Appraisal News and Business Tips

Mortgage applications

4-19-18 Newz//Corelogic acquires a la mode, USPAP Q&A problems, Earth-Friendly Homes

By on April 19, 2018   /   Appraisal Standards Board, lender appraisals, Mortgage applications, mortgage loan volume, Strange homes, unusual home, USPAP, weird homes   /   Leave a comment
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Earth-Friendly Homes and Buildings for Earth Day, Sunday, April 22

Just For Fun!!

Click on the fotos of lots of ecofriendly buildings for more info. Fascinating, sometimes Weird, and Fun!!

A few: Mathematical Puzzle House, paper house, skyscrapers, Recycled Concrete Tube House, etc.

http://www.ecofriendlyhouses.net/ecofriendlyhouses.html

Appraisal Institute Requests Appraisal Standards Board to Rework Q&As

Excerpts: The Appraisal Institute in an April 13 letter to the Appraisal Standards Board formally requested changes to or the retraction of Q&A 2018-12, Employing an Extraordinary Assumption when a Client Provides Inspection Data and Q&A 2018-13, Appraisal Reporting – Certifications and Signatures.

The Appraisal Institute believes this advice is antiquated and out-of-step with appraisal practice and long-standing USPAP principles about not dictating the form, format or style of an appraisal report. Perhaps most concerning to AI is the apparent inclusion of additional requirements in this advice rather than in USPAP itself.

My comment: I completely agree with the AI’s issues with Q&A 2018-12 and -13. The certification issue has been around since USPAP required that the “previous 3 years” be included in the certification. The ASB needs to modify USPAP itself as I don’t think it addresses these current issues in appraising very well. Unfortunately, the new edition was effective 1/1/18. 2 years to wait.

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4-12-18 Newz//What’s a Comp?, Multiple offers way over list, Rotating House

By on April 12, 2018   /   adjustments, AMCs, Appraisal Foundation, appraisal how to, Appraisal Qualifications Board, Fannie, fees, forecast, lender appraisals, listings, Mortgage applications, real estate market, Strange homes, unusual home, unusual homes, weird homes   /   Leave a comment
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Advertise with us. Very reasonable rates!

What’s a comp?

 
By George Dell, MAI, SRA

Excerpts: Our education tells us a comp is similar and competitive. So how do we measure “comparability”? If our job entails studying market data to get an answer … might it be important to know exactly how to describe a comp?

So what’s the issue? Why should we care? I am a highly trained expert. I have a license. “Trust me. I know a good comp when I see one.”

My comments: George is writing a longer article than his blog posts for the May issue of the paid Appraisal Today. I often wish his blog posts were longer, but they are designed to be short ;>

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4-5-18 Newz//Weird home interiors, Reduced AQB requirements and state regulators, Data analytical tools

By on April 5, 2018   /   adjustments, Appraisal Foundation, Appraisal Qualifications Board, appraisal waivers, appraiser shortage, data, evaluations, lender appraisals, Mortgage applications, mortgage loan volume, new appraisers, real estate market, rental market, state appraiser regulators, Strange homes, trainees, unusual home, weird homes   /   Leave a comment
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The rage of Airbnb rentals (and stuff to keep in mind about value)

By Ryan Lundquist

Excerpts: The owner has a cash cow. Her second unit is bringing in $3,300 per month as an Airbnb rental, and it’s paying her mortgage. Since these types of rentals are all the rage right now, let’s talk about some important details to keep in mind from a value perspective. This isn’t meant to be exhaustive, but I wanted to share some things on my mind. I’d love to hear your take in the comments.

Topics:
1) Airbnb rent vs. market rent
2) Lenders and market rent
3) Investors & seller expectations
4) The fine print and a 12% tax

Click here to read the details, plus the appraiser comments:

My comment: This stuff gives me a headache ;> These seem to be everywhere now, especially room rentals. The Local Politics can be a mess. I look at the income as a business. Very different than renting by the month or year (at much lower daily rates), unless it is in a popular vacation rental market.

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2-15-18 Newz//Fannie Appraiser Webinar, Magical Appraiser Wand, Refis Dropping

By on February 15, 2018   /   adjustments, appraisal how to, appraisal waivers, evaluations, Fannie, Mortgage applications, mortgage loan volume, rental market, unusual homes   /   Leave a comment
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The Magical Appraiser Wand

By George Dell
 
Excerpt: Can you just give me some magical software which will calculate my adjustments?

I get asked questions like this often. Can you just show me how to do a graph a client wants? Can you just give me your class stuff so I don’t have to come all that way? So often, the question degrades into something like “Why does the regression software give stupid answers?” I pushed the magic button!

People do not like the answer. You’re paid to do an analysis, not wave a magic wand, or push a magical appraisal button. We have another name for that, it’s called an AVM.   In addition to a point value prediction, AVMs can be tested for reliability. This is called the FSD (Forecast Standard Deviation). The AVM. It gets results. It’s fast. It’s cheap. And it provides a measure of reliability – the FSD.

Why would a client want something slower and more expensive with no measure of reliability? Why hire a pesky appraiser?

Click here for the answer!!

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1/24/18 News//New USPAP Q&A-Hybrids .Dying Appraisal Profession? .Cat Urine & Big Data

By on January 25, 2018   /   appraisal business, Appraisal fees, appraisal management company, Appraisal Standards Board, appraisal waivers, bpos, desktop appraisals, evaluations, Mortgage applications, mortgage loan volume, square footage, USPAP   /   Leave a comment
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Is the Appraisal Profession Dying?

By George Dell
Excerpts: Yes. Appraisal as we know it is dying.
Can it be saved?  No.
So what should I do?  What should “we” do?

To answer these questions, we need to look at causes and conditions. Some of these are obvious.
– Judgment is good; Analysis is better.
– Human generalization is excellent; Computation is fast…

So what can we do? If we cannot be saved. If computers are faster. If we have complete data. If we too have software.  If we too can provide results instead of opinions…  Leads to an obvious question: Can an experienced appraiser do these things as well as, or better than those others?

Worth reading at:

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1-18-18 Newz//Hybrid Appraisal Rejected, Scope Creeping, UsPaP False Assumptions

By on January 18, 2018   /   AMCs, appraisal business, Appraisal fees, appraisal how to, appraisal management company, hybrid appraisals, Mortgage applications, mortgage loan volume, USPAP   /   Leave a comment
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Scope Creep – Head’em Off at the Pass!

By George Dell
Excerpt: Why do we have scope creep?
Possible answers include:
– The reviewer or clerk has to justify their existence;
– There is genuine concern about something;
– The work should’ve been there in the first place;

It’s important to remember that our entire system of appraisal production and review is belief-based.  It must be “worthy of belief.”  We have no objective standards.  Your work must be subjectively “credible” in the mind of the reader.

Read this short, interesting blog post at:

My comment: George Dell writes regularly for Appraisal Today. His articles are much longer than his blog posts, often expanding on a blog post.

UsPaP – A few of the more obvious false assumptions

By Barry Bates

Excerpt from blog post

The appraisal client is always the intended user.

A lovely concept out in the ether somewhere, but hardly ever the case in practice. The client (who engages the appraiser) is a lending technician or AMC drone; the intended user is an underwriter, servicer or portfolio manager. (This assumes the fact that only about 10% of appraisals are ever done for anybody other than a mortgage company.)

To read the full post, click here

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1-4-17// Newz .National MLS Database?, No college degree?, .AMCs in trouble?

By on January 4, 2018   /   AMCs, appraisal business, Appraisal Qualifications Board, CU, data, Fannie, Mortgage applications, new appraisers, real estate market, unusual home   /   Leave a comment
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A National MLS Database?

Excerpt: Instead of considering the consolidation of the governance and management structures of the MLS, thereby providing coast-to-coast cooperation among brokers, we should instead focus on MLS data and technology infrastructure, and support the movement toward a national database system.

This would create a vast information network available to application developers who, until now, couldn’t offer tools to agents and brokers without expensive and time-consuming customization for every individual MLS.

My comment: The author is vice president of Business Development for Realtors Property Resource® (RPR®), created by NAR. More info at www.narrpr.com . Very interesting and worth reading. Poor real estate data has been a problem forever. Non-standardized MLS data is a nightmare for appraisers. This database would be accessible to appraisers, CU, and AVMs I assume. Of course, we all know how accurate MLS data is…

No bath tubs?

Excerpts: For years, the common wisdom among both brokers and designers was that every home needed a tub. But changing lifestyles and the demand for more space are now driving some homeowners to swap out their tubs for chic, high-end showers.

There is no definitive data on whether ripping out a tub could harm resale value – or any way to quantify how many people are doing that – said Jonathan J. Miller, president of the appraisal firm Miller Samuel. But “for a young family, not having a tub is an issue,” he added, “so the risk of impacting the value rises as the apartment size rises.”

My comment: Just something to think about… I often see bath tubs that are seldom used. But rarely see a home with no tub.

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11-16-17 Newz//:Value Of Additional Bedrooms, 13 Animal-Shaped Homes, Timber Towers

By on November 16, 2017   /   adjustments, appraisal business, appraisal how to, bad appraisers, Mortgage applications, mortgage loan volume, statistics, unusual home, weird homes, weird properties   /   Leave a comment
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Architectural menagerie

13 animal-shaped buildings

Just For Fun!!
Excerpt: Novelty architecture can take on many fantastical forms – think municipal water towers done up like peaches and soft serve-shaped ice cream stands – but animal-shaped buildings are in a league of their own.

Often built as roadside attractions meant to lure motorists off the highway, these completely functional structures serve a greater purpose than just kitschy ornamentation. Some are truly mimetic – that is, the building is representative of its original purpose be it a poultry shop, seafood restaurant or woolen clothing boutique. Others are more symbolic, which is probably a good thing.

Here are a few:
– Big Sheep Wool Gallery – New Zealand
– Turtle Building – Niagara Falls
– Crocodile Hotel – Australia

Good fotos and write-ups at:

Why Timber Towers Are On the Rise in France

Excerpt: Spurred by concerns over climate change and the negative impacts of concrete manufacturing, architects and developers in France are increasingly turning to wood for their office towers and apartment complexes.

Concrete was praised through much of the 20th century for its flexibility, functionality, and relative affordability. In France, the material ushered in an era of bold modernist architecture including housing by Auguste Perret and Le Corbusier. Today, however, wood is lauded for its smaller environmental footprint and the speed with which buildings can be assembled.

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11-2-17 Newz .Crazy Appraiser Stories, AirBnB and Value, 31 abandoned places

By on November 2, 2017   /   adjustments, appraisal business, appraisal how to, Mortgage applications, Strange homes, weird homes, weird properties   /   Leave a comment
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Crazy Appraiser Stories

Excerpt: I had a house where the 1st floor den was connected to the basement via spiral staircase. Wife did not want the appraiser to go down the spiral steps and said she would “show” room from the basement. Telephone rang, appraiser proceeded to the basement, opened the door and the room was full of whips, chains, and other erotica ala “50 Shades of Grey.” I said we would just call it a rec. room and shoot from the best angle to disguise the “toys”.
-Sharon Finnerty Cremen

My comment: I have heard this story a few times but never encountered it… Lots of other weirdness though, such as seeing the sky through a big hole in the ceiling, falling down backwards into a partially covered pond and destroying my camera, etc. Check out the Cat Photo and make up your own Cat Comments!! Here is mine: Those appraisers need to take more naps and Get A Life. I guess they do have a sense of humor occasionally though ;>

Check out the other stories and add your own to  the 26+ comments at:

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