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I was driving around today when I heard your tirade on appraisers and how lenders are pressuring appraisers into providing “liar’s appraisals.” Your comment “The Mortgage Bankers Association is fighting hard to overturn the new rules so they'll still be able to get "liar's appraisals." was insulting and patently inaccurate! What we are fighting is a regulation that will require us to use an appraisal management companies to order the appraisals and eliminate our ability to use appraisers that we know will do a quality job. In sharp contrast to your “analysis” of my industry’s motives, most originators DO NOT WANT INFLATED APPRAISALS. Inflated appraisals blow-up deals when underwriters review them, and make borrows somewhat upset when they find out that they paid too much for their homes. If enacted, any appraiser who is able to get on a panel would have an equal shot of getting a appraisal order – regardless of how good they are, or how bad they are. Originators would then be stuck with whoever got the order. There would be no incentive for an appraiser to do quality work, because their business would not be based on the quality of their work, but rather how often their name came up. This proposal essentially socializes the appraisal industry. Do you really think this is a good idea? THIS IS WHAT WE ARE FIGHTING, NOT THE ABILITY TO DO LIAR’S APPRAISALS!!!<br> <br> I do not believe this “problem” you speak of is the issue you seem to believe. Your statement that “90% of appraisers say they've been pressured by mortgage lenders to artificially raise the value of a house.” is questionable at best. Even without knowing how sloppily the survey was done, based just on what you said: if an appraiser had one of perhaps 30 to 40 lenders they work with try to pressure them into an inflated value, they would fit in the 90% number. And NOTHING you said indicated that any appraiser actually fudged an appraisal! You made it sound like 90% of the appraisals done were done improperly and this is simply not true!<br> <br> It is true that some lenders will pressure appraisers, and it is equally true that some appraisers are susceptible to this intimidation. However these people are in the minority. The reason they do this is because they are the marginal players. Quality originators want quality appraisals from competent professional appraisers. Here in California we have very strict appraisal standards that appear to work very well. In any case what is being proposed would reduce the quality of the appraisals being done, increase the costs to the consumer, and discourage professionalism. That’s why my industry is fighting this, not so (we will) still be able to get "liar's appraisals.<br> <br> Robert S. Willett, Jr.<br> 1st Sierra Mortgage, Inc.<br> 900 Fulton Avenue, Suite 208<br> Sacramento, CA 95825<br> (916) 974-2700 X 16<br> Voice Mail/Cell: (916) 485-7939<br> Fax: (916) 974-3925<br> Website: sacramentohomes.net<br> e-mail: bob@sacramentohomes.net
By Bob Willett
