Are Appraisers Weird?

Posted on September 21, 2011 by admin

What do you think, are appraiser’s weird? Is it weird to be an appraiser in today’s world?

It feels weird to me.  Maybe it’s just me, I don’t know.  I guess it’s probably normal to other people, but it sure doesn’t feel normal to me.

Normal when I got into this business was developing relationships with clients, communicating with clients about timing and issues, actively networking to gather new and more business.

Now, if you do those things as an appraiser, well, I feel weird.  Everybody in the real estate business knows that they just can’t call you and order an appraisal anymore.

In fact, I’ve had them look at me like I’m weird at networking events.  Like, “what the hell are you doing here”!

But, all that has disappeared.  There is a new normal  in the appraisal business.  It’s AMC and UAD and WTF.

Are you good with the new normal?  I’m not.  I think I’m going to get weird.

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Finding A Good Real Estate Appraiser

Posted on April 20, 2010 by admin

 

 

How to Find a Good Real Estate Appraiser
By Jason Markum

I’m not going to lie to you, investing in real estate can be incredibly lucrative both in the short-term and especially in the long term but there are many intricate pieces that go into the puzzle before you can really profit on your investment.

Finding the right broker is one of the pieces, and in fact may be a very important piece. But one of the absolute most important pieces in my opinion is finding the right real estate appraiser.

There are all types of appraisers out there. Some of them will rubber stamp anything you say and you may be tempted to use those kind of people especially if you rely on your appraiser in order to refinance mortgages and need them to state a specific value of your property. I’m not saying this is ethical or even legal but you know these types of people are out there… I suggest you stay away from them.

There are other kinds of appraisers who are overly neurotic and will flag every little stupid thing even though you aren’t in the least bit interested. These types of people really should become drill sergeants in the army or something because they take their job way too seriously.

Of course, the best type of appraiser is the kind that is totally honest with you and is good at ferreting out the exact information that you need to make your investment decisions. When it comes right down to it at the end of the day all you care about is making good investments and therefore making profits and often times this is not possible without a solid appraiser and having one on your team is essential. So how do you find a good one? That’s what I’m going to talk about today.

A good place to start in your search for quality appraiser is a financial institution such as a bank. Most regular mortgages go through a bank that requires an appraisal; so the banks will have lots of experience working with a broad range of these people and they’ll have a pretty good idea of which ones are good and which ones to steer clear from. It’s in the bank’s best interest to tell you about the good appraisers because ultimately if you borrow money from them, they’ll want that money back and a good appraisal is a good start along that path.

Not only are banks good places to look at, but other financial institutions are as well such as savings and loans and also mortgage brokers.

Apart from financial institutions a good place to look for appraisers are among the lawyers in your area and also among the real estate brokers. These two categories of professionals will also have a lot of experience dealing with a broad range of appraisers and should be able to tell you nearly as well as the bank which ones are the good ones are and who the bad ones are. Again it’s in their best interest to help you in this area because the more business you do, the more business they do.

Hundreds, thousands, and sometimes even tens of thousands of dollars can hinge on the expertise and the judgment of your appraiser so finding the best one is incredibly important. Hopefully this article has given you a couple of tips on where to find a good one. Good luck!

Jason Markum has been an article writer online for the last 14 years. When he’s not writing about investing, he has fun running a graco baby stroller web site where he also reviews the best peg perego aria stroller for your babies needs.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jason_Markum

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Fraudulent Appraisals

Posted on March 28, 2010 by admin

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Home Buying: Getting an Honest Appraisal

Author: Wendy Black Polisi

Among the many causes of the 2007-2008 real estate crash was the injurious use of fraudulent home appraisals in determining home values for mortgages.  The appraisal amount is an indispensable factor for a mortgage lender in determining how much to loan.  If a property has been appraised for the wrong amount it can cause quite a problem.

Although home appraisers are supposed to function independently of lenders, during the bubble they were frequently hired directly by lenders.  This created a situation where appraisers that created appraisals with values that were favorable to the lender, were given more work by mortgagers.  There was an increasing pressure on appraisers to take care of their employers by producing the numbers they wanted to see.  Unfortunately, this was detrimental to the buyers.  As the market crashed, these properties lost value, not just actual value, but also the over-inflated value given by the appraiser.  Mortgage holders had to foreclose on and try to sell many properties that could never be sold for anything near the original loan amount.

To avoid this, there are steps that a borrower can take to get an honest and legitimate appraisal of their home. Although the lenders usually have their own appraisers that they deal with frequently, the cost of the appraisal itself is usually charged to the borrower. As the borrower is paying for the appraisal anyway, there is nothing to prevent the borrower from hiring their own appraiser, as opposed to the one recommended by the lender. In fact, this is a very good move to make and if your lender refuses to accept this – assuming your preferred appraiser is legitimate and in good standing – then it should be taken as a red flag that the lender may have an ulterior motive.

Finding and hiring your own appraiser adds an additional element to the home buying process and is extra work, which is precisely why many borrowers are willing to accept the lender’s recommendations. However, if the entire mortgage is based upon an inaccurate appraisal, this can result in massive losses for the borrower in the future. For this reason it is worth the effort to take the time to find and hire your own appraiser.

Appraisers are easy to find in the yellow pages in any location.  However, making sure they are legitimate and in good standing with the state takes a little more work.  You can check with the Better Business Bureau and with the state attorney general’s office to make sure they are licensed.  These two are also a good resource to find out about any criminal records and lawsuits.  And of course, the company will be happy to provide references from all their most satisfied and happy customers.

It means more work for you, but hiring a legitimate firm to do an independent appraisal can save a borrower thousands of dollars and keep credit trouble away.  Doing the extra work is well worth the effort.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/mortgage-articles/home-buying-getting-an-honest-appraisal-1308204.html

About the Author

Wendy Black Polisi is the founder of Credit Repair College and Finance the Dream. To learn more about how to fix credit fast
 and getting a credit card after bankruptcy
 please visit her on the web.

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Marketing Tips for Appraisers

Posted on March 24, 2010 by admin

 

 

Real Estate Appraiser Marketing Tips
By Michael Cappello

The best thing about marketing your services on the Internet is that clients will look for you by typing what they need in the search box. If you can fill their need they will call you. But, first you need to be found by these prospective clients. I believe the following are the four best ways to advertise your appraisal services on the Internet.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO): Search engine optimization is the process of improving the quantity and/or quality of traffic to your website from the search engines such as Google, Yahoo, Bing, etc. To do this you need to appear in the first two pages of the natural (free) search results. Typically the earlier your site appears in the search results, the more visitors it will receive from potential clients looking for appraisal services. To appear in the top of the search results your site needs keywords, such as “Real Estate Appraisers”, “Estate Appraisals”, etc. These are the terms and phrases that possible clients will use when they search the Internet looking for a real estate appraiser.

An additional factor that will help your site appear higher in the search results are links to your website. The combination of the quantity of links to your site and the “Anchor Text” (the words in the link) can help your site appear at or near the top of the search results in Google, Yahoo, Bing, etc. Statistics indicate that approximately 70% of searchers will click on the natural search results, therefore it is important that your site or directory you are listed in appear at or near the top of the natural search results.

Pay Per Click (Sponsored Links): This is an additional method to get your web site to appear in the search results (paid results known as “Sponsored Links”) these are the results that appear to the top and right of the natural (free) search results. You as an advertiser pay only when your ad is clicked which leads the searcher to your web site. The cost of this type of marketing depends on the amount of competition that is bidding for the same keywords “Real Estate Appraisers”, “Divorce Appraisals”, etc., as you. If you are in an area with very little competition it might only cost you $.05 per click, however if there is a lot of competitors it could cost $10.00 or more per click. One of the problems with pay per click, besides the cost is that statistics indicate that only approximately 30% of searchers will click on your ad. This is substantially lower to the natural search results.

Directories: Appraiser directories can also be very beneficial as they do the Internet marketing work for you. There is no need for you to use your valuable time or money to attempt to optimize your website or pay for pay per click marketing. A directory can do this all for you. They will place a listing on their site with your company information, the services you provide and your contact info.

Local Business Ads: These are the listings that appear with a map to your location on the various search engines. They are free on Google, Yahoo, Bing and Ask.com and I urge you to add your business. Make sure to include your type of services in your listing, such as “Miami Appraiser”, “Appraisals Miami”, etc. as the majority of your competitors will list their name which will not describe the services they provide. If you were looking for an appraiser which listing would you notice “Miami Appraiser” or “Joe Schmoe”? I know what most potential clients will pick and this puts you above your competition.

There are pros and cons to the first three methods of Internet marketing. Search engine optimization takes time and constant work, pay per click costs money and takes some time and directories cost money. Determining which Internet marketing methods are best for you is your decision. The combination of all four will benefit your business the most, however I believe that listing your business in a directory could be your greatest option. For a negligible fee a directory can provide the first three of the above marketing methods and you can simply create a local business ad yourself for the final Internet marketing method.

Michael J. Cappello has been a real estate appraiser for 18 years and currently owns the Real Estate Appraisers Directory

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Michael_Cappello

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Got an Order from an AMC!

Posted on February 9, 2010 by admin

Hey, guess what!? I actually received an order from an appraisal management company today! Now, in fairness, it is the only one I’m signed up with, and they are a smaller regional company, but still…YIPPEE!

Really, I don’t have anything against these guys. Are they owned by the company doing the loan? You bet! Is that wrong? You bet?

Has anybody seen that Youtube video with Hitler talking about the HVCC? It’s awesome, I’ll find in and post a link.

By the way, don’t get me wrong on the orders that I don’t get from AMCs. I haven’t signed up with any, except this regional one that sent an order today. I am not going to work in a system where professionalism and responsibility are not rewarded.

I’d say 95% of my work now comes from word of mouth and established business relationships built on mutual trust and respect. That’s the way I like it.

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