News By Edition

The Appraisal Institute welcomed a new president effective Jan. 1. Jim Murrett, in his role as leader of the appraisal organization, expressed excitement in helping guide appraisers and all in the valuation profession toward a path to success.

Valuation Review   caught up with Murrett who outlined his specific goals for 2018, while also recognizing some of the adverse issues the industry currently faces.

Read on to find out what he told us.

At the 2017 American Society of Appraisers conference in Houston, Valuation Review spoke with a panel of experts who addressed appraisal reviews from a financial statement audit perspective and litigation.

What should appraisers know from a legal standpoint as it pertains to reviews?

Read on to find out what they told the conference attendees.

Women largely hold managerial and operational roles within the appraisal industry, but women are not equally represented at the appraiser level, according to a report from an Ohio-based valuation company. 

Valuation Review spoke with a company representative about the number of women in the appraisal profession, and how their company is taking steps to ensure such a number can continue to rise.

Read on to find out more of what we were told. 

Valuation Review attended the Appraisal Summit & Expo in Las Vegas and caught up with an independent fee appraiser working for the Clark County, Nevada, Assessor’s Office.

How are the roles of the appraiser and the assessor similar, different?

Read on to find out what this assessor told the conference attendees.

Subdivision analysis is a challenging area of appraisal practice because of the complex timeline concepts and value estimates involved, according to a new book published by the Appraisal Institute. Read on for more details about this book.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency published Fannie Mae’s and Freddie Mac’s “Underserved Markets Plans for 2018-2020 under the Duty to Serve” program. Read on for additional details.  

Clarocity Corp. announced that it has retained Keefe, Bruyette & Woods, Inc. to provide certain financial advisory services in connection with certain potential strategic transactions. Read on for more details and what these strategies mean for valuation.

Dart Appraisal is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year. In a marketplace where the majority of competitors were established following the real estate crash of 2008, Dart Appraisal is proud to have been providing full-service appraisal management solutions since 1993. Read on to learn more. 

Metro-West Appraisal Co. LLC made a special announcement earlier this year

The company has obtained a Woman-Owned certification.

Read on to find out more about this distinction and how this expands the company’s appraising services. 

Assurant, Inc. announced the appointment of Scott McGregor as managing director of American Title, Inc.

Valuation Review spoke with McGregor about his new assignment.

Read on to learn more about what this appointment means for the valuation business and related business services.  

A year-long, $25 million lawsuit filed against Alachua County’s property appraiser, tax collector, clerk of the court and a number of their employees have been thrown out by a judge. Read on for more details of this case.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Chicago has charged two suburban mortgage brokers with fraudulently operating a purportedly independent appraisal management company to control property valuations.

Charges also include brokering fraudulent loans to finance real estate transactions between themselves and nominees.

Read on for more details of this case.

The views of homeowners, and those who appraise their properties, are continuing to move closer together.

Home appraisals were an average of 0.5 percent lower than what owners expected in December, according to the National Quicken Loans Home Price Perception Index.

Read on to learn more numbers from this report. 

What will 2018 bring to the home marketing environment?

Builder confidence in the market for newly-built single-family homes increased five points to a level of 74 in December on the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index after a downwardly revised November reading.

Read on to learn more from this report. 

Tyler Technologies, Inc. announced that it has signed an agreement with the Ohio Court of Claims for Tyler’s Modria online dispute resolution solution. Read on for more details.

Global DMS announced that it has integrated with Black Knight’s LoanSphere Exchange platform, an online, collaborative technology that connects more than 25,000 mortgage industry service and solution providers. Read on to learn more of this technology integration.  

At the Appraisal Summit & Expo in Las Vegas, LIA Administrators & Insurance Services General Counsel Peter Christensen told the audience what legal traps await appraisers and how to avoid them.

Valuation Review was in attendance to hear this legal presentation.

Read Part II of this feature for more information. 

Resitrader Inc. announced it has completed connectivity of its digital pricing and commitment platform with Freddie Mac. Read on for more details.

KBS Real Estate Investment Trust III recently announced its net asset value per share of $11.73 as of Dec. 6, 2017, an increase of $1.10 per share from its previous estimated figure of $10.63 per share as of Dec. 9, 2016. Read on to learn more.  

Valuation Review attended the Appraisal Summit & Expo in Las Vegas and caught up with an independent fee appraiser working for the Clark County, Nevada, Assessor’s Office.

How are the roles of the appraiser and the assessor similar, different?

Read Part II of this story to find out what this assessor told the conference attendees.

Cultural Outreach Solutions, LLC, announced Angie Lee has joined the company as a managing partner. Lee is a successful real estate broker and past president of the Asian American Real Estate Association. Read on to learn more.  

Valuation Review continues its conversation with Property Solutions President Jim Smith.

Smith outlined what the 2018 outlook could be for the valuations space and what it means for appraisers.

Read Part II of our interview with the company president to find out more of what’s in store for valuation in the year ahead.

The Appraisal Institute welcomed a new   president effective Jan. 1.

Jim Murrett, in his role as leader of the appraisal organization, expressed excitement in helping guide appraisers and all in the valuation profession toward a path to success.

Valuation Review concludes its interview with Murrett. Read Part II of this feature for more information and insight. 

Equity Prime Mortgage opened a Loan Assistance Center in Lilburn, Ga., in December. The new space is designed for borrowers to begin the loan process and to receive assistance from the company's mortgage loan professionals. Read on to learn more.  

The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index decreased in December, following a modest improvement in November. The Index now stands at 122.1, down from 128.6 in November. The Present Situation Index increased slightly, while the Expectations Index declined sharply. Read on to learn more from this report.

FinKube and LoanTek have combined to create industry mortgage-ware providing a combination of tech tools makes digital lending easier for mortgage lenders. Read on to learn more.

At the 2017 American Society of Appraisers conference in Houston, Valuation Review spoke with a panel of experts regarding appraisal reviews.

They spoke from the platform concerning the financial statement audit perspective and litigation.

Read Part II of this feature to find out more information.

Clarocity Corp. announced that Russell Bruemmer has resigned from the Board of Directors effective Dec. 31, 2017. Read on to learn more.

A Palm Beach County property appraiser will assume the office of president of the International Association of Assessing Officers. Read on to learn the identity of this elected officer.