Author: Aaron O. Thomas, Certified Residential Appraiser. Aaron is owner of San Diego Appraisers, a real estate appraisal service provider specializing in residential properties located in the greater San Diego County area. San Diego Appraisers service mortgage brokers, CPAs, lawyers, businesses and homeowners.
The HVCC has been forestalled by numerous months, but it looks as though the agreement will never the less become active. If the agreement goes through and if the emphasis is still focused on appraisal management companies, are you prepared? I am sure that you have read numerous "scare tactic" articles about HVCC, but I assure you this one is helpful.
This will undoubtedly have some implications; the biggest one that I might point out is that we might actually have to deal with the much-despised appraisal management companies. For many of us, there are issues that need to be resolved before putting our energy towards a fruitless venture such as making half as much income by working for AMC's. The first issue obviously is that we would get paid less.
This means we would need to produce more appraisals (faster) in order to make-up for the lost income we are accustomed to making.
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nderstandably, it seems like most appraisers are not willing to do this; mostly because there is a general belief in the industry that the quality of the appraisal product would diminish from cutting the corners needed in order to close the gap on the turn-around times. Such as: not driving by the comps or calling real estate agents to confirm sales (or simply sitting down and thinking).
First, let me explain that I already felt competition becoming tougher and the fees were declining, almost similar to that of getting financially strangled. Well, that was until I learned about this new little thing called HVCC, and then I felt like I was getting stabbed (yes, in the back).
I initially panicked and then came to my senses and realized that in life, there are always solutions (and no, it is not always fair). I challenged myself to test common beliefs and I have come to other solutions. These solutions may not always be in the form that may be perfect, but in most cases they are solutions that do in fact work.
"I think we can all agree that we need to cut corners in order to survive, but we need to first solve the ethical issue of cutting the wrong corners by not doing the required work needed to provide credible results. And why not consider cutting other corners that would not be so unethical?"
Most may not realize that there are numerous things just within the form filling realm of appraisal that can easily be done to cut down on time and all without suffering from inaccurate data. In discussing different software packages, I am going to use ACI and WinTOTAL as an example.
There are some appraisers who have tried a la mode, but feel that they can be quicker inside of the ACI program. Similarly, other appraisers feel that WinTOTAL offers them the refined tools needed to enhance performance. So if you feel that simply switching software will enhance your turn-around time, then why not switch? Switching to software that more fits your needs is an enormous part of trimming on wasted time and it is ethical.
How much of your time is spent on going to the office, typing half the report and then going back out into the field to photograph your sales comparables? My guess is that you are getting sleepy by just reading about it. I took this into consideration when thinking of what corners to cut.
Obviously, I could not just settle on using MLS pictures. What I decided to do was to print out possible comparables based on square footage (information from public records) and bring them with me. If after measuring, the footage turns out to be accurate, I can then thumb through printouts and choose correct comparables that are the most similar to the subject (home).
But, wait; what if the footage is different than what the public records indicated for one reason or another? What do I do then (besides get angry)? For this reason, I started to bring a list of the sales for the entire neighborhood that have the one-liner type of information that includes the footage, sold date, etc. I might have to take more photo’s than I would have if the footage was correct on the public records because I do not know exactly know which one I want yet without printing out the detailed listings.
But, nine times out of ten, it beats going back to the office and then driving all the way back. It makes me feel good to know that all I have to do is go on inspection and then come back to my office with everything at my magical finger-tips. Again, this is a VERY good way to trim a lot of wasted time that could be used instead for tea time.
So the two above examples is the angle I took with every aspect of my business.
- My measuring tape was a frustrating hassle; replaced it.
- My software made me feel like I was in the Stone Age; replaced it.
- I was driving too much, so I started to combine my trips.
I did a considerable amount of the things to trim my time spent per appraisal. Before I knew it, my time spent per Appraisal was cut in half. And this was all without cutting the wrong corners, but the right corners.
If you take this attitude I believe that you too can cut your turn-around times. Even if the HVCC agreement changes so that the language about AMC’s is redacted, trimming your time will never-the-less make you a healthier and happier Appraiser that can go back to enjoying appraisal!
Author: Aaron O. Thomas, Certified Residential Appraiser. Aaron is owner of San Diego Appraisers, a real estate appraisal service provider specializing in residential properties located in the greater San Diego County area. San Diego Appraisers service mortgage brokers, CPAs, lawyers, businesses and homeowners.
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