Latest Appraiser Bias Lawsuit

[Surf Cat]

The lawsuit describes Braxton's "humiliating" experience with the bank and its loan officers, and a purportedly lowball appraisal by a professional with Velox Valuations.
The homeowner says she obtained a higher valuation for her investment property in a second appraisal, and obtained the loan she'd sought with minimal hassle from a nonbank lender in stark contrast to her earlier experience.

Good for her! She persevered. So why the lawsuit?

Braxton said she endured a "demeaning" process with the lender, as she experienced unprofessional treatment

Try becoming an appraiser and working with AMC's lady.....

Bank of America later denied Braxton's mortgage application, based on the low appraisal and on disputes regarding her auto loan and tax payments, of which the plaintiff didn't reveal financial details.

Yeah.... those lenders.... they look over your financials.... part of the deal.

 

[Junior Member]

Unlike most fair housing cases involving appraisals, the complaint in this case includes both appraisals, the low and high. So, you can decide for yourself which appraiser got it right - or maybe they both got it wrong. The complaint is posted here: https://www.valuationlegal.com/bias/

 

[djd09]

Good for her! She persevered. So why the lawsuit?

Try becoming an appraiser and working with AMC's lady.....

Yeah.... those lenders.... they look over your financials.... part of the deal.

you better be careful...they will send you to room 101 to watch lowball on loop

 

[Non Sequitur]

Unlike in most of fair housing cases, the complaint in this case includes both appraisals, the low and high. So, you can decide for yourself which appraiser got it right - or maybe they both got it wrong. The complaint is posted here: https://www.valuationlegal.com/bias/

Oh my..........

At least she painted the subject in preparation for the second report.

 

[Elliott]

Here's my 2-minute review. Subject has a 'poor' location if your a dog owner. I think the 'low' appraisal picked closer comps. I'd like to see 'aerials' of the comps/listings. The subject would not appeal to a homeowner and will always be a rental.

The defense should call me as an expert witness on the poor, frustrating experience of trying to get a loan through BofA. I would confirm that they were horrible and I eventually quit after two months, went with another lender, and got a 3% mortgage. I asked for my file and they said I hadn't given them all the documents they requested (which was a lie), so much for the Truth in Lending Law.

Tip of the hat to JM for the link to the reports!

 

[George Hatch]

Just zooming in on the neighborhood in Zillow I'm not seeing the lower value at all. The use of the much larger S#4/S#5 comps was totally unnecessary due to the availability of the more similar sized homes. If I was looking at the lower appraisal vs the sales in the area I'd think the appraiser had to make an effort to conclude to $135k. Apparently the house next door to this property sold for $123k but it doesn't look like that sale had a listing so the exposure is suspect.

They've got some similar sized homes in that area with actual refurbished/remodeled kitchens/baths selling at or just below the $200k range so the 2nd appraisal might be a bit high but it isn't $25k high. IMO

 

[Non Sequitur]

Here's my 2-minute review. Subject has a 'poor' location if your a dog owner. I think the 'low' appraisal picked closer comps. I'd like to see 'aerials' of the comps/listings. The subject would not appeal to a homeowner and will always be a rental.

The defense should call me as an expert witness on the poor, frustrating experience of trying to get a loan through BofA. I would confirm that they were horrible and I eventually quit after two months, went with another lender, and got a 3% mortgage. I asked for my file and they said I hadn't given them all the documents they requested (which was a lie), so much for the Truth in Lending Law.

Tip of the hat to JM for the link to the reports!

Anyone can look up the comps in Zillow and compare the subject's updating/renovations vs the comps. And I'm sure someone will give a detailed breakdown (I won't because I don't see any clean hands in this) but heck, there isn't room for a refrigerator in the subject's kitchen. They both use the same property for Comp 3 but rate the subject differently. And that location and zoning deserve a better H&BU analysis. The second report rating the subject's location as Neutral isn't reasonable.

 

[Joe Flacco]

Look at the angle of these photos. He is eiter 8' tall or he is doing his inspections wearing a helmet with a GoPro on top. lol

 

[Elliott]

Still not impressed with the location. Like, "Where's the neighborhood?"

 

[Joe Flacco]

It's a tricky appraisal.

The subject (left) is one of the few properties without a yard, in that whole peninsula between 1st Ave and the train tracks. The photo to the right is representative of almost all the other lots in that area.

It's basically just those four on the subject's block that are like that.