Increasing Fees

[Lisle]

This whole thread is a waste of air. The market will dictate whether your fee increase will fly or not.

Yep, that's it in a nutshell. I will add this though, appraisers deal with differing markets and consequently there exists no one formula for fees. Some are all about the fee and how cheap they can getchya fer. Others value your long relationship and wonderful service. Each are completely different animals.

 

[tom mack]

My original intent of the post was to see if anyone has had any feedback from their clients concerning a fee increase. If anyone has a template that they have utilized for this purpose and would like to share, that would be great. I enjoy learning from others and truly appreciate other's help. This forum could really be helpful if we shared topics such as report structure, HBU analysis, narrative reports, etc. It's my gut feeling that many lurkers don't post because they see the twists, turns and attacks. Take time and think, before you post, if you're really adding anything to the topic or just posting ignorance.

 

[mla085]

establishing a fee

Try to discuss fees in terms of scope of work; not all assignments have the same amount of work. Scope of work helps to justify/establish an acceptable fee. Represent yourself as a true professional.

 

[mla085]

not a waste of air

Communicating with client about the purpose & intended use is at the heart of the fee quote. Mis-quoting a fee for an assignment can deflate an appraiser. Granted, not all bank clients want to waste time with these discussions. This is why there is life after bank appraising; think about other clients and the potential of truly negotiated fee assignments!

 

[starmansf]

Yes, keep raising your prices. You are special. It sounds like you've really cornered the market on integrity and hard work. Get whatever you can get.

 

[tom mack]

mla085; I agree with your post concerning purpose/ intended use and scope of work. I have seen reports where the appraiser listed every step of the process that he undertook to complete the report, even the actual times and conversations with the owner, gov't agencies, realtors, etc. It was amazing and I am sure that his fee reflected the detail in his report. Developing the scope of work and putting it prominently in the report will help you understand what level of work you are putting into the assignments and you can then adjust your fees accordingly. Developing this idea and utilizing this technique in our reports will start to separate you from the crowd. Do it anyway if your clients are mortgage clients because you have no idea who may read the report. Start today and put the scope of work in your report and list every step of the process that you undertook to complete the assignment. It will clarify to you and the reader of the report what was done or not done. Thanks mla085.

 

[Mike Boyd]

mla085Start today and put the scope of work in your report and list every step of the process that you undertook to complete the assignment. It will clarify to you and the reader of the report what was done or not done. Thanks mla085.

Do you think we should charge for the time necessary in creating such a detailed scope of work?

For a commercial project, I think that is a good idea. For residential work, it is a waste of time.

 

[PropertyEconomics]

Yes, keep raising your prices. You are special. It sounds like you've really cornered the market on integrity and hard work. Get whatever you can get.

Isnt that what you're doing?

 

[tom mack]

Mike; I think mla085 nailed it on the head. Developing your purpose and intended use - scope of work will set your fee. Basically, I think I got off on the wrong foot by stating - increasing fees due to whatever. For example, develop your scope of work for a basic SFR non complex assignment, know what you are putting into the assignment in terms of time and analysis etc., and there is your fee. Try and settle on an hourly rate and see if you are in line with what you think you should be charging. Believe me; I've lost money on several assignments because I didn't realize what was necessary to complete the assignment before I charged a fee. Developing your purpose and intended use - scope of work is a great way to show professionalism and charging what you need to charge for the assignment. I don't think it is a waste of time at all for residential work. I am not a USPAP expert; however, I believe it is necessary under USPAP, Standards Rule 1-2 to develop, among other items, a scope of work. If anyone would like to post a typical - generic Scope of Work, it might be helpful. If I have time later today, I'll try and post one of mine. I realize that real estate and real estate markets are different and require different scopes of work, but I do think that scope of work is under rated.

 

[Mike Phillips]

Believe me, being on the VA panel is no gravy train...at least not in my market. Question? Why did you quit trying to get on the panel? Did you ever personally meet with the valuation officer at the regional center? Did you resubmit your package annually?

I tried for 7 years before being accepted and that was after I had 5 years experience. The VA has expanded the panel substantially...try again.

Nope. I'm another whiner. Actually, I took the test and passed (years ago). Yes, met with VA in St. Pete but there was a change in management - one of the guys retired - I called but no one knew anything, and what can I say, I haven't been motivated to follow-up.

My hat's off to VA though. They appear to be the one and only entity that supports their appraisers, even if they are a little "gubment" minded from time to time. They sure don't take much crap from the mortgage industry.