Monday, June 23, 2014
Tuesday, June 17, 2014
6/17/2014 Legal News
From: www.valuationreview.com
Pennsylvania appraiser convicted by federal jury for inflated appraisals.
A federal jury in Pennsylvania handed down its decision June 11 in a mortgage fraud case in which an appraiser was accused of providing fraudulently inflated appraisals. After deliberating for nearly five hours, the jury found James Lignelli of Presto, Pa., guilty of three counts of bank fraud, according to a June 11 announcement by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Pennsylvania.
Proof that the consumer needs someone to review their appraisals before they close on their loans.
Monday, June 2, 2014
P.A.R.R. wants the Consumer to Get and Review their Appraisal and we feel so strongly about this that should our typical fees we charge be an issue, we may, on a case by case basis, perform our reviews for the Consumer free of charge. What? That's right, Free of Charge!
Reviewing your Appraisal Is That Important to us!
Sunday, June 1, 2014
What do Appraisers think of P.A.R.R.
On a website called "Appraisers Forum" (http://appraisersforum.com/showthread.php?t=200604) Appraisers discussed and vented their thoughts on P.A.R.R. and many seem to believe that P.A.R.R. is misleading the Consumer by offering review services to you, the Consumer. Some believe that we are not allowed to "Review" consumers appraisals because we are not licensed appraisers, we are not the appraisers Client, that the Lender is just allowing the consumer to receive a copy of the appraisal and that what we do is in violation of USPAP (Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practices) http://www.uspap.org/.
For the Record, P.A.R.R. does not employ Licensed Appraisers, We are not an AMC (Appraisal Management Company) and our clients are NOT Lenders. We are not performing "Reviews" as defined by USPAP and are not regulated by USPAP. Because we don't employ "Licensed Appraisers" we can not and will not Opine an Alternative Value. The Lender is not "Allowing" the consumer to receive the appraisal report or to have a copy of it, it is now Law that the consumer receive a copy of the appraisal and that the Lender gives the Consumer 3 days to Review it.
At P.A.R.R. we strongly believe that without good sources to properly review and verify the data in an appraisal, the document is virtually worthless to the consumer, with the exception of Lining the Bottom of a Bird Cage. Therefore, we can, using our data sources, provide any alternative Comparable Sales for YOUR review that we find. If You the Consumer believes that the comps we provide would be more similar, closer in proximity or more recent than the sales provided by the appraiser or if other data is found to be inaccurate, then at your discretion, you should provide them to your Lender / Banker to be forwarded for further or closer review to the Appraiser who completed the report.
Many of the questions posed by the appraisers indicated concern regarding P.A.R.R.'s intent. Would we turn appraisers in to the Appraisal Board with Complaints? P.A.R.R. would have no reason to report an appraiser for poorly written appraisals rather simply report our findings to our clients (You the Consumer). What our Client (You the Consumer) does with the P.A.R.R. report or the Lender / Banker does with the data if you, the consumer gives it to them is completely out of P.A.R.R.'s control. The P.A.R.R. Report is yours, You the Consumer, are our Client and as P.A.R.R.'s disclaimer reads, we will not share any information in our report period. However if you wish to share it, it is up to You the Consumer. P.A.R.R. has explained this in detail in the disclaimer that must be agreed to when we are hired for the review.
It should be noted that some Appraisers welcome an unbiased review in the event that they did report something incorrectly or omitted comparable data that even the Lender / Bankers missed in their review of your appraisal. Others however seem to view us as a threat or find what we do as offensive because they say P.A.R.R. preys on homeowner ignorance.
P.A.R.R. is not out to mislead anyone, Appraisers, Lenders and certainly not our Clients, the Consumer. We don't feel that our Clients or Homeowners are Ignorant at all. We do feel however that our Clients are Untrained and Unaware regarding Appraisal matters and some may lack the skill or resources to properly research and review the data in the appraisal. For an Appraiser to say that Homeowners are Ignorant in itself in our opinion is Ignorant and highly offensive, especially considering the issues the appraisal industry has gone through in the last several years.
P.A.R.R. wants the Consumer to Get and Review their Appraisal and we feel so strongly about this that should our typical fees we charge be an issue, we may, on a case by case basis, perform our reviews for the Consumer free of charge. What? That's right, Free of Charge!
Reviewing your Appraisal Is That Important to us!
For more information on Making Sure Your Appraisal is Up To P.A.R.R. please visit our Web Site and click on the Contacts Tab. Please feel free to ask us any questions about your appraisal. We truly want to help.
Monday, May 12, 2014
5 Reasons to have your Appraisal Professionally Reviewed
There are actually a whole host of reasons to have your appraisal Professionally Reviewed but we decided to keep it short and sweet.
1. The appraiser could have made mistakes in calculations that could have a serious impact on the estimate of value given on the report that someone not well versed in appraisal review might miss.
2. The appraiser could have missed Comps that could have a serious impact on the given value. If comps that are more similar, more recent and or closer in distance are found that could impact value the appraiser should at least comment on why they were not used. Most appraisers will gladly look at comparable sales data that is presented, especially if thee data is current and accurate. Very often the only data sources consumers have to compare to the appraisal is places like Zillow and they are quite often very wrong.
3. The appraisal could have errors that could question the credibility or integrity of the report. Gross Living area can be grossly incorrect which can seriously impact the appraisers estimate of value.
4. Often times the appraisers put the reports together in a rush. The Banks review the appraisals in a Rush so with all that rushing, we have even seen appraisals go to closing that were not even performed on the correct property. Do you think that will impact your value? You bet it will.
5. Ok, lets face it, the government has given you the right to review your appraisal for three days. Why? Because it's important that you understand your entire mortgage from start to finish but also in reality, they are saying, buyer beware. If you believe that you understand the appraisal good enough and have a source to confirm the data in it then by all means review it your self and challenge anything you find wrong with it. If there is something in it you don't understand, post it on our forum for some answers.
We would welcome the opportunity to review the appraisal for you but our main concern is that you get it and review it, be an informed consumer. But if you are needing a professional to review it, let us make sure your appraisal is up to P.A.R.R.
1. The appraiser could have made mistakes in calculations that could have a serious impact on the estimate of value given on the report that someone not well versed in appraisal review might miss.
2. The appraiser could have missed Comps that could have a serious impact on the given value. If comps that are more similar, more recent and or closer in distance are found that could impact value the appraiser should at least comment on why they were not used. Most appraisers will gladly look at comparable sales data that is presented, especially if thee data is current and accurate. Very often the only data sources consumers have to compare to the appraisal is places like Zillow and they are quite often very wrong.
3. The appraisal could have errors that could question the credibility or integrity of the report. Gross Living area can be grossly incorrect which can seriously impact the appraisers estimate of value.
4. Often times the appraisers put the reports together in a rush. The Banks review the appraisals in a Rush so with all that rushing, we have even seen appraisals go to closing that were not even performed on the correct property. Do you think that will impact your value? You bet it will.
5. Ok, lets face it, the government has given you the right to review your appraisal for three days. Why? Because it's important that you understand your entire mortgage from start to finish but also in reality, they are saying, buyer beware. If you believe that you understand the appraisal good enough and have a source to confirm the data in it then by all means review it your self and challenge anything you find wrong with it. If there is something in it you don't understand, post it on our forum for some answers.
We would welcome the opportunity to review the appraisal for you but our main concern is that you get it and review it, be an informed consumer. But if you are needing a professional to review it, let us make sure your appraisal is up to P.A.R.R.
Monday, May 5, 2014
Check-My-Appraisal Forum
Professional Appraisal Research & Review and Check-my-appraisal.com has started it's own Forum. We are hoping to become the place where Consumers can ask Appraisal, Value, or other Real Estate Questions and get accurate answers from Realtors, Appraisers, Appraisal Reviewers and Lenders. We invite everyone to join especially Real Estate Professionals of all kinds and become a part of a Panel to assist consumers in making the right decision on their Real Estate transactions. In this forum you can plug your business as well as talk to other professionals for ideas in your field. Please Join and help us make this Forum a huge success.
Sunday, April 13, 2014
P.A.R.R. Review VS Appraisers USPAP Review
We would like to shed a little light on the difference between a P.A.R.R. Review and a USPAP (Uniform Standards of Appraisal Practices) Compliant Reviews performed by a Licensed Appraiser.
It should be noted that P.A.R.R. Review Specialists are not Licensed Appraisers. We can not offer an alternative opinion of value. We can however point you in the right direction should your need be to have a USPAP Compliant Review completed by a Licensed Appraiser. According to many Appraisers we are not allowed to form an opinion on if we agree with a value or not because they feel that only Licensed appraisers are allowed to "Review" Appraisals according to the laws as they interpret them. However, because we are not Licensed Appraisers, we are not governed by the same rules and regulations as "Licensed Appraisers" are. Therefore in our opinion working for the Borrower, we are unregulated. However, in order to not cause problems within the appraisal community, we will not indicate in words an opinion of the appraisers estimate of value however we will still provide any additional data that we feel may be relevant to your appraisal and it's value. What conclusions you form of the data we provide vs. the data the appraiser has provided is up to you. As Bank reviewers we ordered and received Reviews daily from appraisers and it is very rare that one appraiser would blow the "Value" Whistle. But we also noticed that if good alternate comparable data was presented to an appraiser it is really no challenge to get the appraiser to alter their opinion of value. The problem is that the alternate data you provide them must be accurate and verifiable before they will consider it and for good reason, everything in their report must be able to be confirmed accurate by anyone.
With all that being said, there are some very large differences between a P.A.R.R. Review Report and a USPAP Compliant Review.
From Our experience, the Appraisers review is going to consist of a checklist of between 36-44 questions and some of the forms they use leave no room for commentary on the different items reviewed. The P.A.R.R. Review Checklist asks 105 questions which basically walks you from the beginning of the appraisal to the end. We indicate either a Red, Yellow or Green flag. These designations we find easier to understand than Acceptable, Unacceptable or N/A as provided on appraisers review forms. If there is a Red Flag we will provide proof of why the item was red flagged and if the item is Yellow Flagged we will in some cases provide proof of it being incorrect but yellow flagged items are of concern but would probably not impact the value or credibility of the appraisers report. Green Flag are indicated if no issue is found but in every case a comment would be provided in the comment area of that line indicating what was found.
At the end of some Appraisers Review forms is a place to indicate an alternate opinion of value. Most appraisers don't complete this area because it would require them to complete a separate grid of alternate comps for which the value is based.
At the end of a P.A.R.R. Review Checklist you will find a place for the reviewer to draw all the 105 previously made comments together and to comment on any alternate data located. In this comment section the reviewer will indicate if the appraisers opinion of value appears to be accurate or if there are issues that would question the integrity of the report.
Following the P.A.R.R. Checklist, we will provide copies of everything we found in our verification process. If the P.A.R.R. Report is ordered you will also receive a copy of all comps found in the area through our subscribed data sources. If you are in a Rural Area the comps will be scarce but we will provide what we can find. This is an important step so we can learn if the comps provided in the appraisal were the most similar, closest in proximity and the most recent sales available. If there are better comps found that would indicate a higher or lower value than those provided we will indicate this in the comments on the Checklist as well. We will also provide a flood cert for verification purposes and if the subject appears to be in a flood we will do what is possible to confirm this.
So, there is a big difference between an Appraisers USPAP Compliant Review vs The P.A.R.R. Checklist and Report but the biggest difference is yet to come.
Most Appraisers charge $150.00 - $300.00 for their work and can take up to 3 days to get it back. P.A.R.R. Charges $20.00 for a Basic Review (Basically the checklist and confirmation of the data in the appraisal) or $50.00 for the P.A.R.R. Report and guarantee a 24 Hour Turn Time.
Let us make sure your appraisal is Up to P.A.R.R.
It should be noted that P.A.R.R. Review Specialists are not Licensed Appraisers. We can not offer an alternative opinion of value. We can however point you in the right direction should your need be to have a USPAP Compliant Review completed by a Licensed Appraiser. According to many Appraisers we are not allowed to form an opinion on if we agree with a value or not because they feel that only Licensed appraisers are allowed to "Review" Appraisals according to the laws as they interpret them. However, because we are not Licensed Appraisers, we are not governed by the same rules and regulations as "Licensed Appraisers" are. Therefore in our opinion working for the Borrower, we are unregulated. However, in order to not cause problems within the appraisal community, we will not indicate in words an opinion of the appraisers estimate of value however we will still provide any additional data that we feel may be relevant to your appraisal and it's value. What conclusions you form of the data we provide vs. the data the appraiser has provided is up to you. As Bank reviewers we ordered and received Reviews daily from appraisers and it is very rare that one appraiser would blow the "Value" Whistle. But we also noticed that if good alternate comparable data was presented to an appraiser it is really no challenge to get the appraiser to alter their opinion of value. The problem is that the alternate data you provide them must be accurate and verifiable before they will consider it and for good reason, everything in their report must be able to be confirmed accurate by anyone.
With all that being said, there are some very large differences between a P.A.R.R. Review Report and a USPAP Compliant Review.
From Our experience, the Appraisers review is going to consist of a checklist of between 36-44 questions and some of the forms they use leave no room for commentary on the different items reviewed. The P.A.R.R. Review Checklist asks 105 questions which basically walks you from the beginning of the appraisal to the end. We indicate either a Red, Yellow or Green flag. These designations we find easier to understand than Acceptable, Unacceptable or N/A as provided on appraisers review forms. If there is a Red Flag we will provide proof of why the item was red flagged and if the item is Yellow Flagged we will in some cases provide proof of it being incorrect but yellow flagged items are of concern but would probably not impact the value or credibility of the appraisers report. Green Flag are indicated if no issue is found but in every case a comment would be provided in the comment area of that line indicating what was found.
At the end of some Appraisers Review forms is a place to indicate an alternate opinion of value. Most appraisers don't complete this area because it would require them to complete a separate grid of alternate comps for which the value is based.
At the end of a P.A.R.R. Review Checklist you will find a place for the reviewer to draw all the 105 previously made comments together and to comment on any alternate data located. In this comment section the reviewer will indicate if the appraisers opinion of value appears to be accurate or if there are issues that would question the integrity of the report.
Following the P.A.R.R. Checklist, we will provide copies of everything we found in our verification process. If the P.A.R.R. Report is ordered you will also receive a copy of all comps found in the area through our subscribed data sources. If you are in a Rural Area the comps will be scarce but we will provide what we can find. This is an important step so we can learn if the comps provided in the appraisal were the most similar, closest in proximity and the most recent sales available. If there are better comps found that would indicate a higher or lower value than those provided we will indicate this in the comments on the Checklist as well. We will also provide a flood cert for verification purposes and if the subject appears to be in a flood we will do what is possible to confirm this.
So, there is a big difference between an Appraisers USPAP Compliant Review vs The P.A.R.R. Checklist and Report but the biggest difference is yet to come.
Most Appraisers charge $150.00 - $300.00 for their work and can take up to 3 days to get it back. P.A.R.R. Charges $20.00 for a Basic Review (Basically the checklist and confirmation of the data in the appraisal) or $50.00 for the P.A.R.R. Report and guarantee a 24 Hour Turn Time.
Let us make sure your appraisal is Up to P.A.R.R.
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