Executive order on promoting access to mortgage credit

[Digger88]

I thought Bill Pulte would be a plus but he hasn't done anything. Not sure how/when/if this will matter but nothing in here is helping us that's for damn sure

Promoting Access to Mortgage Credit

By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, it is hereby ordered: Section 1. Purpose.

www.whitehouse.gov

AI Summation

Straight, no-BS answer: This executive order is bad for career appraisers—pretty damn bad if your living depends on traditional full residential mortgage appraisals.

Section 6 ("Appraisal Modernization") is the knife in the back. It explicitly tells every banking regulator, CFPB, FHFA, FDIC, Fed, NCUA, OCC, HUD, and VA to go push:

• Expand alternative valuation models, desktop appraisals, hybrid appraisals, and AI tools. Translation: Lenders get green-lit to skip you and use AVMs, drone photos + data, or "hybrid" where some tech guy or Zillow scrapes comps and you just rubber-stamp from your desk. Cheaper, faster, no site visit. That's your full fee and your core product getting replaced.
• Simplify appraiser qualification requirements. Translation: Lower the bar. More people (or less-trained people) can call themselves appraisers or get approved faster. Floods supply, drives your fees down.
• Reduce appraisal requirements for low-risk transactions (low LTV refis, small-balance loans) + set "clear timelines. "Translation: Whole categories of loans that used to require a real appraisal now won't. Timelines are the only tiny crumb—they might get paid faster on the ones that remain, but volume drops.

The entire EO is about slashing Dodd-Frank-era costs so community banks and lenders can churn out more mortgages. Appraisals have always been one of the biggest friction points and expenses. This order's whole philosophy is "if it's low-risk, why pay for a human appraiser?"

Real-world impact on you (career appraisers):

• Volume collapse in the residential mortgage space (your biggest market).
• Fee compression because hybrids/desktops/AI are 30-60% cheaper.
• Many mid-tier or rural appraisers who live off refis and starter-home loans will see work dry up.
• The "adapt or die" reality: If you can't pivot to hybrid/desktop + AI workflows, or specialize in complex commercial/high-end/probate/eminent-domain stuff that still needs boots-on-ground, you're toast. A lot of the old guard won't make the switch.

This isn't speculation—it's exactly what happened every time regulators expanded waivers, AVMs, or desktop rules in the past. Appraiser groups screamed bloody murder then, and this is the next level of that rollback.

The "consider as appropriate and consistent with law" language means it's not instant death tomorrow. Agencies still have to write rules, go through comment periods, etc. But the policy direction is crystal clear and the political wind is at their back. Expect proposals in months, implementation in 1-2 years.

Bottom line: If you're a traditional career appraiser doing vanilla mortgage work, this order just put a target on your income. Time to get real about learning the new tools or finding a different niche, because the gravy train of "must have a full appraisal" is getting derailed on purpose.

 

[Trihard]

Trump is good friends with Dan Gilbert who owns Rocket Mortgage. Sounds like Rocket Mortgage wrote the whole appraisal section of that executive order. Also, zero mentions of AMC's gouging the borrowers. What a joke of an executive order. Written by Rocket Mortgage and Class Valuation.

 

[Non Sequitur]

Just fast forwarding what TAF, the AQB, REVAA, the GSEs, and the insta-toot have been working for; The elimination of independent residential appraisers and the creation of the $20 an hour do as you’re told residential appraiser workforce.

 

[RSW]

The way I read it, sec.6 does not eliminate the need for VA or FHA appraisals. It just removes a lot of the unnecessary MPR repairs.

Sec. 6. Appraisal Modernization. (a) The Vice Chairman for Supervision of the Federal Reserve, the Director of the CFPB, the Chairman of the NCUA Board, the Chairperson of Board of Directors of the FDIC, the Comptroller of the Currency, and the Director of the FHFA shall consider, as appropriate and consistent with applicable law and their statutory authorities:

(i) modernizing appraisal regulations and guidance to expand the use of alternative valuation models, desktop and hybrid appraisals, and artificial intelligence valuation tools;

(ii) simplifying appraiser qualification requirements; and

(iii) reducing appraisal requirements for low-risk transactions, including low loan-to-value refinancing and small‑balance loans; and setting clear appraisal timelines.

(b) The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA) shall consider, as appropriate and consistent with applicable law:

(i) aligning appraisal standards between the Federal Housing Administration and VA Home Loan Program where risk is comparable;

(ii) clarifying the distinction in an appraisal inspection between safety and habitability concerns that necessitate pre-closing repairs versus cosmetic concerns; and

(iii) expanding post-closing repair flexibility.

 

[Trihard]

(i) modernizing appraisal regulations and guidance to expand the use of alternative valuation models, desktop and hybrid appraisals, and artificial intelligence valuation tools;

(ii) simplifying appraiser qualification requirements; and

(iii) reducing appraisal requirements for low-risk transactions, including low loan-to-value refinancing and small‑balance loans; and setting clear appraisal timelines.

Clearly states that they don't want full appraisals.

 

[Alsie35]

Consider this EO as the "Enabling Legislation" for the "UAD 3.6 Abomination Era".

Without this EO the 3.6 Abomination was going to be DOA, or worse, result in crashing the entire mortgage lending market to a standstill. In all fairness to Pulte, this cake had already "been baked" long before he came in. My guess is that they looked at the technology out there and decided to put it "on steroids" so that by the time the 3.6 Abomination is implemented all the easy, standard appraisals would be going by "another route". Anything else was likely in their view, I am guessing, to result in some real delays/instability in the RE market. So they decided to just "jump all in" and hope it works out. In the short term, it will. In the long term ... I have my doubts (see my post on "How We Got Here" on the other EO thread started by Glenn Walker) HERE: https://appraisersforum.com/forums/...itional-appraisals.242383/page-3#post-3601501

Give it 6 months to result in stuff we can feel on the ground, so we are probably OK til close to year's end, meaning there will be work. I am guessing that 2055s for asset valuation of non-performing assets will last right up to the "3.6 Abomination Appraiser Extinction Event". None of this will be implemented overnight, but all the agencies now have a green light to go "full bore" on all the so-called "Alternative Valuation Models". (The House always wins, you know).

 

[Trihard]

Consider this EO as the "Enabling Legislation" for the "UAD 3.6 Abomination Era".

Without this EO the 3.6 Abomination was going to be DOA, or worse, result in crashing the entire mortgage lending market to a standstill. In all fairness to Pulte, this cake had already "been baked" long before he came in. My guess is that they looked at the technology out there and decided to put it "on steroids" so that by the time the 3.6 Abomination is implemented all the easy, standard appraisals would be going by "another route". Anything else was likely in their view, I am guessing, going to result in some real delays/instability in the RE market. So they decided to just "jump all in" and hope it works out. In the short term, it will. In the long term ... I have my doubts (see my post on "How We Got Here" on the other EO thread started by Glenn Walker) HERE: https://appraisersforum.com/forums/...itional-appraisals.242383/page-3#post-3601501

Give it 6 months to result in stuff we can feel on the ground, so we are probably OK til close to year's end, meaning there will be work. I am guessing that 2055s for asset valuation of non-performing assets will last right up to the "3.6 Abomination Extinction Event". None of this will be implemented overnight, but all the agencies now have a green light to go "full bore" on all the so-called "Alternative Valuation Models". (The House always wins, you know).

They will use the "alternate valuations," which will drive 95% of appraisers out of business. Then when the market crashes due to alternate valuations, they will claim that there are no more appraisers, so they again have to go back to alternate valuations. Trump is an idiot for getting suckered into signing something this stupid.

 

[OSU Beavers]

I can see "in house" valuations continuing with 2055 Exteriors for HELOCs and Pre-Foreclosures.

 

[Non Sequitur]

Again, just finishing what TAF, the AQB, REVAA, the GSEs, and the insta-toot started.

Future residential appraisers will be clerks signing off on PDCs, AVMs, and various forms of automated artificial intelligence models for $20 an hour.

 

[Trihard]

Again, just finishing what TAF, the AQB, REVAA, the GSEs, and the insta-toot started.

Future residential appraisers will be clerks signing off on PDCs, AVMs, and various forms of automated artificial intelligence models for $20 an hour.

Meanwhile, Class valuation wil be charging $300 a report and their AI will be able to pump out 50 reports an hour. The "appraiser" will just be there to be the monkey that signs off on them. And knowing the appraisers in this industry, I guarantee there will be plenty of them. How convenient also of Trump to say in the executive order that the qualifications need to be reduced. Like I said that executive order was written by Class Valuation and Rocket Mortgage.