Appraisal Scoop

Shameless Self-Promotion: Adding an Appraisal Scoop RSS Feed

Keep web traffic coming back to your site.  Many web site companies, including a la mode's Appraiser XSites, allow appraisers to show RSS Feeds.  But . . .What is it? and what does it do for YOU!?

RSS stands for Really Simple Syndication.  It allows other sites (Yahoo!® News, Inman®, The New York Times®, Appraisal Scoop) to publish news stories, blogs, podcasts, and video blogs to your site automatically, so you’ve always got highly targeted, current content.

Why is RSS important?  It’s no secret that search engines reward sites with fresh, relevant content with a boost in search engine ranking.  They also look for links between your site and other websites, especially sites that have similar content that's relevant to the industry, or local content.

RSS feeds will keep your visitors on your site longer, and will keep them coming back.  Plus, if you have a specialty, you can choose a RSS feed that gives visitors the impression that you’re the unrivaled expert. 

• Do you specialize in relocation appraisals?  Add an RSS about local news or economic conditions. 
• Are you a commercial appraiser?  Add an RSS about commercial news. 
• New construction appraisers can add an RSS feed about construction trends.

Click HERE to continue reading how to add an RSS feed to Appraisal Scoop!

Appraisal Institute Members in Top Positions on Appraisal Foundation's Board of Trustees

Chicago, IL (Vocus/PRWeb ) January 15, 2007 -- Members of the Appraisal Institute have been elected to serve in leadership positions on the Appraisal Foundation's Board of Trustees for 2007.

• Arthur Clapp, who is an associate member of the Appraisal Institute as well as a member of the American Society of Farm Managers and Rural Appraisers (ASFMRA), will serve as the Board's chair;
• Shawn McGowan, SRA, as vice chair; Larry Kokel, MAI, also a member of ASFMRA, as secretary;
• Alan Hummel, SRA, as assistant secretary;
• John Bredemeyer, SRA, as treasurer; and
• Alice DeJong, MAI, as assistant treasurer.

The appointments, which were made at the Foundation's annual Fall Meeting on October 28, 2006, officially began on January 1, 2007.

"To have our members in the leadership for such a prominent organization is a testament to the confidence the Appraisal Foundation has in the integrity and professionalism of Appraisal Institute members," said Terry Dunkin, MAI, SRA, president of the Appraisal Institute. "These members will play an integral part in facilitating the Appraisal Foundation's continued success. This is an exciting time for the Foundation and we're glad that our members are in a position to serve."

Why Blogs are More Popular than Websites Now?

Having a website back in the toddler days of Internet was cool. If you are a company and you had a website URL on your business card, that would win you brownie points….tons of brownie points, actually. Websites, those days, wasn’t even impressive, really. I mean, they were static and plain. Some of them had designs and colors that gave you a horrible eyesore too. Sad to say, I’ve seen many of such websites belonging to small to medium sized corporations.

However, as we move forward a couple of years later, in came flash. Having a flash website was really flashy and it impressed the socks off of people. That is, people who were willing to wait for the flash on the website to load. Back in those pre-broadband days, that’s quite a lot of waiting to do. You could go to the kitchen, get that spaghetti cooked, come back to the PC and the flash would STILL be loading. I kid you not.

But NOW, there’s business blog. Aaahhh….didn’t you ever notice that with blogs, we’re going back to the basics? We’re going back to being simple, nice, neat websites that are packed with information. And most importantly, a blog allows communication, feedback and interactivity. Actually, the blog is the best thing to happen to the Internet of recent years…simply because it brings us back to the very basics of Internet marketing. The focus is back to words and information.

Click below to read on . . .

Appraisal Institute CEO, John Ross, Joins Zaio

Zaio Corporation announced today that John W. Ross of Chicago, Illinois is joining its senior management team. Mr. Ross most recently served as CEO of the Appraisal Institute, a position he held for the past nine years.

Founded in 1932, the Appraisal Institute is the largest appraisal organization in the USA, and is known for its "MAI" and "SRA" professional appraisal designations. It is the leading appraisal educator, serving more than 30,000 appraisal students each year, and the world's leading publisher of books on real estate appraisal.

Previously, Mr. Ross served as Executive Vice President of the American Society of Farm Managers and Rural Appraisers, the premiere agricultural and rural property appraisal organization, a position he held for 7 years. 

"John's history of leadership roles within the appraisal industry demonstrate his commitment to the principles of ethical conduct, quality education, and professionalism," stated Thomas Inserra, Zaio Corporation Chief Executive Officer. "We are pleased that John has decided to join our team as a Vice President to help Zaio in its efforts of partnering with the highest quality and most ethical appraisers and development of product markets. His role is critically important to our company since, after all, the strength of Zaio's business model is derived from and relies upon local appraiser experts." 

Mr. Ross explained his rationale for joining Zaio's rapidly growing team:

"Clearly, the appraisal profession must innovate to offer quality valuation services more competitively. I believe Zaio's unique approach to valuation offers appraisers a means to provide their services in a more timely fashion."

Click below to read on . . .

Your Thoughts on Blogging

I have not posted in some time and I have been doing a lot of thinking about blogs, blogging software etc.  I have come to some conclusions but I really want your opinions, thoughts etc.

• What do you want to see the most in blogs?
• Do you have one?
• What is the best software that you have found?  (Typepad, Blogger, Wordpress, Drupal etc.
• Why do you like that software?

Tell me your opinions!

Author: Brooke Long: Cataluna is a web design and print marketing company located in Shakopee, Minnesota.

Past Due Collections - Appraiser delivers a knockout blow!

I'm sure that most appraisers, if they've been in business for a year or more, have run into a case where a deadbeat client refuses to pay for services rendered if the appraised value is not sufficient for them to make their loan.  Talmon Murphy, Jr. of SouthLand Appraisal Services, Inc. DID . . and here's his story!

I just wanted to pass this on to everyone here. I had an appraisal that I did several months ago. The home was WAY overvalued by the homeowner and we came in much lower then they estimated. The president of the mortgage company informed us last week, by fax, that our appraisal was "unacceptable" due to the value being lower than the "other 2 appraisals" he had done.

When I spoke to him on Monday, he was rude, so I informed him that I did expect to be paid for all the work we did, plus my extra collection time and court cost if I had to take him to court. He in turn threatened that he if I pursued legal action he would turn me in to the Alabama Appraiser's Board. I told him that I welcomed that, since I know the board loves to see it when appraisers don't cave in to lender pressure! He was very insistent that he would not pay, so I put together the letter below and sent it to him by fax and email.

This afternoon, I got a call from his attorney, informing me that if I would stop my collection attempts he would overnight a check to me!  He also emailed me the same promise, so I now have that in my workfile.

Bam, take that you crooks!

Some might say that if we knew it might come in low, we should have stopped. I say that by us sticking closely to USPAP guidelines, and completing the appraisal correctly and honestly, we gave the homeowner the perfect opportunity to save their credit and not get "upside down" in their loan. This is something that others who are willing to do "Comp Checks" or stop if the value appears to be low need to consider. If we make it easy for the lender to move on to the next appraiser to get the value they want, then we have become a BIG part of the problem! The fact that their broker proceeded to get an appraisal high enough to do their loan is the fault of the broker, and shows no real concern or interest in the overall well being of their client! They are the ones who did wrong, not I, as the appraiser!

My letter follows . . . click below!

Runt's Rants: Business Evolution

The author is the owner of Acorn Appraisal Associates, a 20 year old firm offering a wide range of quality appraisal services to the Financial and Business Communities in the greater Houston SMSA

The reader (even the singular is an assumption) may recall that Acorn embarked on a long term business plan six years ago with the intent of training the next generation of appraisers/owners of the company. 

The basic idea was/is to bring fresh young folks into the company, train them in the art of appraisers, and develop them into seasoned business managers, capable of making good business decisions in the future. 

It's a long slog (love that word...didn't know it until a few years ago) and certainly not yet completed, but progress can be seen along the way, if I look closely enough.

One evidence of progress is a meeting held a couple of months ago with the Bright Horses (BHs); the core staff fingered to lead the company.  It was a bitch session, with Boss being the target.  Essentially, Boss wasn't involving the BHs in the management discussions enough to where they felt a part of that management function.  Once I removed the splinters from the paddling I received, I could see the progress. 

Great!  They care, there is passion! . . Click below to read on!

Massive Fraud Bust Nets 61 Defendants

Last week indictments were handed down against 61 defendants that included mortgage brokers, loan officers, title company officers, 3rd party down payment providers, 45 buyers and sellers, and at least one appraiser. The case involves 38 properties financed by $2.85 million in mortgages.  Full Story

According to the indictment obtained by the Originator Times, the elaborate scheme involved flipping properties to straw buyers at inflated appraised values. However, unlike traditional fraudulent endeavors, it is alleged that nearly all the parties associated in the transaction were participating in the fraud, with the exception of the actual lender.

Geek's Corner: Gates Previews Server for Home Users

Dan Costa (PC Magazine's senior editor, consumer electronics) reports that Bill Gates demoed a new server designed specifically for home users at his keynote address on Sunday.

Dubbed Windows Home Server, the software is designed to make it easy for consumers with no technical expertise to set up a home server and use it for file sharing, for backup, and as an always-on library of media—and I say hallelujah, if it really is easy!

Microsoft will be partnering with a variety of hardware vendors to offer the server appliance through retail channels. Devices should be available by mid-2007.  Read Dan’s report.

Where's YOUR "Man Cave"?

man cave n. An area of a house, such as a basement, workshop, or garage, where a man can be alone with his power tools and projects.

In Tom Kelly's Inman News article Predictions for this years housing market , he's included: Caving.

"Man caves and Mom caves are coming out of the closet. Personal dedicated space for one person in a household where he/she can go and work on projects or "chill" without being disturbed -- and if so, only in an emergency."

In the Business Week Hot Property blog "Where's Your Man Cave? Chris Palmeri says:   

Upscale garages. "It's no longer the out-of-sight-out-of-mind dumping ground. Today's garage owners want them decked out with cabinet and storage systems, mini-refrigerators, insulation, heating and air conditioning and durable but residential-looking flooring."

Man caves and Mom caves. "Personal dedicated space for one person in a household where they can go and work on projects or chill without being disturbed."

The basement or garage has become such a special place for special man-projects that DIY is even devoting special programming to it:  Programs like "My Ultimate Workshop," looked at tricked-out garages and basements where guys hone their crafts, be it woodworking, car restoration, wine collecting or model-train building.

So how did the man cave make such a transformation?   

Click below to READ ON . . .