Web Portals, An Informal Poll

[Marcia Langley]

This is an informal poll of users of all these various appraisal systems in conjunction with the itemized web portal systems.​

The information I am interested in is specifically: ​

Given any combination of one system from group 1 and one system from group 2, describe what you see/save/reopen/print that is different (converted) from what you would see if you had used a system from group 1 alone, without a web portal.​

I am interested in finding out how much control appraisers have over their reports when conversion web portals are used.​

In other words, if someone were to tell you that you should be able to see/save/reopen/print a converted file at your desk and preserve it as your true copy in your workfile, could you?​

For example, I use AlaMode. When I finish a report in my appraisal software, I convert it to a PDF before I send it. When I hit the send command, I am sending a PDF file. If I want to, I can save that converted-to-PDF file as my true copy of my appraisal. I can see/save/reopen/print it. ​

I'm trying to learn more about how these systems work. I truly am quite ignorant of almost all of these systems and if I've left any out, let me know.​

I appreciate everyone's input.​

Group 1, appraisal software​

AlaMode
Bradford Click Forms
ACI ​

Group 2, Web Portals​

1. Appraisal Port aka AIReady
2. eAppraiseIT
3. Lighthouse
4. ILS/Fiserv Lending Solutions
5. LFS Delivery
6. Real EC
7. ACS Delivery
8. CoreLogic Appraisal Services
9. RELS/Value IT Delivery
10. Value IT Delivery
11. Any service provider and/or method of delivery of the appraisal report that does not
maintain the integrity and unadulterated report created by the Appraiser for the end user​

Client.

 

[Mztk1]

Okay I write my reports in ala mode too and I have sent to eAppraiseIt, I use Appraisal Port, Lighthouse and send to Rels/Value IT, and have sent to ILS/FiServ but not in a while.

Lighthouse stinks as a conversion. The fields are different sizes from ala mode so it moves some stuff to the addendum and doesn't fit other things. After conversion I have to to through the report and reduce fonts in some areas, and in the addendum, where tables are printed, I have to recenter them because it doesn't count ala modes tabs. eAppraiseIT uses the Lighthouse conversion process, as does a couple of other places I work with. I do maybe 4 files for eAppraiseIT a year, but another client I have I do 5 a week or more sometimes.

Rels and Appraisal Port use xSites. The WinTotal report is automatically linked into the system based on how the order is received. I hit send to, it goes into a PDF style creation template, and off it goes, no changes at all to the report, it looks just as it did, and is sent like a PDF. Before going, though, it runs a rules check. Never had much of a problem with that.

 

[Marcia Langley]

Thanks, Jim.

Lighthouse stinks as a conversion. The fields are different sizes from ala mode so it moves some stuff to the addendum and doesn't fit other things. After conversion I have to to through the report and reduce fonts in some areas, and in the addendum, where tables are printed, I have to recenter them because it doesn't count ala modes tabs. eAppraiseIT uses the Lighthouse conversion process, as does a couple of other places I work with. I do maybe 4 files for eAppraiseIT a year, but another client I have I do 5 a week or more sometimes.

So, AlaMode/Lighthouse:

You can see/edit a converted report before it is sent.
Can you print it?
Can you save the converted version to a file, reopen it, and print it?

Rels and Appraisal Port use xSites. The WinTotal report is automatically linked into the system based on how the order is received. I hit send to, it goes into a PDF style creation template, and off it goes, no changes at all to the report, it looks just as it did, and is sent like a PDF. Before going, though, it runs a rules check. Never had much of a problem with that.

AlaMode/Rels and AlaMode/Apraisal Port:

Is that red part all one step? Is this the same sequence as using AlaMode with no other delivery system? Or did you mean it stops before "off it goes" and does that rule check and lets you look at it and then you have to hit send again?

Can you see/edit/save/reopen/print the converted version?

Or, if it fails the rules check do you have to back out into AlaMode to edit and then start the process over?