com/order

This article tells you about AMC history and can help you understand how they changed significantly over time. I wrote articles on AMCs in 1994 and 1999, which are also included.

I wrote my first article on AMCs in the December, 1994 issue. At that time,

after speaking with various lender and AMC personnel, I estimated a 5% market share . Now, it is about 80%.

AMC fees in 1998 as a percent of standard fee:

% of std fee % of orders

90-100% 51%

80-89% 19%

70-79% 15%

60-69% 6%

50-59% 5%

under 50% 4%

Source: Academic research project

Starting in 2020, Covid 19 had a very significant effect with mortgage

lending ups and downs in a very short period of time. You know what AMCs are like now that it is slow: shopping for the lowest fee. Not very long ago, they were paying very high fees when demand was strong. Maybe you will quit working for them or cut way back.

Remember what it was like when you worked for mortgage brokers? No fee hassles or scope creep. Of course there were the “comp checks” where you gave them a value first. I tried a few times, but was always way off. I only worked for a few mortgage brokers who had a Special List for lenders who wanted an accurate value.

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If you are a paid subscriber and did not receive the December 2024 issue emailed on Monday, December 2, 2024, please email info@appraisaltoday.com, and we will send it to you. You can also hit the reply button. Be sure to include a comment requesting it.

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You Are Not a Business Owner!

By Dustin Harris

Excerpts: Here’s the hard truth: If you’re unable to step away from your office for 30+ days, with almost no contact, and come back to find it still thriving, you don’t own a business—you own a job. Most appraisers think they are business owners simply because they’re self-employed. However, there’s a stark difference between being self-employed and actually running a business.

Owning a Job, Not a Business

For many appraisers, their business revolves around them. They’re the ones pounding out the reports, meeting clients, answering phone calls, and ensuring deadlines are met. And there’s nothing inherently wrong with that. It’s a noble profession and a necessary service. However, if your business can’t operate without you, you’ve simply built yourself a job.

5. Shift Your Mindset: The hardest part of this process is often internal. Letting go of the mindset that you need to be involved in every aspect of the work takes time and effort. Start by taking small breaks from the business and gradually extending them as your team becomes more self-sufficient.

To read more including 4 more tips, Click Here

My comments: Read the short article to see the other 4 ideas.

Fortunately I had an MBA before I started my appraisal business in 1986. I originally got it because I wanted to be a better appraiser. I never had any business or economics classes as I had a B.S. in Biology. My MBA gave me the knowledge and confidence for my appraisal business.

My first week in my appraisal business I decided that I was going to quit if I did all the clerical work. After one week I hired an office assistant. I have never worked alone since then. My assistant does what I don’t like to do.

To diversify, I started my monthly appraisal newsletter in June, 1992 and my free weekly newsletter in 1994. I have two employees who do what I don’t like to do. Many appraisal software companies, and other appraisal related companies, were started by appraisers.

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Droning On About Data Cancer In Your Comps

By Jonathan Miller

Excerpts:

• Appraisal Waivers Are No Free Lunch
• Data Cancer Is A Serious Problem
• Fannie Mae Is Going Rogue

What Is Data Cancer?

“Data Cancer” is created when Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac waive the appraisal inspection and a homebuyer pays a price that is above the current market or has an amenity defect that would result in a lower value than the price paid. That inflated sale becomes a “comp” forever and can impact the entire submarket.

Think of “Data Cancer” as a sale that is allowed to close without an unbiased party given a chance to carefully review the property and the local market. The sale closes and is relied on during future appraisal assignments in the market. The arrogance of the GSEs is such that they think they can model this with their software yet they can’t.

It appears that they are more interested in goosing up market activity to keep their mortgage pipelines full than protecting the consumer even while they are still in receivership. The GSEs firmly believe their software analytics can replace human beings walking through the property for it to be used as collateral for a mortgage they guaranty. I believe that there will be future litigation against real estate agents/brokers and mortgage brokers by consumers that over paid for their properties.

To read more comments and see excellent graphs read the full article Click Here.

My comments: To subscribe to Miller’s Housing Notes, Click Here.

I have subscribed for many years.

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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, Click Here.

Note: I publish a graph of this data every month in my paid monthly newsletter, Appraisal Today. For more information or get a FREE sample go to www.appraisaltoday.com/order Or call 510-865-8041, MTW, 7 AM to noon, Pacific time.

My comments: Rates are going up and down. We are all waiting for rates to drop in 2025.

Mortgage applications decreased 0.7 percent from one week earlier

WASHINGTON, D.C. (December 18, 2024) — Mortgage applications decreased 0.7 percent from one week earlier, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending December 13, 2024.

The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, decreased 0.7 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Index decreased 2 percent compared with the previous week. The Refinance Index decreased 3 percent from the previous week and was 41 percent higher than the same week one year ago. The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index increased 1 percent from one week earlier. The unadjusted Purchase Index decreased 2 percent compared with the previous week and was 6 percent higher than the same week one year ago.

“Mortgage rates increased last week, leading to overall mortgage application activity decreasing for the first time in five weeks,” said Joel Kan, MBA’s Vice President and Deputy Chief Economist. “Conventional and VA purchase applications drove this week’s increase in purchase activity on a weekly and annual basis. Buyers remained active in the purchase market, helped by gradually improving inventory conditions and a more positive outlook on the economy and job market. Refinance applications declined last week, largely driven by VA refinances that were down 17 percent after two weeks of gains.”

The refinance share of mortgage activity decreased to 46.7 percent of total applications from 46.8 percent the previous week. The adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) share of activity remained unchanged at 5.3 percent of total applications.

The FHA share of total applications increased to 17.6 percent from 16.5 percent the week prior. The VA share of total applications decreased to 15.3 percent from 16.3 percent the week prior. The USDA share of total applications increased to 0.5 percent from 0.4 percent the week prior.

The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($766,550 or less) increased to 6.75 percent from 6.67 percent, with points remaining unchanged at 0.66 (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 $766,550) increased to 6.86 percent from 6.79 percent, with points increasing to 0.61 from 0.50 (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 6.49 percent from 6.47 percent, with points decreasing to 0.79 from 0.91 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans.  The effective rate decreased from last week.

The average contract interest rate for 15-year fixed-rate mortgages increased to 6.15 percent from 6.12 percent, with points increasing to 0.71 from 0.66 (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 6.03 percent from 5.81 percent, with points increasing to 0.48 from 0.40 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans. The effective rate increased from last week.

Please Note:

MBA Offices will be closed beginning on Wednesday, December 25, 2024, and will reopen on Thursday, January 2, 2025. Due to the office closing and holidays, the results for weeks ending December 20, 2024, and December 27, 2024, will both be released on Thursday, January 2, 2025.

The survey covers U.S. closed-end residential mortgage applications originated through retail and consumer direct channels. The survey has been conducted weekly since 1990. Respondents include mortgage bankers, commercial banks, thrifts, and credit unions. Base period and value for all indexes is March 16, 1990=100.

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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

Online: www.appraisaltoday.com

By Ann O'Rourke on December 20, 2024   /   AMCs, data, humor, liability   /   Leave a comment

Tags: AMC, appraisal management company