Appraisal Management Employee Seeks Appraiser Advice...

[Shelby Shannon]

I work for an appraisal management company :twisted: I have been an area representative for about eight months now and I think I understand how difficult it is to deal with the pressures of this industry. Basically, AMC and appriasers are on the same side...the losing side. The people who have the power are the lending institutions(clients) because obviously they are the ones who have all the money. Everyday, I try to help appraisers deal with unusual situations and also have to keep both appraisers and clients happy. Most appraisers don't seem to understand this. It may seem silly for appraisers to have to give AMC an update for an order that was just discussed yesterday...but that's our job...we have to call appraisers everyday and everytime our clients call us. Through the course of the day I encounter many disgruntled appraisers who, when I call for an update or recruit for new vendors, they act as if it is something that has never happened before and proceed to go off on me. When I call appraisers to ask if they would consider doing work for us at our lower fees, they say and do everything short of tracking me down and killing me on the spot. Appraisers have the advantage now. There is a huge amount of work available....so I can understand why they wouldn't want to work for us. But my question is....why do so many appraisers feel the need to "punish" me for even daring to ask such a question? I've been told such things as "We won't tolerate such disgusting fees" or "I don't have time for you right now" or have been subject to language that is abusive, unprofessional and downright rude . Most appraisers should know how management companies work(all AMCs need fast/cheap/good reports and they needed them yesterday) so why do most of them waste their time telling me a story I've heard nine thousand times before? If they don't want to work for AMCs,then shouldn't work for AMCs. To save everybody's time...just say "No thank you". The industry is what it is...field reveiws are not fun, AMCs pay way less than lenders, we all know this. Why are you wasting eveyone's time by ranting to someone who is just doing their job? I have encountered so many appraisers who have treated me so unprofessionally. Is this anyway to do business? We all work for the clients. Is there anyone out there who can understand that we are all in this together?

 

[Pamela Crowley (Florida)]

Shelby,

I understand your frustration with the reaction you are getting.

But, next time, how about passing it along to your boss. Then the lender/client that uses your AMC. Or, just tell the lender/client to call the appraiser directly since that's what works best anyway.

I'm very sorry that you are the one getting the heat but, maybe you need to get out of the devils kitchen.

I'm not nasty when I get the rare AMC call. Their calls to me are a waste of my time and I will make it as brief as possible. I think of AMCs as bloodsuckers and treat them as such. I'm not surprised at the reactions you are getting and if you understand why appraisers feel that way, then why do you question the anger and frustration your call invokes?

 

[P.Johnson]

You must have been confused when sides were chosen. No appraiser is on the side of someone that cuts into our livelihood, and income (sometimes more than 30% of the fee) and contributes nearly nothing to the process. You and your kind have reduced the appraisal profession to a dying industry because of what you ask for: cheap and fast appraisals. An appraisal managment company is nothing more than a loan processor. You add no value to the process. The lender used to bear this cost as a simple cost of doing business, but has found a way to fund its expenses on our profession. PLEASE STAY OFF OUR SIDE!!!!!

 

[Tim Hicks (Texas)]

No thank you! That is my usual response. One less message to deliver that wasn't needed. You will find little sympathy on this forum. Maybe you don't understand the appraisal business. Everybody wants their appraisal yesterday. AMC's pay less, so why should they get primo service. We could all deliver appraisals quicker if we didn't have to answer "status calls". Plus, you want the appraisal is 2 days, but we have to wait 45-60 days for payment is ridiculous! Maybe, if AMC's answered to the same standards that they demanded, they would get more respect. Just my opinion.

 

[xmrdfghap]

Shelby, thank you for your letter, but you do realize you are in direct competition for the business in which we have studied and trained for for a long time, don't you? You are going to my customer, assuring him the same quality work from the same appraiser he has been using, then telling me about all the new business you will bring me.....how can I NOT be angry at you?

Further, you are asking an appraiser to reduce his fees simply for the privlidge of being called several times a day and the opportunity to wait 3 to 6 months for payment. When we go off on you, it is because it seems obvious that you have no understanding of the appraisal process or how we do our work. We do not sit in the office generating reports. When we are in the office, we do not need to be reminded by anyone that you are waiting on a report. When we are in the office, we are not playing solitare or spending the day in chat rooms. WE are working. When you work, do you like it when people interupt your thinking process just for them to find out if you are working?

If you want to be of assistance and meet the appraiser half way and develope a wholesome relationship, do this.....don't call us everytime someone calls you. Tell them is is being written and to hold their water. Your clients schedule is not really our concern....putting out a well researched paper is. It is not you who will be calling the E&O carrier if we fail in our responsibility.....don't ask us to short circuit the process.

When you have a report getting prepared, note on your order the estimated delivery time. When that time expires, give us a call. Most of us are willing to call you should there be a problem with the appraisal that will require a later delivery date. All you do, when you call us, is delay the delivery time. Time that we are answering the question we answered this morning or yesterday could be invested in getting productive work out. When your client calls and asks for a status, tell them the status is unchanged, and that delivery will be as promised as you have not been informed any different. Calling us will not change anything except delay us.

Recognize that the appraiser has a life. Do not insist that he make an appointment in the evening or on a weekend...we usually do not mind working extended hours, but you should not expect it...we have kids and ball games and spouses and lifes....we do spend time with them as well.

As far as cutting fees, why should we? Are you offering to carry any of our expenses? do you handle our E&O? Do you pay us more if we get cont ed? What do you do for us that will encourage us to cut fees?

I have an idea.......lets assume you are making $20.00 per hour. Because your job depends on our getting our job done, suppose you pay us 30% of your gross income (before taxes) so we put your deal ahead of any other deal. That would be $6.00 per hour.....you can get hourly updates if you wish for that....I can set my computer to call your fax and send you the same form every time (that is what your phone calls are to us). Or, if as is more likely you are making about $9.00 per hour, send us the $2.70 per hour, you pay taxes on the full $9.00 and take home about $5.00....after all, we are on the same side on this aren't we?

Also, we need your home phone and your cell phone numbers for those times when we are slow and we can call you anytime we are concerned about running out of work. Would you enjoy a phone call from me at 7:30 some evening asking if you had anything for me to do and when will the last one close so I can get paid? Those are fun when you are trying to coach a little league team. Or maybe Saturday afternoon after you just sat down for a barbeque with your friends......that is a good time to check up on the status, isn't it....after all, we are on the same side on this aren't we?

So, do not expect us to be treated like we are incompetent idiots and then expect us to not go off on you when you are the fifth person that morning to check on the status of a report we faxed to your office three days ago.

 

[Travis McGee]

I think I understand what you are saying. I feel like communication between the client and the appraiser are very important, even if the client is a go between like an AMC. BUT there are AMC and then AMC. My AMC clients provide a service to me, one of which is a way to easily communicate. I do it by E-mail every day. I also know who to call if I need to But I dont like the calls left on the answering machine that I have to return, nor the calls when I am in the middle of a tough analysis that I need to concentrate on. AMC's need to treat appraisers like people too. :idea:

 

[Elliott]

Shelby,
Do you not know what an AMC is? An AMC gets
clients by promising them a low fee, quick turn,
and probably that every deal will work. So then
they go to appraisers and try to get a contract....
well it turns out that doesn't always work out....
or the assignment is in Sticksville and Joe Appraiser
only does two assignments a year for them.

I have never spent one moment more time on
the phone then to say my fee and turn time. I've
never argued with an AMC. It is more common for
the AMC to insult me about my fee or hang up without
even a polite good bye.

I have to admit that some AMCs who have experience
know they have to treat appraisers with common respect.
Until Congress passes a law setting appraisal fees,
I can set whatever fee I want to work for.
We all know every community has
a low fee, number hitter....why don't AMCs make a list of
them and exchange their names?? Oh that's right, you
have to get a field review on those appraisers.

I don't do reviews cause the pay is too low and there is
too strong an expectation to approve the number hitter.

The appraisal business is like any business, you have to
provide good service and charge a fair and reasonable fee to
stay in business, otherwise your adopting a business
model which is headed for failure.

elliott

 

[jim farrelly]

ease off on shelby. shelby's just the messenger and that's the point of the entire post. if u dont like AMC's and their policy's, dont accept assignments from them. if u accept assigments, then be gentle on the shelby's of the world, they are just doing their job.

 

[Dean House]

Well said Jim Farrelly. you know, i read this forum everyday, but im getting to the point where all the negative responses just turn me off. Shelby is not the inventor or the brainchild of the AMC, he just works there. He is just expressing his opinion. You know, we all have one, we are all entitled to share them.
Sure, the business is changing, sure its not what it once was, or could be. Sitting around blaming management companies is not going to solve anything.
I admire Shelby's post and what he's trying to say. I am disgusted at almost all of the responses.

 

[Tim Hicks (Texas)]

Shelby's post is no different than any of the responses. Read it again. Ranting and raving and generalizing about all appraisers. Not all appraisers respond the way it is implied. I never do when called. I am sorry, but I have yet to see an AMC that improved any part of the lending process. If you depend on them that is fine, but the boundaries that they set seem to have done nothing but reduce our profession to a lower standard from my view point. I don't need to call anyof my clients and give them daily status reports. I have due dates on most of appraisal assignments and I seem to get them delivered on time without daily announcements. Also, I don't have any clients that take over 30 days to pay. If they do, it is usually an oversight. The AMC's I have dealt with have two concepts. Demand, demand, demand. and Delay payment, delay payment, delay payment. If Shelby wants to make a ranting post, Shelby needs to be ready for rebuttals. By the way, Dean, counldn't your post be considered a negative response. I don't agree with all the above posts, but they are entitled to their opinion, just like Shelby.