News By Edition

After 15 years spent with the ASA organization, John Russell is keeping his focus on appraisers by starting the company ValuSight Consulting, which helps individuals understand the many opportunities available to them to further grow in their business.

Valuation Review spoke with Russell about navigating artificial intelligence tools in the appraisal space, in addition to, as he puts it, helping inform appraisers what their “next” can look like.

Read on to learn more from our conversation.

For another installment of our “Women in Appraising” series, Valuation Review spoke with Ayako Marsh, a business owner and certified residential appraiser.

Marsh, who lives in Atlanta, has been an appraiser for 22 years with expertise in appraising and diversity while providing services through consulting, training and public speaking.

Read on for the full story highlighting another successful woman appraiser.

Earlier, Valuation Review introduced Velox Valuations, an appraisal firm offering franchise opportunities nationwide.

We caught up with Certified Appraiser Casey Mann, the first Velox Valuations franchise owner, who shared more details about the company and its vision for the future appraiser.

Read on for the full conversation with Mann.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency’s recent decision to expand appraisal waivers for high loan-to-value loans by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac has raised concerns within the appraisal industry.

Appraisal bias has come under an increasingly bright spotlight within the valuation profession over the past several years. ValueScape, an artificial intelligence and data science company providing compliance management services to the housing and mortgage industries, is looking to address that issue.

The American Society of Appraisers announced Lana Vukovljak is no longer serving as CEO of the organization.

Teresa Walker, executive director of the National Association of Appraisers, has devoted over 26 years to the appraisal profession.

Setting the standard for commitment to appraiser excellence and education, Valuation Review is proud to include Walker in our “Women in Appraising” series.

Read on for the full conversation.

At the 2024 Val Expo conference in Las Vegas, a panel discussion took place to address specific inquiries appraisers have.

Valuation Review was in attendance to get some answers.

Read on for the full conference feature.

CoreLogic recently released its Home Price Index (HPI) and HPI Forecast for September.

The U.S. home price growth continued to cool, slowing to 3.4 percent year-over-year for the month analyzed.

Read on to learn more.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency recently announced two partnerships involving Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and Federal Home Loan Banks to boost awareness and liquidity for programs that expand housing access for tribal communities.

ClearValue Consulting recently announced a strategic partnership with Restb.ai to integrate Restb.ai’s advanced computer vision technology into ClearValue’s valuation review platform.

Clear Capital recently announced the launch of its Clear Capital Product Portal, a self-service platform that removes friction from the valuation process by allowing customers to order Clear Capital products quickly and easily.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency recently announced it will allow greater rental housing support from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac by raising the multifamily loan purchase cap for each Enterprise to $73 billion, a more than 4 percent increase from 2024.

AnnieMac Home Mortgage recently announced the expansion of its Cash2Keys Cash Offer platform to include FHA loan eligibility, broadening access to competitive cash offers for a larger number of buyers.

Dark Matter Technologies announced that Sean Dugan, the company’s chief revenue officer, will succeed Rich Gagliano as CEO effective April 2025.

For the final advice in 2024 from Dustin Harris, “The Appraiser Coach,” the veteran appraiser shares simple thoughts and ideas from his blog posts.

Thoughts from “A New Pair of Shoes Can Change Your Life” and “What Can You Learn from a Follow-Up Eye Exam” are highlighted.

Read on for more appraisal tips.

In Texas, more than two dozen production homebuilders are turning to new technology that includes generative artificial intelligence.

This is to accelerate their sales as they transform the way they manage promoting their homes for sale in the local Multiple Listing Service.

Read on to learn more.

Standard Valuation Services, a private company specializing in commercial real estate appraisals and consultation, recently announced an expansion of its Chicago and regional operations.

The Appraisal Institute recently announced the release of “A Guide to Appraising Religious Properties,” which is authored by Bradley Carter, an authority in the field of property valuation.

Ginnie Mae’s acting president, Sam Valverde, who has held the position since May, announced his resignation, effective Nov. 30. Valverde originally joined the organization in 2022 and gained experience as principal executive vice president and chief operating office before becoming Ginnie Mae’s first Latinx leader.

Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. recently released its “first look” at September 2024 month-end mortgage performance statistics derived from its loan-level database.

The report represents the majority of the national mortgage market. It reveals prepayments at a two-year high with slowly rising mortgage delinquencies.

Read on for more numbers.

August marked the fifth consecutive month of slowing annual appreciation while home prices continued to hit new highs, according to the CoreLogic S&P Case-Shiller Index.

The report showed a slow decline to 4.25 percent year-over-year gain after peaking at 6.5 percent in both February and March of this year.

Read on to learn more.

October Research recently aired the webinar “2024 Economic Forecast Series” featuring Doug Duncan, senior vice president and former chief economist at Fannie Mae. Duncan has been responsible for forecasts and analyses of the economy and the housing and mortgage markets. In this webinar, Duncan provided a look into the latest trends and projections for the housing market.

Freddie Mac recently released updates and requirements significant to appraisers by way of its Single-Family Guide Bulletin.