Appraisal Articles

This is the passage in question and here’s my interpretation of what this is saying.

Use of Supervisory Appraisers

Selling Guide, Part XI, Section 101.03: Use of Supervisory or Review Appraisers

Fannie Mae defines the appraiser as the individual who personally inspected the property being appraised, inspected the exterior of the comparables, performed the analysis, and prepared and signed the appraisal report as the appraiser. Fannie Mae allows an unlicensed or uncertified appraiser who works as an employee or subcontractor of a licensed or certified appraiser to perform a significant amount of the appraisal (or the entire appraisal if he or she is qualified to do so)—as long as the appraisal report is signed by a licensed or certified supervisory or review appraiser and is acceptable under state law. This policy is updated to now require that if a supervisory appraiser signs the appraisal report as the appraiser, the supervisory appraiser must have performed the inspection of the subject property.

Many appraisers with trainees are concerned that this might be interpreted to mean we have to go and physically inspect every property for FNMA, that a trainee would be the appraiser on. My interpretation is that if you are signing the report as the appraiser, you sign on the left, and of course you would have to have seen the property. But if you are the supervisory appraiser, you are not signing as the appraiser. You would be signing as the ‘supervisory appraiser’ and signing on the right, and therefore checking ‘did not see’ is appropriate and still acceptable.

Any thoughts?

Everyone keeps asking me what I think of the new rule changes that are coming out April and May 1st, 2009 … My only answer is new year, new rules…

Can You Believe It?

Even if you have been in the appraisal business only a year, you soon know that the rules change all the time. You have to belong to several appraisal groups and RSS feeds just to stay in touch with all the changes taking place in our profession. Are they good changes? I am trying to stay positive here, but I will give you a brief opinion on what I think will happen over the next few months.

As for the 1004MC, I think FNMA pulled this one out of their, well let’s just say dustbin here to be nice. This is not a new form, this is an old form. This is the proverbial band aid to fix what they think is the problem. The real problem is too few of the people who just chose to use this form as the grand panacea, are not real full time appraisers who have to actually fill out and use it. They did build in a nice scapegoat in the instructions for the form, which is to say if the information is not available, just say so. And that will be my answer... that until MLS provides a system that appraisers actually can use to do 1-3, 4-6, 7-9, and 10-12 month active searches, then my answer will be N/A.

As for the HVCC, I think at least here in NC, there are more changes a foot that will help determine how at least NC will deal with the HVCC. For instance even the NCAB has put out an article in hopes to explain that lenders do not have to use an AMC. But too bad this information is not being sent out to the mortgage people and lenders though, who daily jump on board with AMCs in some desperate attempt to be compliant in time.

So my real answer is only time will tell, and since we have to play by the rules, we better get good at it quick...