Another "paired" appraisal allegation, Seattle

[TerryRohrer]

I think it's like most things in life....
The more years of experience....
The more your years of experience makes kicks in....

I remember arguing with my dad when I he was teaching me to drive....
I remember arguing with my dad with his advice after my 1st child was born....
I remember arguing with my dad about my choices for employment....
I remember arguing with my dad about buying a large house with a huge mortgage payment....

Looking back I wish I had listened instead of arguing with someone who has already gone through what I was about to go through....

Oh, I thought the takeaway was that you like to argue!

 

[TerryRohrer]

If you watch the video included within the article posted, they say they put in a new kitchen. But the sink integrated with a portion of the countertop is clearly from the 1950s. The countertop appears to be a very non-standard 3/4" thick material. The base cabinets appear to be made from used materials. Hard to tell, but it doesn't look like the windows have been trimmed out yet. All appears to be homeowner-class workmanship. And the house across the street clearly has new, modern, professionally installed kitchen, counters, and appliances.

 

[ucbruin]

Oh, I thought the takeaway was that you like to argue!

You are correct sir....
I do enjoy a good debate/discussion/conversation/ argument/etc....

 

[George Hatch]

This is what the current listings in Zillow look like for homes built prior to 1930 in this area. Some of these homes are too large make the cut for the size range appropriate for a 3bd/1ba home of 1350sf:



Here's a screenshot of the closed sales from the last 12 months in a 1/2 mile radius - again, some of these properties are far larger than the subject and a few of the more similar sized homes are major remodels that an appraiser working in good faith would never attempt to pass off as a direct comparable:

 

[TerryRohrer]

As far as the current training scheme, or any potential new programs, none will serve any purpose if the status quo continues and clearly incompetent appraisers, form fillers, and rubber stampers continue to corner a large share of the appraisal volume in the residential mortgage realm. There are no systematic efforts to punish those, and there is an inherent bias toward rewarding them as incompetent work is more readily completed quickly. Who is going to argue with the preferred answer provided fast? No one of any import is yet making any effort to reward competence. If you have to get better or get out, it really doesn't matter a damn bit how you were trained. You will get better or get out. There are enough resources available for free, or for little, for anyone serious about becoming a competent, ethical appraiser to train themselves.

 

[George Hatch]

If you watch the video included within the article posted, they say they put in a new kitchen. But the sink integrated with a portion of the countertop is clearly from the 1950s. The countertop appears to be a very non-standard 3/4" thick material. The base cabinets appear to be made from used materials. Hard to tell, but it doesn't look like the windows have been trimmed out yet. All appears to be homeowner-class workmanship. And the house across the street clearly has new, modern, professionally installed kitchen, counters, and appliances.

That home across the street also has a fully built out basement and a usable alley access to the rear with a driveway - which the subject property does not have. Nor is there enough side setback on the subject lot to add offstreet parking.

And while we're at it the subject's exterior paint and roof don't look like they're in great shape, either.

 

[TerryRohrer]

I had not taken seriously the idea that appraisers were ethnically biased in coming to value conclusions, as in each and every instance, in every neighborhood, I have done the research to let the numbers bring me to the value. Square footage, condition, views, upgrade quality and quantity, time on market, etc.... until a year or so ago when I did an appraisal on a somewhat unusual property. It was on a large suburban parcel, started with a 3200 sf 2-story house... then 2 more SFRs were recently built on the lot, all occupied by the same family, all creating a family compound. After I did the measurements and photos, the owner pulled me aside to thank me for being professional and courteous to her, which I thought was a bit unusual. Then she told me that the LAST appraiser who had come through with his side kick, sat down on her couch and said to her that it looked like she was "N**g*r Rich"! Honestly, I was shocked; still can't get that episode out of my head. It hurt my heart to hear that, and reflect on how uneven/unfair life is for some of us, how we may be misjudged or treated like "less than" by another person due to our color, religion, or any other irrelevant-to-value fact. That incident should never have happened, and makes me think how unprofessional and rude that appraiser was. We earn our living giving unbiased value opinions to our clients. Thank goodness we even HAVE clients and borrowers that require our expertise in order to move forward with their financial goals. I truly hope that was an aberration, but it was a terrible reflection on our profession and the trust consumers place in us.

While it is inconceivable to me why any appraiser with a brain would make such a statement, this anecdote can not be a meaningful indictment of the entire appraisal profession or even a significant portion of it. Beyond the fact that we know that people make things up, even if you assume it actually did occur, I really doubt that a significant percentage of practicing appraisers would voice that idea even if they had thought it.

What race was the borrower you spoke with? What race was the appraiser she was quoting? I personally don't think that matters and it doesn't make it right regardless, but there is clearly a belief by some that such statements are acceptable when Black folks are talking to or about Black folks. Outside that narrow circumstance, anyone using that term while appraising is simply to stupid to help!

 

[TerryRohrer]

That home across the street also has a fully built out basement and a usable alley access to the rear with a driveway - which the subject property does not have. Nor is there enough side setback on the subject lot to add offstreet parking.

And while we're at it the subject's exterior paint and roof don't look like they're in great shape, either.

Agreed. Just the first photo of each from the curb lends the first clear questions about condition and effective age differences.

 

[Elliott]

I would assume this will become a PAVE case study. Will the lesson be when an appraiser is in a house, they should not form a conclusion of comparable selection based on interior furnishings and decor which would indicate race or the skin color of the person(s) in the house? Or, will the lesson be that comparable selection should be based on higher priced comparables which would reflect white neighborhoods? Or will it be that comparables that have a black influence should not be considered (How is the appraiser suppose to figure that out?). Or, will it be the solution is to only have a similar, minority appraiser do the appraisal? Or, leave it to an AVM to figure it out?

 

[George Hatch]

As far as I can tell, the complainants bought a 100yr old starter home that has some worn-but-serviceable interior and exterior finishes. From the listing activity and street views the condition at the time of the 2018 sale fit right in with the majority of the homes in the immediate neighborhood - perfectly acceptable in the market. They've done some refurbish but not enough to elevate the property to a C3 condition rating, much less a C2. So the most similar properties will be other 100yr old properties in this size range with a C4 condition. That's the starting point for a sales comparison, not some collection of C2/C3 properties that can be mechanically adjusted to indicate to a higher value.

Telling the truth is easy. What's "I will work hard to give you a good value" is telling a lie so well that it plausibly resembles the truth.


And BTW, when was the last time anyone here spent 90 minutes on an inspection of a 1350sf home as was attributed to the 2nd appraiser? Never have I ever. If that's true then under what circumstances would you suppose that appraiser was operating?