Updated to reflect new “guidance” from the Appraisal Subcommittee on September 27, 2023. What if a state dropped its appraisal management company law and no longer regulated AMCs? That’s exactly what’s happened in Hawaii – maybe by accident. The state has a regulatory “sunset law” (Hawaii Revised Statutes section 26H-4), Read more…
How many discrimination cases have been filed against appraisers? What’s really happening in the courts and in investigations with respect to alleged bias? Those are questions I cover in my presentations and classes for appraisers. But, I will tell you here that the most significant pending case about alleged appraisal Read more…
When a mortgage lender seeks to make a Veterans Administration-backed home loan, the lender requests an appraisal from the VA’s appraiser panel by using a form entitled Request for Determination of Reasonable Value. For many years, until it was revised in July 2022, this form had a box labelled “Refinancing-Amount Read more…
Under California appraiser law, does an appraiser have to use an engagement letter for each appraisal assignment? The answer is “no.” A California appraiser is not obligated to use an engagement letter or other agreement for any kind of assignment (lending or non-lending) under the Real Estate Appraisers’ Licensing and Certification Law or any Read more…
Appraisal management companies (AMCs) and appraisal firms with independent contractors in Michigan: it would be wise to pay attention to Michigan House Bills 4390 and 4391. These bills seek to bring California’s famous “ABC test” to contractor classification in Michigan and would create substantial penalties for noncompliance. In particular, HB4390 Read more…
In 2020, a California certified general appraiser filed a lawsuit against Wells Fargo in state court under a special section of the California Labor Code called the Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA). Essentially, PAGA enables private parties and their attorneys to step into the shoes of the State of California to Read more…
I am offering my new 7-hour CE class Appraiser Law in the Real World on April 21, 2023, 8:30 am to 4:30 pm at the Coast Inn at Lake Hood in Anchorage, Alaska. The offering of this class is specifically and only for Alaska and Washington appraisers. The Alaska Board of Certified Real Estate Appraisers has approved the class Read more…
I had the pleasure to do an impromptu interview of the CEO/founder of one favorite clients about the subject of non-USPAP evaluations. Deb Clark, MAI is the CEO/founder of Eval.com. What she’s done is crack the code on how appraisers and appraiser-owned firms can profit from non-USPAP evaluations. The interview was Read more…
California’s AB 5 – the anti-independent contractor law – was “overturned” for appraisers by a new exemption created under the fix-it bill AB 2257. It went into effect last September, but . . . the problem is that many appraisers and appraisal firms in California misunderstand the exemption it created from Read more…
I am offering my 7-hour CE class Hot Topics and Myths in Appraiser Liability live via Zoom on March 11, 2021, 9:00 am to 4:00 pm (AK). The offering of this class is specifically and only for Alaska appraisers. I’ve enjoyed teaching prior classes in both Anchorage and Juneau and wish that I could come again Read more…