Veteran appraiser George Paquette has seen a lot over the years during his many years working in the profession. A fixture at CoreLogic for quite some time, Paquette recently accepted the position of chief appraiser at SettlementOne.

“My role here at SettlementOne is a fluent role contributing to an experienced leadership team where we all wear several hats to provide the best experience for our customers and appraisers,” Paquette told Valuation Review. “My main focus areas are with our review team, identifying new valuation solutions, overall appraiser experience, industry relations, client escalations, and working with our compliance and vendor management teams.

“The leadership teams’ commitment to the valuation industry first and foremost. I have known our CEO Stephen French for a long time and always have admired his can-do service-driven approach, which I strongly relate to,” he added. “After learning about the experienced team, he was assembling, I knew that I had to be a part of this. Working with a team with such vast experience, specifically in appraisal management, and with a company that has been in operations for over 20 years and is aggressive in rapidly expanding, was very appealing.”

Comparing/contrasting his current role with what he was doing at CoreLogic, Paquette said it is very similar in many aspects, but there are fewer channels to navigate with a smaller company. He said he can react to clients’ needs quickly and have access to a vast array of integration and technology options, as well as accommodate what takes many companies months or even years to meet clients’ changing needs within days or weeks.

And while COVID-19’s arrival over two years ago brought upon many challenges, Paquette noted some specifics regarding what’s different concerning how appraisers conduct business.

“There is no hiding it, appraisers were busy, and unfortunately, communication and commitments suffered as a result. Some appraisers were terrific throughout and provided great communication and feedback even though they struggled to keep their heads above water,” he said. “However, in the last two years, one trend that was new to me was appraisers ‘going dark’ as we all referred to it. Appraisers were responsive all along with the appraisal milestones, but at the due date or after, they just stopped responding and didn't submit the file.

“As you could imagine, this puts the borrower and everyone involved in a terrible position, with lending milestones approaching quickly,” Paquette added. “Naturally, this caused severe concern from everyone involved. Luckily, those were few and far between, and we haven’t seen that with business slowing down recently. But those appraisers that put clients in that uncomfortable position will have an uphill battle getting their clients to instill trust back into them.”

We also touched on additional changes that have taken place as it relates to the daily duties of the appraiser, and Paquette said, as crazy as it sounds, he feels these last couple of years have made appraisers better. They have adopted new technology, adopted new ways of inspecting homes and expanded their products to include products that don't require an in-person inspection.

He also noted that before this, many borrowers only had one option. With the GSE's forward-thinking approach and the appraisers reconsidering what is needed to complete an appraisal, the valuation industry is in an exciting time to keep up with all the evolving mortgage modernization.

Safety for the appraiser was also a point of emphasis in the conversation.

“Feeling safe is very personal to everyone. What one appraiser might feel safe with, another appraiser might have deep concerns about,” the chief appraiser told us. “Many appraisers adopted CDC recommendations and felt safe using PPP as recommended and never stopped going into homes, and other appraisers were far more cautious. We saw many appraisers choose only to accept desktop products after the GSEs quickly reacted and created flexibilities, so it was, and still is, a very personal decision.”

As to how far technology can take the profession as it relates to appraiser safety post-pandemic, Paquette acknowledged many appraisers had a difficult decision when the pandemic hit as small-business owners. If they don't work, there is no income stream. Unlike many employees who had the opportunity to work from home, appraisers were immediately asked to enter homes with a spreading virus many knew very little about other than the horror stories we all read and watched.

“Appraisers adapted quickly and ensured that the appraisal was completed, and the borrower could close their loan. But this also put the appraisers at risk,” Paquette said. “Newly approved technology allows a seller or an agent to quickly complete the photos and a floorplan scan with the new tools introduced, which allows the appraiser to stay at their desk and complete the appraisal. One lesson we all learned through this is that we can do a lot more from home than we thought we could pre-pandemic.”

Paquette believes pandemic changes truly opened the door of opportunity for appraisers. It allowed appraisers to try something they were once unwilling to do, he pointed out. This also allowed lenders and banks to see how these products would be accepted and what level of risk they would solve. Of course, change is never easy, he added, especially when it is something you have done the same way for decades, and now you’re being asked to change immediately. But proudly, the industry is “rising to the challenge.”

There is still some thought some appraisers may go back and revert to older methods of technology pre-pandemic.

“Some immediately reverted to only wanting to complete a full appraisal in the traditional approach and refused desktop assignments,” Paquette said. “But many appraisers have opened up the opportunity and prefer to do these products when the fee and requirements are consistent, and the data is sufficient. So, if the appraiser can collect a payment consistent with their standard fees and has adequate data to feel comfortable, and the borrower and lender have a reliable valuation delivered days, or sometimes weeks faster, it's a win-win for all involved.”

Paquette also commented on appraisers believing the many changes have made their jobs more difficult and/or costly. Depending on the area, he said, it could be if the appraiser does not have adequate data resources. For instance, in non-disclosure states, appraisers have voiced frustration that they cannot complete certain products because data is not available or the time it takes to acquire exceeds the time to complete traditional products.

Paquette also examined whether he believes new methods and technological advancements will attract a younger group of appraisers entering the profession.

“It is such a spectrum of approaches to completing the same deliverable product. While one appraiser shows up to the inspection with a measuring tape, a pad of paper and a pencil, and it will take a week to complete; another appraiser will only show up with a laser measuring device and a phone to complete the inspection and have the report delivered that day or the next,” he said. “Appraisers entering the profession bring a different skill set than many seasoned appraisers, showing them new technology and ways to expedite their processes. New appraisers are often being trained but teach more valuable lessons than they learn by offering ways to leverage technology to accelerate their operations.

“We have shown clients that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac data indicates that when an apprentice is involved, the quality is not only as good but also better in most cases,” Paquette added. “With most reconsidering their approach to allow training appraisers to inspect the home unassisted, this has made the appraisal process faster and allowed more to enter the profession. It has been a big lift to get back to the basics and enable appraisers to spend less windshield time and operate their business. It is often a one-person operation, so doing everything and maintaining good service and quality is difficult to keep up with when the industry surges.”