Anyone Considering a Fee Increase?

[Rufus]

Just finished my C.E. classes yesterday and one thing Mark XXXXXXXX brought up was that any discussion of fees among appraisers is illegal. I don't recall what law he quoted, but his example was when another appraiser called him and said "I don't think we are charging enough for zzz", he replied, "This conversation is illegal." and hung up.

I'm a one man shop, president & janitor, so it hasn't come up, but is this something we need to consider on the forum?

 

[Couch Potato]

I'm trying to decide between a fee increase or switch to one of these.

 

[Farm Gal]

Just finished my C.E. classes yesterday and one thing Mark XXXXXXXX brought up was that any discussion of fees among appraisers is illegal. I don't recall what law he quoted, but his example was when another appraiser called him and said "I don't think we are charging enough for zzz", he replied, "This conversation is illegal." and hung up.

Horsepucky.

There is nothing racketeering about discussing the state of the union and cost of breathingm2:, and last I checked both cost more today than yesterday and will cost even more tomorrow. Since the state of the union is arguably going to pot, and the cost to fuel my breathing habit on a steady increase (food drink transportation & shelter) I see no problem with real time discussion of the COST OF RUNNING MY BUSINESS.

If you go about threatening to knee-cap your competition, to get them to raise/lower prices and get caught on tape, well you deserve the charges against you.

There is not a DAMN thing wrong with calling your competition and doing a survey to insure that YOU are operating YOUR BUSINESS in a reasonable and competitive manner.

:new_ukliam2:For Pete's sake, this insistent USPAP/Instructor led discussion of it's illegal to discuss fees is old, hairy and entirely incorrect already! If it wasn't don't cha think it would be in bold letters in USPAP:Eyecrazy:!?!?!?!

 

[Roy Courtney]

My understanding of all of this is that we can discuss fees all day long. It only becomes illegal when we join together and agree to SET a fee for a particular service. If I ask you to charge the same price as me then it would be illegal. If I told you what I charge for a particular appraisal it is NOT illegal. Our fees are NOT confidential! The AMC will gladly TELL you what YOUR fee is!

 

[Rufus]

:new_ukliam2:For Pete's sake, this insistent USPAP/Instructor led discussion of it's illegal to discuss fees is old, hairy and entirely incorrect already! If it wasn't don't cha think it would be in bold letters in USPAP:Eyecrazy:!?!?!?!

Well, I don't know, that was why I was asking. Thank you for your reply.

 

[Bama Bayou]

Just finished my C.E. classes yesterday and one thing Mark XXXXXXXX brought up was that any discussion of fees among appraisers is illegal. I don't recall what law he quoted, but his example was when another appraiser called him and said "I don't think we are charging enough for zzz", he replied, "This conversation is illegal." and hung up.

I'm a one man shop, president & janitor, so it hasn't come up, but is this something we need to consider on the forum?

Is Mr. XXXXXXXX a lawyer? It is not illegal to discuss fees according to my lawyer. We are not AT&T, Exxon, or CSX. The antitrust laws do not apply to appraisers. At least that is what I have been told by my lawyer, who made it from first grade to a master degree making all A's except one B. Also was a DA and federal magistrate. I'll take his word for it.

 

[Bama Bayou]

I raised my fees 25% about three months ago, even more for the difficult and/or high value properties.

 

[Couch Potato]

Is Mr. XXXXXXXXX a lawyer? It is not illegal to discuss fees according to my lawyer. We are not AT&T, Exxon, or CSX. The antitrust laws do not apply to appraisers. At least that is what I have been told by my lawyer, who made it from first grade to a master degree making all A's except one B. Also was a DA and federal magistrate. I'll take his word for it.

I would say you need a new lawyer.

 

[xmtpedprl]

I 'audited' the last three we received this afternoon, I got them all for $350.00. For the Chicago market that's about as good as it gets for conventional/non-complex 1004s.

I'll see how long our luck runs beginning next week.

I honestly think it's time to do this, inflation will kills us if we don't, but it has to be a somewhat uniform response from most of us so that when they clients in general) hear it they realize why. After all, we're working folks, we do deserve cost of living increases, no?

If they don't understand that, what they're *really* saying is that they don't care, that they are happy with throwing us under the bus, and that they're really only interested in taking advantage of hard working people when the time indicates it might be possible, but not because the value of the service has changed.

Dave...

 

[Ray Miller]

Horsepucky.

There is nothing racketeering about discussing the state of the union and cost of breathingm2:, and last I checked both cost more today than yesterday and will cost even more tomorrow. Since the state of the union is arguably going to pot, and the cost to fuel my breathing habit on a steady increase (food drink transportation & shelter) I see no problem with real time discussion of the COST OF RUNNING MY BUSINESS.

If you go about threatening to knee-cap your competition, to get them to raise/lower prices and get caught on tape, well you deserve the charges against you.

There is not a DAMN thing wrong with calling your competition and doing a survey to insure that YOU are operating YOUR BUSINESS in a reasonable and competitive manner.

:new_ukliam2:For Pete's sake, this insistent USPAP/Instructor led discussion of it's illegal to discuss fees is old, hairy and entirely incorrect already! If it wasn't don't cha think it would be in bold letters in USPAP:Eyecrazy:!?!?!?!

Got to agree with Lee Ann here. As I have stated may time somewhere in my files I have a letter from the United State AG on the very subject. I ask them when I started writing articles for the Farriers at www.horseshoes.com and other equine publications about farrier fee's and we were posting about it on the www.horseshoes.com forum. Some one said oh you can't talk about fees we will all end up in Jail. That is just a bunch of Bull. Don't think so, write your USAG.