News By Edition

Greg Stephens has been working as a professional appraiser and providing valuation compliance services for many years.

Recently, Stephens launched a new website and business, GE Stephens Compliance Consulting and Training, and Valuation Review  sat down with the industry veteran for a closer look at his new project, as well as how he plans to serve the appraisal community more efficiently.

Read on for more of what Stephens shared with us.

While attending the 2022 Appraisal Institute Conference in Las Vegas, Valuation Review sat down with Senior Appraiser Jim Pat Mitchell of Texas-based (Austin) Mitchell Valuation.

Mitchell, with over 45 years in the business, has seen a lot working as an appraiser, and he shared with us his thoughts on a few subject matters, as well as the future of the industry.

Read on for the full conversation with the Texas appraiser.

Valuation Review caught up with Julie Friess, chief appraiser of Sedona Appraisal Research Associates, for an in-depth look at her company’s apprentice camp.

Friess also outlined specifics surrounding what appraisers and others may not know about short and long-term property rentals.

Read on to learn more from the chief appraiser.

Fannie Mae is leading the effort to bolster supervisory appraiser recruitment and build a diverse workforce, according to Lyle Radke, senior director of Collateral Policy at Fannie Mae.

Fannie Mae has shared these priorities with industry participants, which Radke recently highlighting this in his article “Fannie Mae is Bullish on Appraiser Trainees.”

Read on to learn more.

Dennis Webb is the principal of Primus Valuations, a specialty valuation and litigation consulting firm with offices in Los Angeles and Denver.

Valuation Review sat down with Webb, whose practice is focused on holding and operating real estate and allocating value to special-use real estate and business valuation, to discuss specifics surrounding the allocation process.

Read on for more of our conversation with Webb.

Recently, a court case surfaced relating to floor plans and the copyright restrictions that may potentially apply.

Even if not a serious threat to individual appraisers, the case presents interesting copyright problems in relation to floor plans, whether drawn by appraisers or other professionals such as agents and brokers.

Valuation Review reached out to attorney Peter Christensen, founder of Valuation Legal, to discuss how the case could potentially impact appraisers.

Confidence in the market for new multi-family housing was mixed in the second quarter of 2022, according to results from the Multifamily Market Survey (MMS) released by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB).

The MMS produces two separate indices.

Read on for more from the NAHB report.

With around 8.4 percent of Americans having moved last year, the personal-finance website WalletHub released its 2022 “Best States to Live In” report. The website compared the 50 states across 52 key indicators of livability.

Valuation Review reached out to Class Valuation Chief Appraiser John Dingeman to share his views from his article “New Desktop Appraisal Rules: Today’s Pains and Tomorrow’s Gains.”

Dingeman points out many things from the negative of potential inaccurate data from drive-by appraisals resulting from COVID-19 safety precautions to the positive of new technology opening many doors of opportunity.

Read on for more of the chief appraiser's thoughts.

Earlier, Valuation Review discussed the Valorem technology tool offered by JLL Valuations Advisory.

We recently spoke with JLL’s Global Chief Product Officer Tyrone Hodge for more details about this technological advancement and what it means for appraisers.

Read on to learn more.

Valuation Review concludes its conversation with Property Science’s Paul Chandler.

The Appraisal Foundation’s IAC (Industry Advisory Council) Task Force, headed by Chandler, examined the current state of AVMs with modernization (mortgage underwriting versus appraisal) being another point of emphasis.

Read on for the final installment of this story.

Sales of homes costing $1 million more than doubled over the past three years.

Buyers, though, are getting less than they used to, according to a new analysis by Zillow.

Read on for more numbers from this report.

Clear Capital recently launched ClearInsight+, a technology-enabled set of valuation products to support Freddie Mac’s ACE+ PDR (automated collateral evaluation plus property data report), a new offering for certain loan types. Freddie Mac began offering ACE+ PDR in mid-July.

To give appraisers a new advantage as they compete for jobs, start and build their own businesses, and prepare for a digital future, Incenter Appraisal Management is making its RemoteVal remote/desktop appraisal technology available on a self-serve basis. Appraisers will now be able to register for full access to RemoteVal for both desktop and hybrid assignments.

On Aug. 24, the Appraisal Subcommittee (ASC) partnered with Mississippi Practical Appraiser Training (MPAT) for its inaugural MPAT program completion ceremony for 17 aspiring real estate appraisers in Mississippi. This MPAT program was designed, developed, and implemented by Melissa Bond, Mississippi’s leading Appraisal Educator.

FCT, the national service provider in real estate technology and title insurance, recently announced an integration with Canadian Residential Appraisal Library ReportPro from ACI, an innovator in collateral valuation technologies. This integration allows appraisers to directly populate appraisal forms with residential property information, capturing key data points in one click and reducing turnaround times by more than half in many instances.

With home values up around 21 percent in the past year and mortgage rates having almost doubled, the personal-finance website WalletHub recently released its report on “2022’s Best Real-Estate Markets.” To determine the most attractive real-estate markets in the U.S., WalletHub compared 300 cities across 17 key metrics.

Valuation Review hosted a webinar titled “Eminent Domain Considerations” with presenters Christina Thoreson, owner of Real Counsel, LLC and Anthony Alderman, senior managing director (Valuation & Advisory) for Cushman & Wakefield. Learn about eminent domain appraisals, how they can be both challenging yet financially rewarding for the industry, as well as finding out how you can order your copy of the webinar.

Staircase, the company building an integrated, digital infrastructure to accelerate tech-enabled mortgages, has introduced new software. The company said the new software helps businesses process outsourcers broker price opinions and reduces labor costs by improving quality control in the mortgage document verification process.

This month, Valuation Review highlights more aspects of appraising from Dustin Harris, “The Appraiser Coach.”

Harris offers insight on appraisers dealing with agents, in addition to understanding distinctions between sales and comparables.

Read on for more from Harris.

RealWired, a commercial real estate technology consulting firm with over 25 years of experience, recently announced a new partnership with ERIS. Through this partnership, clients will have immediate access to ERIS’ environmental screening data and information via the YouConnect Platform.

Recently, the Federal Housing Finance Agency proposed new benchmark levels for the multifamily housing goals for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac for 2023 and 2024. The rule proposes a new methodology for measuring the Enterprises' multifamily housing goals.

North American technology company Voxtur Analytics announced that its wholly owned U.S. subsidiary has executed a purchase agreement for Blue Water Financial Technologies Holding Co., a SaaS-based solutions provider for investors trading mortgage servicing rights and whole loans to improve profitability, reduce risk and increase liquidity of mortgage asset portfolios. This acquisition will bring Voxtur’s technology suite to the secondary market.