In the Daily Finance article Americans Are Still Paying the Tab for Countrywide's Misdeeds by M. Joy Hayes, Ph.D. ,of The Motley Fool made the claim:
"With the help of slipshod appraisals, home prices doubled or even tripled in just a few years (2002-2007). Eager consumers rushed in to buy before they were priced out of the market, and greedy buyers moved in, hoping that they could flip the house in a year or two with the help of steadily rising appraisals."
When I read simplistic statements like that I'm reminded of the story where there was a claim that:
"Wearing raincoats in the Winter results in increased automobile accidents."
Really? Is is the raincoats or is it the rain, snow, poor tires, and driving too fast for conditions (all common in Winter months) that were the major factors influencing the seasonal rise in accidents?
In this case, was it the appraisers or was it the buying freenzy of speculative homebuyers fuled by "look the other way" fraudulent bankers, sales people, and regulators?
Even with "supported appraised values", weren't appraisers (check the forums) shouting that this type of appreciation was unsustainable?
When the housing bubble started to burst and markets began "declining in value" - who was it that refused to accept appraisals with the "declining market" box checked? Who was it that blacklisted appraisers that failed to comply.
Come on! Did "slipshod" appraisals cause home prices to triple . . . our could it just possibly be that they were a barometer of the what was happening in the market place?
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