Buying a Condominium? Do Your Homework First - 08/31/07 01:43 PM
In the last 20 years, condominiums have become more popular among those wanting to buy a home. Condominiums make great affordable first homes. They also make great homes if downsizing from a large family house to a smaller residence. Before purchasing a condominium, there is information a person should know to … (0 comments)
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Backing Up Your Blog - 08/29/07 07:42 PM
Do ALL you folks reading my blog back up your computer files? I believe most people do.
NOW . . . How many bloggers backup their blog? To be honest, until recently, I didn't either. I've read other people's horrifying stories of how they lost their blog and went scrambling for help to retrieve all those … (8 comments)
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Promises . . .Promises: If you'll just do this ONE "Comp Check"! - 08/29/07 07:37 AM
Everyday appraisers across the country are called by potential clients with offers of work IF they'll just to this one FAVOR!
Yesterday I blogged about my call from a mortgage broker in Chicago. She asked, "What's your fee for an appraisal in Danvers, IL?" I told her. Then she asked, "How … (8 comments)
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Appraisal Fee - Markup or Kickback? - Part 3 - 08/28/07 03:58 PM
Appraiser Question: "I received an order from an Appraisal Management Company (AMC) that requested I bill the client $75 more than my standard fee and return $75 to them. I've never heard of this before, but I haven't worked with many management companies. Is this common?" "Do I need to make … (2 comments)
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Appraisal Fee - Markup or Kickback? Part 2 - 08/28/07 03:57 PM
Appraiser Question: "I received an order from an Appraisal Management Company (AMC) that requested I bill the client $75 more than my standard fee and return $75 to them. I've never heard of this before, but I haven't worked with many management companies. Is this common?" "Do I need to … (2 comments)
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Appraisal Foundation Announces Availability of 2008 Criteria Implementation DVD Video Stream - 08/28/07 03:56 PM
Appraisers can now view the 3-hour DVD produced by the Appraiser Qualifications Board (AQB) by visiting the foundation's website. Listed below are the different chapters of the Implementation of the 2008 Real Property Qualification Criteria video.
You can either choose to view the video chapter by chapter, or, if you prefer, you … (0 comments)
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Appraisal Fee - Markup or Kickback? - Part 1 - 08/28/07 01:31 PM
Appraiser Question: "I received an order from an Appraisal Management Company (AMC) that requested I bill the client $75 more than my standard fee and return $75 to them. I've never heard of this before, but I haven't worked with many management companies. Is this common?" "Do I need to … (3 comments)
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Who does the appraiser work for? - 08/24/07 10:39 PM
Kelly Koehler of The Housechick Blog asked the following questions, in her original blog post, after reading an article authored by an appraisal organization:
Okay, remind me again, who typically pays for the appraisal? Oh yeah - the BUYER. And who gets a copy of it? Oh yeah - the lender. And … (38 comments)
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GLB Appraiser Privacy Policy - Do You Have One? - 08/24/07 09:09 AM
According to the a la mode, inc. “Best Practices” Series dealing with compliance issues of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act Click here for the full article ] :
"The important thing when evaluating your options is to scale them to your needs, and remember that it’s not “all or nothing”.
"Improving security and … (1 comments)
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Humor - "A Few Good Appraisers" - You can't HANDLE the truth! - 08/22/07 06:46 PM
If they ever make a movie about appraisers and loan officers, maybe we'll find these modified lines from the movie "A Few Good Men"? . . .
Value? You can't handle the value!
You want answers? I think I'm entitled.
You want answers? I want the truth!
You can't handle the truth!
You … (5 comments)
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How To Prepare For A Real Estate Appraisal - 08/22/07 08:48 AM
For homeowners, a real estate appraisal is the linchpin to buying or selling their home. It allows the property transactions to occur among the buyer, seller, real estate agent and mortgage lender.
Before an appraiser arrives, there are a few things you should know. By law, an appraiser must be state licensed … (3 comments)
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Locate multiple addresses - calculate distances - make your own mashup map - instantly! - 08/14/07 06:28 AM
How would you like to take any kind of street address list, for example copied from an Excel spreadsheet, and automatically geocode the addresses to get latitude and longitude coordinates? Then, map the data in your browser, download it into Google Earth, save it to a web page, or transfer it … (0 comments)
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Video: Comp Checks, Look-sees, Pencil Searches and other nonsense - 08/13/07 06:00 PM
I attended the Illinois Coalition of Appraisers (ICAP) update seminar in Springfield, IL last month and thought I'd share one of the funnier videos from the seminar. The topic is serious for appraisers . . .but Brian gives it his special spin!
In attendance were such notables as, Debra Brown from the … (1 comments)
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Planned Unit Development (PUD) - Appraiser vs Underwriter Q&A - 08/12/07 06:03 AM
Appraiser Asks: Can you help me explain that just because Homeowner Association (HOA) dues are paid doesn't mean the appraised property is in a Planned Unit Development (PUD)? The Loan Underwriter rejected my appraisal because HOA dues of $300 per year are paid for maintenance of a drain water lagoon. The … (6 comments)
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Condominium Project Analysis - The Appraiser's Role? - 08/11/07 12:54 PM
At least three in four home buyers obtain a professional home inspection to determine the physical condition of a home before they close the deal, but most home buyers aren't as likely to pay attention to a condominium community's financial condition when it is just as necessary. "It is amazing … (17 comments)
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Shameless Self-Promotion: Adding an Appraisal Scoop Blog RSS Feed - 08/10/07 06:27 AM
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 … (4 comments)
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How Credit Got So Easy And Why It's Tightening - 08/09/07 07:22 AM
As Oliver Hardy used to say . . .
"Well, here's another nice mess you've gotten me into."
Yesterday the RealEstateJournal.com posted a great article on The origins of the credit boom and its unfolding predate mistakes in the last year.
The article traces the issues to changes in the banking system provoked … (3 comments)
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Brian Davis speaks at the 2007 a la mode convention - Marketing Your Business! - 08/08/07 07:38 AM
The following is from the 2007 a la mode convention blog site:
Our first of three lunch panel discussions, Marketing Your Business and Yourself, featured discussion of general philosophies and tactical tips appraisers can apply in their day to day business.
The overarching theme from all three speakers, Ann O'Rourke, Brian … (1 comments)
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Geek's Corner: On-line Backup Sytems for Appraisers - 08/08/07 07:27 AM
The Webopedia encyclopedia defines backup : (v.) To copy files to a second medium (a disk or tape) as a precaution in case the first medium fails. One of the cardinal rules in using computers is back up your files regularly.
Even the most reliable computer is apt to break down … (5 comments)
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