NC Appraisal Board Appraiser Report Feb 2024

[RCA]

From a very objective point of view, and having talked to a few people high up, there is a view that the AVMs are going to be improved through various methods.

I assume a method similar to RCA will be used to generate a good model for properties in different market areas, residuals calculated, comparables ranked by residual, getting an objective ranking of properties by subjective factors such as quality, condition, and appeal, and then scoring the properties by their ranking. Then, the MLS photos of the comparables will be given to AI to train it to score unsold properties based on their photos. We might expect some standardization of property photos along the way. So, in this way, the AVM can objectively score a subject property based on its photos in comparison to those of the comparables. No appraiser is needed in most cases, - so it is hoped.

Non-parametric statistics and data mining will be used to provide fairly accurate appraisals in, it is expected, something like 90% of appraisals. Exceptionally superior or inferior properties, or properties in rural areas with few comps, will require an appraiser on an as-needed basis. To fully implement this will take 5-10 or so years.

Then there will be a competitive fight for market share between AMCs. Many will disappear. -- But so will many appraisers.

 

[Bob Ipock]

The mission of every state appraisal board is to protect the public. No matter what the lender or AMC asks for or demands the Responsibility Belongs With the Appraiser! Appraisers need to learn how to say no! Read all those NC cases and see how many appraisers got straight up ACTIVE SUSPENSIONS. The public is not being protected.

 

[Mejappz]

I've read through many of the complaints, and they primarily focus on competency issues. It’s clear that USPAP has significant shortcomings and needs a complete overhaul. Like an alcoholic, the first step is to admit there’s a problem. We need to bring in smart individuals to address these issues effectively. George Dell has put together an insightful series worth exploring. In short, USPAP requires a replacement.

https://georgedell.com/USPAP-fallac...l&utm_source=linkedin.com&utm_campaign=buffer

 

[Bob Ipock]

You can not teach someone to be honest, credible, knowledgeable, impartial, careful, well read, up to date, competent and a dozen other things unless they really want to learn and be a good appraiser.

I teach the 15 Hour USPAP class. I am not a miracle worker and most of the appraisers sent to a USPAP class are angry, embarrassed and not interested in being there. Fact.

The mission of every state appraisal board is to protect the public. No matter what the lender or AMC asks for or demands the Responsibility Belongs With the Appraiser! Appraisers need to learn how to say no! Read all those NC cases and see how many appraisers got straight up ACTIVE SUSPENSIONS. The public is not being protected.

Why do think that is funny? Am I wrong?

 

[Mejappz]

Why do think that is funny? Am I wrong?

I found this statement to be quite funny. The public is not being protected.

I agree that the public isn't being adequately protected. However, targeting only hookers and drug addicts while overlooking pimps and drug dealers feels like a game of Whack-a-Mole. These appraisers wouldn't be causing issues if their clients weren't engaging with them. As I mentioned in my previous post, if users are satisfied with the services they receive—and they clearly are, since they keep returning—why are state boards stepping in? Mandating that these appraisers take a mandatory USPAP class won't solve the problem; AMCs and lenders will simply find another appraiser willing to provide the same services. Ethics and standards are a two-way street.

 

[George Hatch]

Just because an appraiser didn't perform competently in a particular assignment doesn't mean they were incapable of performing competently or had never been instructed. Or were somehow unfamiliar with the requirements in USPAP.

Just because you got caught speeding doesn't prove you were somehow unaware of how not to speed or that the speed laws are a failure and need to be scrapped.

If IRL appraisers can and do perform to specs without a problem then that demonstrates it can be done. And dispels any fiction that it can't be done under the current setup. That is, unless you have some confessions to make about the quality of your own work and your own compliance with USPAP somehow being beyond your competency. Which I would be shocked if that's what you thought of your own work.

I worked for George Dell for a few months after licensing. I disagreed with some of his ideas then and I disagree with some of his ideas now. Even so, I still work as a CG and I still perform to specs, so I guess it wasn't necessary for me to continue under his supervision and insight after all.

 

[Carnivore]

Just because an appraiser didn't perform competently in a particular assignment doesn't mean they were incapable of performing competently or had never been instructed. Or were somehow unfamiliar with the requirements in USPAP.

Just because you got caught speeding doesn't prove you were somehow unaware of how not to speed or that the speed laws are a failure and need to be scrapped.

If IRL appraisers can and do perform to specs without a problem then that demonstrates it can be done. And dispels any fiction that it can't be done under the current setup. That is, unless you have some confessions to make about the quality of your own work and your own compliance with USPAP somehow being beyond your competency. Which I would be shocked if that's what you thought of your own work.

I worked for George Dell for a few months after licensing. I disagreed with some of his ideas then and I disagree with some of his ideas now. Even so, I still work as a CG and I still perform to specs, so I guess it wasn't necessary for me to continue under his supervision and insight after all.

It still was a positive experience for you working under or alongside someone else. This is similar to the res trainee/supervisor role today. My thought is that some res appraisers should never have a trainee if that supervisory res appraiser hasn't the ability to train effectively. Teaching is a skill set. In the military we have a train the trainer. This doesn't mean other members are not able to teach. It just means they may not be very effective or may be passing on flawed information.

So my position is that NO res Appraiser should be allowed to have more than one trainee at a time. Currently in my state a res/cg appraiser can have up to three trainees at a time. The question comes to mind; Who at my state decided that three trainees under one licensed appraiser was a good idea?

I do not know the answer and know one at my board has explained the rational.

 

[J Grant]

A state board exists to allow the public a means to address what may or may not be a bad appraisal - not to ensure good appraisal practice. The state board can clean up after the mess; for example, if the appraiser if found in violation might get a slap on the wrist or a more serious suspension or revocation. Other than that, the state board does not catch or prevent the other lousy appraisals from being accepted.

If the front end of the business is corrupted by low fees via third party profiteering controlling appraiser selection, that will shape the results more than a state board will or can.

There is of course a difference between an innocent error or a one-off bad value, vs a professional who shows a pattern of that - the state board only looks at the appraisal which they received a complaint about. Usually an investigatos examines the appraisal (or review ) as well as the complaint before it gets to the board;, some are dismissed.

 

[J Grant]

The mission of every state appraisal board is to protect the public. No matter what the lender or AMC asks for or demands the Responsibility Belongs With the Appraiser! Appraisers need to learn how to say no! Read all those NC cases and see how many appraisers got straight up ACTIVE SUSPENSIONS. The public is not being protected.

If the public were being protected, AMCs would not take a share of the appraisal fee. They would be paid a service fee by their lender customer. The current allowed fee split on the HUD fee incentivizes the AMC to choose the appraiser by low fee - how is that working out? Read the clueless posts here from people asking for help with their AMC order =- and these are the people who show up to ask a question - imagine teh others...there are competent appraisers performing AMC work, but even they are affected, and many are reduced to part-time until retirement or other options kick in.

The state board cleans up after one individual appraisal at a time, with a fine or other penalty - cleanup on aisle five! They do not proactively address or resolve the cause of the mess.

 

[Carnivore]

OK, I got a good one for you. The NC Board hammered this clown act appraiser pretty good. I am of the opinion he should have been suspended longer and being a real hardbutt , he should have been revoked.

This is public Information so i don't need to redact any names.

page 16 Joseph Winborne You tell me. Is this an Ethics Violation in a big way? Do you see how unfair this is for the Ethical Appraisers?

https://www.ncappraisalboard.org/bulletins/Winter2024.pdf

Side Note: I dare say there are many NC Licensed who have never taken the time to read or even know about our State Boards Newsletters.