WASHINGTON, -- The Appraisal Institute continues to urge the Department of Housing and Urban Development to place consumer disclosure at the forefront if it undertakes rule changes to the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act. The Appraisal Institute has participated in four HUD-sponsored RESPA roundtables where representatives have urged fees and services continue to be disclosed to consumers.
"The appraisal is an important safeguard in the home buying process that protects homeowners and financial institutions by helping them assess the risk," said Alan Hummel, SRA, chair of the Appraisal Institute Government Relations Committee. "The cost of this service and the type of analysis, at a minimum, should be disclosed in a user-friendly format to homebuyers."
Joint roundtables between HUD and the Small Business Administration (SBA) took place during three sessions between July 21 and August 11 in Los Angeles, Chicago and Fort Worth, while the fourth roundtable was held at HUD's headquarters in Washington DC on August 18. Representatives of the Appraisal Institute expressed alarm that revisions to RESPA could complicate the home buying process for consumers by confusing them as to the type of appraisal they were receiving and the amount that was paid for it.
"This is as murky as it gets," said Alan Hummel, SRA, who represented the Appraisal Institute at the Chicago and Washington DC discussions. "The appraisal fee in the Mortgage Package Offer could be for an AVM or a drive-by and the consumer will still get charged for a full appraisal."
HUD intends to incorporate various suggestions of the Appraisal Institute, SBA and other industry representatives into the revised language of RESPA, with the goal of creating a simpler, more transparent and less expensive home buying process for consumers.
The Appraisal Institute participated in the roundtables representing the appraisal profession. Other attendees included industry and small business leaders.
