Final argument to the jury: I have been doing this job for about 28 years having heard a lot of similar cases, and based on the testimony I have read in this post, let me restate the case the way I read the evidence:
ATC needed a loan for some reason. The usual reason is not having the necessary funds. Atc goes to the lender knowing full well what his property is worth. He knew that getting the appraisal high enough to get the necessary loan for his purposes was a long shot. But, he agreed to pay the lender for an appraisal to take a chance. Sure enough, Atc’s initial assumption was right, his property did not appraise for enough to make the deal float. So he resorts to pressuring the appraiser by questioning his work product using as leverage, as they all do, “either give me what I want or it's off to the state appraisal board. Even if I lose it will cost you dearly.” The appraisal was probably a few thousand dollars short, so the appraiser in self-defense (due to the weakness in our system-guilty to proven innocent) sends in a second appraisal to help poor old Atc out of his jam. The lender sees through the ploy because they know the property is not worth that much and suspect what is going on, so they order a field review at Atc’s expense. Sure enough, the review confirms the lender's suspicions and it’s back to square one. Atc now has incurred appraisal fees of approximately $800, which he does not have the money to pay. So what does he do? He attacks and destroys the appraiser.
Then he feels guilty, and what do people do when they feel guilty? They go looking for moral, or immoral, support by coming up to this site, trashing the appraiser, and saying in essence: “Please somebody tell me I was justified in breaching three contracts, one to the lender, one to the original appraiser, and one to the reviewer. Does he find a sympathetic ear? O’ yes! Plenty of them with a noose in their hands. Just page up and look at the suckers that fell for it hook, line, and sinker. Even to the extend of never giving the appraiser in question a chance to tell his side of the story and forming a lynch mob and posse to go get him Montana style and string him up!
Why is Austin hammering poor Atc? Because this case points out the weakness in our regulatory process. If Atc had taken this case based on his story to the state board and some of you guys were on that board and had read his letter, this appraiser could/would have been tied up for years defending himself against a state bureauracy with unlimited funds, legal council, and in essence be declared guilty until he could prove his innocence. This system is state tyranny on a grand scale based on economic inequality and the politics of personal destruction (mob rule).
What should we do about this system? In my opinion, each state should select about 50 appraisers with years of seasoned experience to serve as grand jury and appellate council. Every charge and every verdict issued by a state board must be screened by at least five members of this panel before and after the state boards act on it. If this system were in place 99% of the problems would be solved.
PS: There is another post on this same subject of “somebody did me wrong” by a woman from Texas. Read it if you have not already done so. What is the crux of her case? Same story. Over extended credit ($75,000 owed on credit card and no equity in her home and she admitted this), needed an equity loan, knew what her property was worth, the lender over appraises her property, she gets the loan on that basis knowing full well what she is doing, is about to lose her home, and whose fault is it? The lender for over appraising her home. What does she do? Comes to this site damning the lending industry for her problems looking for immoral support. Does she find any? O” yes! Just read that thread. Hang’um high Texas style! I say BS. I could convence some of you guys that the devil got a bum rap. Sin is all a big misunderstanding. Sin is just a device invented by the establishment to oppress us poor fools.
