Here Is Why FHA Fees Go Up $150

[Meandering]

What incentive does an AMC have to tell you the truth?

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[Meandering]

What incentive does an AMC have to tell you the truth?

If $400 was too much, you would not have got the job to start with.

Do yourself a favor and search the name of the AMC here and on the internet. Make sure you're working for a good company.


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[Non Sequitur]

Let's say the economy does really well and there is plenty of non-FHA work out there and no one wants the FHA work.......supply and demand will kick in. All it takes is for a few AMCs to do what was in my original post and no one will want to do them.

No one will want to do them? The same was said 10 years ago with the new Fannie forms, the same was said for the 1004MC, then UAD, then CU......and now here we are in the middle of another appraisal related drama. The AMCs will have their rain makers update their boilerplate and all will be well for the churn and burn crowd, the rest will have to follow or get left behind. It's that simple.

 

[bnmappraisal]

I had lunch today with an appraiser friend of mine who's been doing this 20+ yrs now. He does VA and said they pay $425. I told him I raised my FHA fee to $400. He said he and other's he knows don't think FHA will bring more than $350-$400 in our area; too "saturated" with appraisers, etc. I tend to agree.

As I said in an earlier post, I'm sticking with it ... for now. We'll see what happens

 

[Michigan CG]

No one will want to do them? The same was said 10 years ago with ..................

We are already seeing appraisers say that the client says they want the whole crawl space inspected and it seems the threshold is about 24 inches. For $400 few people are going to inspect 24-36 inch crawl spaces; I won't. Who is going to be crawling in an attic in Missouri/Texas/Tennessee/Florida/Arizona/etc in July for $400?

In some parts of the country FHA fees are still in the $300 range.

If someone wants me to crawl around in a 36 inch space or crawl in a 130 degree attic it is going to cost a lot more than $400 especially when I have to hang around for the dishwasher.

 

[gregb]

The new crawl space FHA tool-

 

[KeyWhiz]

Make one that folds out to a 12' ladder and comes with an oven/fridge thermometer and I'm in!

 

[bnmappraisal]

We are already seeing appraisers say that the client says they want the whole crawl space inspected and it seems the threshold is about 24 inches. For $400 few people are going to inspect 24-36 inch crawl spaces; I won't. Who is going to be crawling in an attic in Missouri/Texas/Tennessee/Florida/Arizona/etc in July for $400?

In some parts of the country FHA fees are still in the $300 range.

If someone wants me to crawl around in a 36 inch space or crawl in a 130 degree attic it is going to cost a lot more than $400 especially when I have to hang around for the dishwasher.

The sad thing is, I'm already getting $325-350 for CONV. But I also knew VA was $425 (from 2 appraiser friends of mine) That's where I figured $400 would be reasonable.

Obviously fees are always regional (cost of living, etc) but it is sad when $400 may be on the high side. As you point out, Attic's in July here in FL??? Fuhgedaboutit! A friend of mine does AC installs. He says they don't/can't stay in the attics more than 15 mins at a time b/c it gets so hot

 

[Non Sequitur]

We are already seeing appraisers say that the client says they want the whole crawl space inspected and it seems the threshold is about 24 inches. For $400 few people are going to inspect 24-36 inch crawl spaces; I won't. Who is going to be crawling in an attic in Missouri/Texas/Tennessee/Florida/Arizona/etc in July for $400?

No one has to, FHA hasn't changed the attic and crawl space observation requirements.

There's been an over reaction to all of this, much like the over reaction to CU, and both over reactions were fueled by CE providers. There will be an adjustment period, just like there was for CU. The same lenders and AMCs who in the first few weeks of CU just shot gunned a list of CU codes and comps over demanding the appraiser make it better, we'll see those same lenders and AMCs over reacting to the "new" FHA requirements. Then things will settle down. Why? Because you are correct in that no one will walk around an attic in July heat and I doubt anyone will crawl around a crawl space after a summer thunderstorm. It's just not going to happen. The same appraisers who never followed FHA protocols will add more boilerplate and will not follow any of the supposed new protocols. AMCs and lenders will not cut their rain makers, they will help them with the boilerplate and acceptable CYA language, fees will stay the same and life will go on.

In some parts of the country FHA fees are still in the $300 range.

If someone wants me to crawl around in a 36 inch space or crawl in a 130 degree attic it is going to cost a lot more than $400 especially when I have to hang around for the dishwasher.

There's plenty standing behind you who will say they did, and that's all AMCs and lenders care about.

Edit: Michigan CG I understand your hopes that something will finally happen to right the appraisal business, but this isn't it. The only thing IMO that will help is the elimination of AMCs. Before the bust most knew that mortgage brokers controlling the ordering process wouldn't last and had to be changed, we're at the point where AMCs dominating the ordering process can't last much longer and has to be changed too. I'm not sure what we'll end up with but change is desperately needed.

 

[Peter LeQuire]

In the past 30 minutes, I've gotten 3 phone calls for FHA appraisals. 1 is in the middle of a national forest, about 55 miles from my office; 2 are in areas I don't work. I declined each of the assignments, nicely saying that I hadn't settled on what an appropriate fee for an FHA appraisal was. Two of the callers laughed, saying they're hearing a lot of that.

I was very pleasant.

I may have the theme from "Deliverance" as background music for my phone.