I’m ordering my first appraisal for my first loan the I originated. Few questions:
Has anyone here used eAppraiseIt.com? Looks like a neat service.
When ordering the appraisal, do I necessarily have to have the particular lender and loan program already picked out? The reason I ask is that there are a few places on the 1004 form that mentioned “lender”. What if the new lender is not known yet on a refi?
Quote:
Has anyone here used eAppraiseIt.com? Looks like a neat service
I use www.appraisers.com This allows me to “shop” for my clients. I can find the best price and turn time.
When ordering the appraisal, do I necessarily have to have the particular lender and loan program already picked out? The reason I ask is that there are a few places on the 1004 form that mentioned "lender". What if the new lender is not known yet on a refi
NO, you do not need to know the lender. I believe that it actually says “Lender/Client” on the 1004. The appraisal will be in your name. It will then transfer to the lender when one is chosen and it closes.
eAppraiseIt.com is an appraisal management company (known as an AMC in the business).
They’re middle men…getting in between an appraiser & their commission. They also tend to shop for the lowest appraisal fees (getting the picture yet?).
The types of appraisal outfits that tend to accept these terms are what I call ‘sweatshops.’ Large companies with a disproportionate number of unlicensed staff in relation to licensed or certified appraisers. Sweatshops send unqualified people into the field to conduct property inspections, and complete the report–which is then rubber stamped by the licensed or certified appraiser (site unseen “did inspect”). Some states have taken measures to put a stop to this illegal & unethical practice–by limiting the number of trainees relative to licensed or certified appraisers (typically 2-3). Other states are behind the curve on this problem which has reached epidemic proportions.
Another kind of appraiser that’ll work for a reduced fee is a desperate individual, or newbie just starting out on their own. In other words…someone who (for whatever reason) is willing to work for a reduced fee.
AMC’s claim appraisers like to work for them because, they offer volume orders. Another appraiser once addressed this better than I ever could; “there are no economies to be realized from multiple orders from the same client unless there is some commonality among the subjects. You can perform 10 appraisals from 10 clients in the same time as 10 appraisals from 1 client. You can’t cut a fee and make it up in volume. The AMC’s offer of volume for reduced fees is bogus. It takes a “challenged” appraiser to buy into it.”
Additionally, each & every lender has their own “preapproved appraiser list.” I’d advise you to get a copy of the list, or ask the lender’s you’ll most likely be working with…which appraiser’s they’d recommend & order directly (more incentive for the appraiser to do a good job in a timely & effective manner).
“The appraisal will be in your name. It will then transfer to the lender when one is chosen and it closes.”
Thanks to rampant mortgage fraud…some recent rule changes do not permit appraisers to transfer an appraisal among lenders (known in the industry as a retype).
It’s considered a “new order,” and you’ll be charged accordingly.
Can you find an appraiser who’ll give you a “retype?” Probably, however, they’re not suppose to.