USPAP: Shifting (Quick) Sand for Appraisers
By Bob Keith, MNAA, IFA
Excerpts:
Just today I was reviewing a case from a northern state in which the "independent contractor" hired by that state to perform a "review" on an appraisal report criticized my client for including a copy of his E&O insurance binder in his report because, "an appraiser should never include liability insurance declarations within a report; it invites litigation." Just in case you were wondering, no, this is not a USPAP violation! Nevertheless, this reviewer was the "expert" that state appraiser board was relying on to tell them where the appraiser erred. Often times USPAP is not applied consistently within a state or in comparison with other state appraisal boards for the same or similar (alleged) violations.
Exacerbating this problem is the fact that USPAP has changed too much in a short period of time to be considered as a legitimate minimum standard for professional appraisal practice. Not only is USPAP a moving target for appraisers, it is also a moving target for those charged with enforcing it. If USPAP really is the minimum set of professional appraisal standards, then it's like a house built on shifting sand.
My comment: Very good article. I have known about this problem for a long time. A significant problem for state boards. I have also known Bob Keith for many years. He is very savvy and has a wide range of experience from appraiser to state board member to Executive Director for Oregon state board to consultant.
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Corelogic purchasing FNC and final purchase of RELS
Where is Corelogic Going?
Excerpts:
In what marks its third significant acquisition in the property valuation and appraisal space in the last six months, CoreLogic announced Tuesday that it plans to acquire total ownership of RELS, LLC, a provider of property valuation and appraisal services, from Wells Fargo.
Last year, CoreLogic purchased LandSafe Appraisal Services, an appraisal management company, from Bank of America for $122 million.
And late in 2015, CoreLogic announced plans to acquire FNC, Inc., for $475 million.
When CoreLogic announced the acquisition of FNC, Nallathambi said that along with the acquisition of LandSafe, the deal for FNC signaled that the company views property valuation as a "significant" area of growth in the future.
"At CoreLogic our mission is to empower our clients to make smarter decisions through data-driven insights. As the leading global property information, analytics and data-enabled solutions provider, our vision is to deliver unique property-level insights that power the global real estate economy. We work together as one company, putting clients first, focused on finding better ways to meet their needs, demonstrating ownership through initiative, accountability, respect, trust, transparency, and collaboration."
Corelogic also owns Realquest (data) and provides services to MLSs.
My comment: I don't know what it means for appraisers, but Corelogic definitely sees valuation as a revenue generator.
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Mortgage applications decreased 27 percent from two weeks earlier
WASHINGTON, D.C. (January 6, 2016) - , according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association's (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending January 1, 2016. The most recent week's results include an adjustment to account for the New Year's Day holiday, while the previous week's results were adjusted for the Christmas holiday.
The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, decreased 27 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from two weeks earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Index decreased 50 percent compared with two weeks ago. The Refinance Index decreased 37 percent from two weeks ago. The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index decreased 15 percent from two weeks earlier. The unadjusted Purchase Index decreased 40 percent compared with two weeks ago and was 22 percent higher than the same week one year ago.
While the index changes were calculated relative to two weeks prior, the following compositional and rate measures are presented relative to the previous week only.
The refinance share of mortgage activity decreased to 55.4 percent of total applications from 56.1 percent the previous week. The adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) share of activity decreased to 4.7 percent of total applications.
The FHA share of total applications increased to 14.6 percent from 13.8 percent the week prior. The VA share of total applications increased to 12.9 percent from 11.6 percent the week prior. The USDA share of total applications remained unchanged from 0.6 percent the week prior.
The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($417,000 or less) increased to 4.20 percent, its highest level since July 2015, from 4.19 percent, with points decreasing to 0.42 from 0.49 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent loan-to-value ratio (LTV) loans. The effective rate decreased from last week.
The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with jumbo loan balances (greater than $417,000) increased to 4.09 percent from 4.07 percent, with points increasing to 0.35 from 0.34 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans. The effective rate increased from last week.
The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages backed by the FHA decreased to 3.95 percent from 3.97 percent, with points increasing to 0.41 from 0.34 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans. The effective rate remained unchanged from last week.
The average contract interest rate for 15-year fixed-rate mortgages increased to 3.47 percent from 3.42 percent, with points increasing to 0.31 from 0.29 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans. The effective rate increased from last week.
The average contract interest rate for 5/1 ARMs increased to 3.19 percent from 3.13 percent, with points decreasing to 0.32 from 0.52 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans. The effective rate decreased from last week.
The survey covers over 75 percent of all U.S. retail residential mortgage applications, and has been conducted weekly since 1990. Respondents include mortgage bankers, commercial banks and thrifts. Base period and value for all indexes is March 16, 1990=100.
