Lower Fees, What is wrong with some Appraisaers!

[Greenback]

...But Skippiest Maximus will be running his quota of trainees all the while,

Their flock doesn't have to be just Trainees. There are low paid secretaries involved - can be one to Four of them, per office, in small markets, like my location; if necessary, in order to contribute to the way.

 

[Ken B]

It depends on where you work. Wisconsin in inundated with appraisers.

You just answered your question.

 

[PropertyEconomics]

OK folks, this is directed to some of you out there that keep lowing your prices at what appears to be an alarming rate. Here in Milwaukee two years ago average appraisal fee was between $275 and $350. Now it seems like every client I have has different appraisers they can use because they charge less than me. (my average now is $225) Now I know we are all trying to stay alive out there, but how "alive" can you get for $150 per appraisal, even if they are FHA? Anyone who is under $200 this is directed to you. You are not only working more for less, but you are making the rest of us do the same thing so think it over before you decide to be the "cheapest". Someone will undercut you until you are finally getting $50 a pop. Is that what you are looking for? I have been asking clients what kind of quality they think they are getting and they don't seem to care.

Call me old fashioned, but I am proud of the product I put out, can stand behind it and have no problem sleeping at night because I know my license is safe. It is bad enough that there are value *****s out there that will put any price on an appraisal that the lender wants (you know who you are and I sincerely hope you will get yours in the end). But now there are the whole new breed of "I will do it the cheapest no matter what" If you really want to work for that little I am sure that there is some nice job somewhere that you can get $15.00 per hour for without all the pressure, why not give it a try?

As for the rest of us (and I hope the majority), lets try and band together and at least charge $200 per appraisal and we can all make a living. I heard from one of my lenders that they have appraisers in New York doing FHA work for $150 and feel that they don't have to charge extra for duplex properties because someone out there will take it. THIS IS NOT PRICELINE. WE SHOULD NOT BE REVERSE BIDDING ON OUR WORK UNTIL WE ALL GO BROKEm2:

Looks like you just told all your clients you are reducing your fees by $25 to the $200 level .... the exact same thing you have accused your competition of doing .. continually lowering fees.

Sorry ... thats how I read it.

 

[Pamela Crowley (Florida)]

It would be best if those that charge so little would just leave appraising for enough time for the fees to get back up to realistic.

 

[Blueprint]

Wisconsin in inundated with appraisers.

What the heck do you expect? Seriously. How many appraisers were brought in during the boom times? A lot of them are probably poor quality appraisers who are thrilled to get $150-$200 with 24 hour turn times.

It is survival of the fittest in the mortgage sector right now. That's reality. It will change yet it is going to be a while. You need to expect that it is not going to change anytime soon and prepare yourself for the worst to come.

 

[Mike Phillips]

Their flock doesn't have to be just Trainees. There are low paid secretaries involved - can be one to Four of them, per office, in small markets, like my location; if necessary, in order to contribute to the way.

Absolutely -

And I am well aware, as we should all be, that it only takes an appraisal license, of any sort, to inspect - it doesn't take squat to write-up.

Which is why, any real shortage of Licensed or Certified appraisers will ultimately be first met with the increased use of Trainees. All guidelines restricting the use of Trainees will be lifted - but in some states, like Florida, there will be far fewer of them because unless they meet the new AQB guidelines they will remain career Trainees.

It remains to be seen if the ASB will forget what the term inspection means the way they have forgotten what the phrase "sole personal control of affixing the signature" meant.

Ask yourself why former ASB members are teaching classes in China. A Texas appraiser is already sending his "field work" to BF Egypt for overnight processing.

Read between the lines, if you haven't already. A licensed appraiser is required to inspect the property - what happens when that requirement is lifted, or is rendered FUBAR by the ASB, or otherwise swept under the rug?

Public trust in appraising just went to -0-. Hop-Sing is alive and well churning out appraisal work at $5.00 a pop.

 

[Restrain]

I have seen appraisal fees at $100 for a 1004.

I agree with the "supply and demand" issue. Except for reviews and REOs, it's SLOW out there. Appraisers are having to decide which is more important...sticking with a fee structure or getting the work. Don't complain if someone is doing the work for less. It's the market. Try another market segment, do some other type of appraising, do something else.

Look at it like this. If a gas station is charging $4.00 per gallon, and down the street they can fill up for $3.00 per gallon, how long is the first station going to be able to stay at $4.00 per gallon? Lenders want a form with a number that meets the minimum requirements. They don't care that you spend more time on research, they don't care that you draw the interior walls of the home on the sketch. They just want a report, in the shortest reasonable time, that meets the minimum requirements.

That's the market today, especially given the low work volume out there as opposed to the large number of appraisers.

 

[Kevin Mc]

Lenders want a form with a number that meets the minimum requirements. They don't care that you spend more time on research, they don't care that you draw the interior walls of the home on the sketch. They just want a report, in the shortest reasonable time, that meets the minimum requirements.

They apparently also don't care if they bleed billions in the process as long as it is fast and cheap. Good game plan. Lender implode is what, 265 and counting? Guess all those MBAs are still trying to figure it out.

 

[Greenback]

...Read between the lines, if you haven't already. A licensed appraiser is required to inspect the property - what happens when that requirement is lifted, or is rendered FUBAR by the ASB, or otherwise swept under the rug?

Sometimes, I feel that I read between too many lines. I'm not blind, yet, that's a good sign.

Answer to your question: It's caked! Icing, strawberries, whipped cream, and sometimes it gets a cherry on top. OR - the real deal may happen.

Ethics must be met. An ethical process of accountability has to be established. This should be typical - shouldn't be a debate whether or not there should be. If every rule and definition written up and described was met with an ethical understanding/execution, verbiage may be interpreted with an ease. Ethics is about accountability that contributes to positive production. Laws and rules are not good enough unless there is an ethical accountability properly described/interpreted that can be processed, positively, and that can contribute to overall production.

 

[Mike Phillips]

Sometimes, I feel that I read between too many lines. I'm not blind, yet, that's a good sign.

Answer to your question: It's caked! Icing, strawberries, whipped cream, and sometimes it gets a cherry on top. OR - the real deal may happen.

Ethics must be met. An ethical process of accountability has to be established. This should be typical - shouldn't be a debate whether or not there should be. If every rule and definition written up and described was met with an ethical understanding/execution, verbiage may be interpreted with an ease. Ethics is about accountability that contributes to positive production. Laws and rules are not good enough unless there is an ethical accountability properly described/interpreted that can be processed, positively, and that can contribute to overall production.

BS. The rule is the same as it has always been. The rich screws the poor, the money lenders screw the borrowers, the politicians cultivate the voters and then suck up to them long enough to get their votes, then it is business as usual, because for the most part, the voters are stupid.

There are no great truths, no great revelations other than the ones I mentioned. The masses are preoccupied with earning enough to endure life, not to live life.

Tell you what. Want to discuss ethics? Tell me where the "public trust" is defined in USPAP. Where are the terms "public" and/or "trust" defined? Are the terms/phrase even discussed? If so, I confess, I missed it.

Anyone ever word-count the instances of the terms "public" or "trust" and/or the phrase "public trust" in USPAP? How many times are the words even used past the preamble?