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Special Reports
AVM/Appraisals/BPOs
eAppraiseIT Expands into Appraisal Management
Poway, CA -- Until recently, eAppraiseIT here has focused heavily on its insured
automated valuation product called EagleCert. However, the company has decided to expand its appraisal offerings
by adding a product that departs from the usual AVM side of the mortgage industry and actually helps lenders manage
their appraisal network if they decide a live appraisal is the way to go.
"It's only a matter of time before more people in the mortgage industry come
to endorse ensured AVMs because the insurance is a good way to validate the AVM reading," said eAppraiseIT
executive vice president/chief operating officer Tony Merlo. "So, we'll continue to announce strategic alliances
and updates that will continue to increase the functionality of that product.
"Also, right now, we're focusing on panel management as well," he said.
"We're going to use our system to manage a lender's panel of appraisers.
"Essentially what this means is if you're a top 10 lender you can come to
us and get the full appraisal or insured AVM reading," he noted. "However, maybe your retail network
prefers their own appraisal network that they've built relationships with and they don't want to monkey with that,
but by the same token you also don't want to have to manage those appraisers, check on their license, build a system
to get orders out to them electrically and all the other necessary tasks.
"With our proprietary system called SourceNet, we offer the lending community
an outsourcing opportunity where we say, 'We'll take your panel, load them into our system, you can jump in and
order appraisals from there in any fashion you want to without having to manage anything.
"With our system we'll track the performance, license and disciplinary action
taken against that appraiser, report it back to you so the lender can simply do what they do, lend money."
eAppraiseIT stumbled on this idea while in heavy conversation with a client and
it caught momentum and grew from there. The new system is essentially designed to act as a middle ground between
the lender and the appraiser. It's an organizational tool that helps the lender move the loan along faster without
having to deal with as much administrative tasks along the way.
The system is a Web-based platform that rests on eAppraiseIT's website. For security
purposes, it is both ID and password protected. The lender can order appraisals, check appraisals not yet completed
and receive finished appraisals.
In terms of the quality of the appraisal checks offered via the site, they can
be as simple as a license check done annually as the standard license must be renewed each year and a disciplinary
review to see if any legal action is pending or has ever been brought against a particular appraiser, which is
both updated and reported to the lender on a monthly basis.
Going further, eAppraiseIT can also do a quality-control check on an appraiser's
work if requested by the client using an AVM and other appraisers. The company will rate the appraisal score by
doing a live appraisal with one of its local appraisers and delivering that in conjunction with some AVM scores
provided by participating AVM models to see if the product is being under or over valued.
If for any reason the appraiser fails the review, eAppraiseIT can block that appraiser
so the lender doesn't have to store a list of former appraisers that are no longer active for whatever reason.
Ordinarily a per-transaction fee is applied to use the system. QC reviews on appraisers
that go beyond license and disciplinary action are an additional one-time cost.
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