POLICIES & PROCEDURES
1 – I certify that this Appraisal Management Company has a system and process in place to verify that a person being added to the appraiser panel of the appraisal management company holds a license in good standing in each state or certification is required to perform appraisals.
A. Prior to placing an appraiser on the Nationwide Appraisal Management approved roster, the appraiser is thoroughly researched. All appraisers are checked with individual State licensing authority, the Appraisal Qualification Board (AQB), and the FHA Roster to determine their active status and any potential disciplinary proceedings. Sample Appraisals are provided for Review of Content, Quality and Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP) compliance. All Nationwide Appraisal Management appraisers are Certified and FHA approved. Inspections cannot be performed by a Trainee.
2 – I certify that this Appraisal Management Company has a system in place to require that appraisers inform the appraisal management company of their areas of geographic competency, the types of properties the appraiser is competent to appraise, and the methodologies the appraiser is competent to perform
A. All Nationwide Appraisal Management appraisers must have a minimum of 5 years field experience and demonstrate competency in the completion of 1 to 4 family Conventional and FHA Appraisal assignments. Appraisers will receive assignments based on their physical office location and geographical competency to ensure knowledge of the subject property area, as well as access to data for that area. Appraisals will not be assigned beyond a 50 mile radius (unless there are no qualified appraisers within this distance due to being a rural area or area without appraisers with proper credentials). Nationwide Appraisal Management utilizes the automated ordering system to track assignments by Appraiser location to comply with proper assignment rotation.
3 – I certify that this Appraisal Management Company has a system in place to review the work of all independent appraisers that are performing real estate appraisal services for the appraisal management company on a periodic basis to validate that the real estate appraisal services are being conducted in accordance with the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice.
A. Nationwide Appraisal Management software has the capability for automated review and appraiser rating system. The system evaluates content and produces an appraiser rating based on various criteria. Of particular concern would be non-conformance to USPAP and individual Lender criteria. Nationwide Appraisal Management also manually reviews appraisal reports with on staff reviewers that consist of FHA certified appraisers, as well as qualified individuals having meeting the requirements set forth per Nationwide Appraisal Management Compliance Officer Qualifications and Quality Control Employee Requirements policies. Underwriting conditions need to be submitted to Nationwide Appraisal Management whom will present the conditions to the appraiser. Conditions will be given the same respect as the original report, and will be reviewed again to ensure the conditions have been met and properly addressed.
B. The appraiser will have an opportunity to address areas of poor performance. However, failure to adequately support their conclusions, poor performance and adherence to proper procedure or compliance will result in removal from the Nationwide Appraisal Management roster of approved appraisers. This will be documented in the corresponding order(s) and in the appraiser’s profile. If required, the appraiser will be notified.
4 – I certify that this Appraisal Management Company has a dispute resolution process that allows users of the appraisal report to request that the appraiser consider additional property information, provide further detail, substantiation, or explanation for the appraiser’s value conclusion, or to correct errors in an appraisal report. We certify that each report is in compliance with the appraisal independence standards, FHA regulations governing the real estate appraisal process, HVCC, customary and reasonable fees, and the Dodd-Frank Act including the following:
- Only licensed or certified appraisers are used for federally-related transactions
- Compliance with USPAP
- Appraisals are conducted independently
- Appraisals are free from influence and coercion
- Must report an appraiser if they believe the appraiser has violated standards
- Mortgage lenders must compensate fee appraisers at a rate that is customary and reasonable
A. Nationwide Appraisal Management entertains all requests for appraisal disputes. Upon receipt of a request, an AVM is performed (for valuation disputes). In addition, any and all data supplied for consideration is reviewed and forwarded to the inspecting appraiser for comment. The appraiser must re-submit the appraisal with appropriate addendum that either supports the previous conclusions or amends the previous appraisal analysis and conclusions. Upon receipt, the file, it is manually reviewed and processed through the MARS automated valuation system prior to re-submission to the client.
B. When specified or required by the Lender, in the event a reconsideration of value changes the value in an amount exceeding a 10% difference, it must be approved by the Chief Appraiser or designated person before the report can be delivered back to the mortgage broker.
5 – I certify that this Appraisal Management Company maintains a detailed record of each service request that it receives and the independent appraiser that performs the residential real estate appraisal services for the appraisal management company.
A. Nationwide Appraisal Management maintains a detailed record of each service request that is received and appraiser that performs the appraisal assignment for Nationwide Appraisal Management . Nationwide Appraisal Management record retention requirement is for a period of at least five years after an appraisal is completed or two years after final disposition of a judicial proceeding related to the assignment, whichever period expires later.
B. Nationwide Appraisal Management does not sell or share non-public information for our clients, or their borrowers, with any other organizations including for commercial purposes. The information received is used for the purposes of completing an appraisal order only. In the event that credit card information is entered for the purpose of paying for the appraisal report, this info is protected by our software security. Immediately upon charging the credit card, our software encrypts the card number, only allowing the last 4 digits to be viewed. In addition, the data in our system is stored on our software company’s dedicated servers that reside in SSAE 16 compliant data centers. SSAE 16 is the protocol that governs data protection. These servers are only used by our software company, and are not shared. Our software also has internal security procedures in place, so only a very limited number of people can actually log on and work with the servers.
6 – I certify that this Appraisal Management company follows the requirements of compliance for AIR (Appraiser Independence Requirements) and USPAP’s Competency Rule.
AIR
A. Nationwide Appraisal Management retains appraisers that are certified or licensed in the state in which the property is located, and eligible to perform appraisals in that state. Appraisers must be familiar with the local market the property is located, must be competent to appraise the subject property type, and must have access to the data sources needed to develop a credible appraisal. Exclusionary lists are checked against Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac lists as provided to us by lenders as we do not receive these lists otherwise. Appraisers are evaluated by checking state licensing, references, E&O insurance, work samples, and market knowledge/experience. The appraiser is selected, retained, and compensated by Nationwide Appraisal Management on the client’s behalf. Payment for the appraisal is collected by Nationwide Appraisal Management per the client’s instructions, whether it by the borrower’s credit card or checking account with permission or billed through the close of escrow (if prior arrangements have been made with Nationwide Appraisal Management in advance). The borrower is NEVER to pay the appraiser directly. Appraisers are compensated ata rate that is reasonable and customary for their area, and consideration is taken for the complexity of the assignment if advised as such by the appraiser. Appraisers receive payment from Nationwide Appraisal Management within 2 weeks of completion of the report.
B. Nationwide Appraisal Management permits only processors to place appraisal orders, or any person authorized by the client that is NOT an individual connected to the loan production staff or received any type of commission/compensation from the loan. The only communication acceptable between Nationwide Appraisal Management or the appraiser with the production staff of the loan (person receiving commission or compensation from the loan closing) is pertaining to gaining access to the property or locating the property address. Copies of the appraisals are sent to the client only. Nationwide Appraisal Management does not send copies to borrowers. In the event the appraisal is ordered by a broker, Nationwide Appraisal Management will send a copy of the report, at the client’s request, to the investor/lender.
USPAP COMPETENCY RULE
A. Nationwide Appraisal Management abides by the USPAP competency rule by assigning appraisal orders to appraisers near the subject property to ensure they are familiar with the area and have the necessary data sources to complete those assignments. While it is ultimately the appraiser’s responsibility to determine whether they have the knowledge of the area to complete such reports, Nationwide Appraisal Management does our due diligence to check the locale of the appraiser (based on the address we are provided for the appraiser) to be sure they are within a reasonable distance acceptable for completing the assignment, and has the proper qualifications for that area.