Back in May, 2009, Appraiser Active posted about the need to regulate Appraisal Management Companies. The failure to regulate Appraisal Management Companies provides way too many opportunities for abuse of the system, scant protection for property owners, borrowers and lenders, and limited means to assure wrongdoers meet justice. The post included a link to an article in by Susan Taylor Martin, Senior Correspondent for the St. Petersburg Times.
At that time, Larry Holzer was operating an Appraisal Management Company; Global Appraisal Solutions. (Note: link is to the wayback machine). Through the grapevine, we've heard that Global Appraisal Solutions is no longer operating. We've also heard of a few independent contractor appraisers stiffed by his firm as it took the dive, similar to what happened with Security One Valuation Services, LLC.
There were some warning signs. Appraisers on the Global Appraisal Solutions panel received this email:
From: larry@globalappraisalsolutions.com [mailto:larry@globalappraisalsolutions.com]Sent: Tuesday, October 06, 2009 12:50 PMSubject: Important Update: Global Appraisal Solutions
October 6, 2009
Dear Appraisers,
Good afternoon.
Approximately five days ago, I wrote to advise you that a dispute has arisen between Global Appraisal Solutions and one of the lenders that the company serves.
The dispute involves various areas of alleged lender misconduct, including, but not limited to a large outstanding balance for completed appraisals as well as lender practices that Global alleges violate banking regulations.
It is important that during this time, we remind you that any outstanding appraisal that was requested by you from Global Appraisal Solutions that you do the following things to help us to quickly resolve the dispute:
1. Complete the appraisals with professionalism and speed.
2. Ship the appraisals and the conditions ONLY to your client: Global Appraisal Solutions
2. Report by email to Global Appraisal Solutions any attempt by the lender to seek the appraisals or conditions from you directly, or any other thing that the lender may do or attempt to do, that would otherwise compel you to violate USPAP, HVCC, or state law.
Global is communicating with the appropriate parties and we do anticipate settling this matter in the coming days.
Thank you.
Sincerely,
Larry Holzer
President, Global Appraisal Solutions, LLC.
If having his State Certified Credential revoked by the Florida Real Estate Appraisal Board will not keep him from opening and operating an Appraisal Management Company, why should folding an Appraisal Management Company keep him from opening another?
Announcing
From the site (I'm tempted to tag this 'sarcasm on').
Appraisal Mediation Solutions is one of the most trusted providers of real estate valuations in the Nation. Our philosophy is to provide fast and accurate real estate valuations to assist our clients in making informed real estate decisions. Our reports are prepared with the precision that the industry demands with all major property types included.
The filing with the Florida Division of Corporations indicates the principal office of the Limited Liability Company is:
140 Island Way
#245
Clearwater, FL 33767
For those lenders, mortgage bankers, mortgage brokers and appraisers interested in doing business with Appraisal Mediation Solutions, LLC, you might want to research the palatial principal office. Just in case you are interested, Appraiser Active has done this already. Take a LOOK at the business at that address.
If you're an appraiser, and interested, he's also hiring. Let me know if the link goes dead. I've got a pdf of the page to post if necessary.
More than likely, there are thousands of businesses operating with a UPS box as their principal office, but I'm just sayin'.......
It looks like fly-by-night Appraisal Management Companies will be all the rage in the 2010's. Be careful of the companies you work with.
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3 comments:
The fact of the matter is that the HVCC business model defies human logic. Two groups insist that it does works. The government and AMCs. The government was blackmailed into adopting it with no research being done upfront. Now they are forced to support it until they can find a way out. AMCs (and their parent banks) support HVCC because they are making billions from it.
The HVCC defies logic in every way (much like perpetual motion). It requires you to believe that human beings are willing to provide superior service while taking a 50%pay cut. Not a far fetched idea if appraisers were stamping out identical products such as fenders or hoods. I have yet to find an appraisal shop that turns out identical appraisals for each order.
If HVCC truly does work I suggest that apply it immediately to the medical profession to lower health care costs. HVCC claims that fees and experience have abolustely no impact upon the quality of the service being offered. Force patients to give up their clients and submit their lowest bids to obtain work. If it works...we've solved the healthcare issue.
Once that's completely let's apply it to the legal profession as well as banking to bring down the cost to their clients.
The sad reality is that HVCC does not work and CAN NOT WORK because of one simple problem. Human beings do not provide superior (or the same) quality of work when you reduce their income by 50% or more.
The End
You can add Westside Appraisals located in Los Angeles to the list. The excuse was "Lend America" was shut down and they did'nt get paid. However, the homeowners I have contacted told me the appraisal fee was paid months ago. One more, although not an AMC - Urban Financial or Revese It as they answer the phone likes to order FHA appraisals for reverse mortgages. They don't collect for the appraisals from the homeowner and guess what? If the value is'nt there and the deal does'nt work - you don't get paid.
Of course they don't tell you that because you would never do an appraisal in the first place. They are not regulated by Oklahoma's Banking Commission as they are in Tulsa and FHA approved, but after contacting HUD their response was "We don't get involved with collections. Ha, should I have expected they would ? Or should I have expected that HUD would want to know about a rouge mortgage comany ? They are only FHA approved. I'm sure we are not the only appraisers that have had this experience with these two companies.
Westside has really placed my company in a bind! One excuse after the other! HORRIBLE!
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