News By Edition

At the 2024 National Association of Appraisers/Appraiser’s Conference and Trade Show, Valuation Review attended the session conducted by Heather Sullivan, head of learning and development at Aloft.

She noted it’s important for appraisers to recognize the depth of their talent and the versatility of their skills and expertise.

Read on for our exclusive conversation with Sullivan from the 2024 ACTS event.

At the 2024 National Association of Appraisers/Appraiser’s Conference and Trade Show (ACTS) in Colorado Springs, Valuation Review sat in on veteran appraiser and Walitt Solutions Principal Consultant Josh Walitt’s presentation on what appraisers need for their workfiles, so state inspectors don’t “come calling.”

Colorado state inspectors also shared what they are looking for from appraisers.

Read on for more of this exclusive conference story.

Brent Bowen, Certified Residential appraiser at Texas Valuation Professionals and an author and instructor, spoke to the scientific side of appraisal work at the 2024 National Association of Appraisers/Appraiser’s Conference and Trade Show in Colorado Springs.

Bowen’s presentation on “The Science of Appraising” addressed how social science and data science have many implications for an appraiser’s everyday practice.

Read on for more from our exclusive conference story.

The ASA recently announced its appointment of a new CEO and executive vice president (EVP).

The ASA has been actively pursuing a replacement for former CEO and EVP Johnnie White, who left ASA to assume duties as the new CEO of the American Association of Clinical Endocrinology.

Read on to learn more details.

For our June installment of helpful tips and advice from Dustin Harris, “The Appraiser Coach,” Valuation Review shared insights from a pair of Harris’ blogs.

The "coach" shares advice from his blogs “What Message Are You Sending” and “Inviting New Talent into Our Field.”

Read on to learn more.

U.S. Congressman Sean Casten and Sen. Michael Bennet introduced the Getting Renewable and Energy Efficient Neighborhoods Appraisals Act, legislation to encourage energy-efficient and clean energy features to be considered as part of the residential homebuying and appraisal process.

The new chief appraiser for the Ector County Appraisal District is awaiting trial on an aggravated assault charge in Brown County, according to the Odessa American.

The Appraiser Qualifications Board (AQB) has released a concept paper assessing the college degree requirement in the Real Property Appraiser Qualification Criteria along with reference material which informed the initial paper. This is the first step in the AQB’s comprehensive study of all aspects of the qualification criteria.

Successful appraisers are never complacent and always believe they can improve to get a leg up on the competition. They continually look for better ways to market themselves and they embrace specialization, both of services and geographically, to enhance their market position.>

Part of the Marketing Your Business for Success report.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has issued a request for information (RFI) on mortgage closing costs, seeking input on how closing costs “may be inflated and constraining” the mortgage lending market.

Richard Horn of Garris Horn LLP and former senior counsel at the bureau shared his initial reaction with sister publication RESPA News, as did Marx Sterbcow of the Sterbcow Law Group.

Read on to learn more.

U.S. single-family rent growth continued to slowly increase year-over-year in March to 3.4 percent, according to CoreLogic’s latest Single-Family Rent Index.

After registering a 2.9 percent annual gain in February, attached rental appreciation lost ground in March, posting a -0.6 percent loss.

Read on for more details.

Fannie Mae recently announced new enhancements to its Income Calculator tool that will help mortgage professionals serve the growing number of mortgage applicants in the U.S. who are self-employed and don’t have traditional sources of income.

LoanLogics recently announced significant enhancements to its LoanBeam income calculation technologies.

Digital closing provider Snapdocs recently announced a partnership with SitusAMC to integrate the Snapdocs eVault to SitusAMC’s ProMerit platform.

In Part II of our feature, Valuation Review concludes its conversation with Tim Andersen (“The Appraiser’s Advocate”), who outlined his ideas on other appraisal topics.

Andersen spoke about training, technology and the workflow process.

Read on for the conclusion to this story.

Cushman & Wakefield recently announced the real estate services firm hired an executive director and an appraiser.

They will be members of the firm’s dispute analysis and litigation support practice.

Read on to learn the identity of these individuals.

Mortgage rates continued their spring surge in April, rising to the highest level in five months and helping drag affordability down by 1.5 percent compared with March, according to the First American Real House Price Index.

Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Sandra Thompson will join officials from the Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas to tour Oak Lawn Place, a new affordable housing development serving the aging LGBTQIA+ population in Dallas.

Marshall & Stevens recently announced a key acquisition.

The New Jersey-based firm focused on small business association valuations and appraisals with this purchase.

Read on to learn more.

The Appraisal Foundation is looking for candidates to fill positions on the Appraiser Qualifications Board and the Appraisal Standards Board.

With around 82 percent of Americans planning to travel this summer and high expenses forcing many people to stay home, the personal-finance website WalletHub recently released its report on the best and worst locations for a “staycation.”

Thirty-four lawmakers urged the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) to reject Freddie Mac’s proposed second mortgage product, arguing it would have adverse economic implications. The single-family, closed-end loans would be intended to provide borrowers a lower-cost alternative to cash-out refinance in high-interest rate environments.

CubiCasa recently announced its new partnership with a multiple listing service provider serving agnts, brokers, appraisers and real estate professionals.

The partnership brings CubiCasa’s scanning app to more than 26,000 agents throughout Colorado.

Read on for more details.

Home prices nationwide, including distressed sales, increased year-over-year by 5.3 percent in April compared with April 2023.

This is according to the latest CoreLogic Home Price Index Forecast.

Read on to learn more.

Following a ransomware attack that compromised the information of about 300 people, Tarrant County’s top appraiser is visiting local government entities to give insight into how the Texas district will fix its security issues, according to KERA News.

The Appraisal Institute recently released the second in its series of short videos profiling valuation professionals. Each video highlights their professional commitment to the public trust and their communities, and shows different ways that appraisers bring high-level professional expertise and experience to their work.

Two in five (39.7 percent) new mortgages issued in 2023 went to homebuyers under age 35, and 26.5 percent went to buyers aged 35-44. Next came 45–54-year-olds, who took out 16.1 percent of new mortgages, 55–64-year-olds (10.8 percent), and 65–74-year-olds (5.4 percent).