Problems with Banks

For those of you who depend on banks assignments, yes I have been there, I don’t envy you your special vendor status.  You are fine as long as the same appraisal service representative, loan office or bank VP favors you.  If your contact leaves your special bank or banks, which they often do, you may end up off of their favored appraiser list.  The biased selection process never went away, its my opinion that all banks should have to select from an approved panel and not play the age old biased selection game.

I wish I had a dollar for every bank customer who contacted me and asked me why my bid for their needed appraisal services is hundreds to thousands of dollars lower than the the bid they got from the "approved" appraiser that is on the bank’s approved vendor list.  I always tell them that "bias is bias" and that the bank is not concerned about their inflated fee as long as they can control the appraisal origination process.   

Last week I had a prominent Texas-based commercial bank call me and asked me to do a “rush review.”  They told me they were desperate to get a review on a specialty commercial property in a few days because they needed it to close.  I told them "I am licensed in Nevada not Texas," and they said "no problem, we have had other third-party reviews done by out of state appraisers." 

So I went through the emailed appraisal report line by line, trying to make sure that I didn't miss any important issues.  I rushed to complete the USPAP review forms and after several hours of work I was satisfied that I had completed a reasonable review of the content.  Before I delivered the review, however, I wanted to make sure about licensing so I did my own final check with the Texas licensing board.  It's my opinion that it's always better to be safe than sorry.

The Texas licensing board told me in no uncertain terms that a temporary license was required to do the appraisal review I had just completed.  It would cost me $ 250 and take 2 weeks to acquire.  So the bank flat out lied to me to get the review done promptly for their closing.

Several hours of hard work and do you think the Texas bank would pay me for any of my time?  Not a chance, they wouldn't even return my phone calls.  I couldn't have had a quicker 180 degree turnaround, from my best friend employer to total avoidance after I advised them that I couldn't deliver the review.

As an appraiser I feel like the bank took advantage of me.  The bank simply didn't care about what the Texas regulators wanted they just wanted their review delivered so they could close their deal.  I'm not saying that I don't share some responsibility, I should have checked with the Texas regulators first and I didn't. 

I learned a lesson from this employment, yes I had a contract and Vendor approval, it's important for appraisers to protect themselves yes even from banks.  Banks are looking for a service and some are not concerned about whether an appraiser is appropriately licensed as long as the work is done so they can close their deal on time.

This wasn’t my first problem bank situation.  I assisted with another appraiser with an appraisal report years ago, before it was required to disclose assistance, and I produced a quality appraisal report that was almost immediately reviewed.  Why?  Because the appraiser I assisted had pushed himself onto the banks vendor list.  Are banks biases when they hire appraisers?  Absolutely they are, its common knowledge, so if you try to force yourself through the door you had better be prepared for their retribution.

For more appraisal information contact Glenn Rigdon, MA, MRICS, ASA a Las Vegas / Henderson Nevada appraiser via email or via his business website Horizon Village Appraisal (http://www.horizonvillageappraisal.com), or you can also click on “Contact Us” on the home page of this website.

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