Wednesday, August 5, 2009

The HVCC Regulation

By Slaton Case

The Home Valuation Code of Conduct, or HVCC, was enacted on May 1, 2009, by the Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac Foundations and the Attorney General of New York. The HVCC is meant to prevent individuals and associations from having any influence on the requested appraisal itself.

The HVCC prevents influence to the appraisal from third parties. According to the HVCC, the lender has 3 business days to provide borrowers with free copies of the appraisal.

Now, 10% of appraisals are going to be randomly selected, tested, and reported by lenders to Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. In-home appraisers are to be independent of the sales staff of the lenders, and their compensation should not reflect their guesses of value or actual loan closings. Misconduct of appraisers, therefore , should be reported to state departments.

What is subject to the HVCC? All 1-4 Family loans sold to Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac must follow tenets of the HVCC. However, the HVCC still is not applicable to FHA, VA, and jumbo loans. Private assignments, such as divorce appraisals, bankruptcy appraisals, tax grievance and tax appeal appraisals, are not influenced by the HVCC. The code only is applicable to appraisals, not affecting automated valuation models, broker price opinions, or tax assessments.

Due to misunderstandings, there is some bafflement about the rules and laws of the HVCC and these facts may clear some of this up : While the HVCC doesn't specifically prohibit communication between the valuer and the property agent, the borrower is prohibited from providing money to the appraiser. Banks may , however , authorize third parties to choose, keep, and provide payment for compensation of the valuer.

The employment of Appraisal Management corporations, or AMCs, isn't needed by the HVCC. Banks from individual appraisers can order appraisals. Mortgage brokers can be told a specific AMC to use to submit info on loan applications and begin the appraisal process so long as lenders use a group of authorized AMCs. This is allowed because brokers aren't choosing, maintaining, or providing payment of compensation for the appraisers.

Under the code, banks are prohibited from accepting appraisals that were ordered by mortgage brokers. Mortgage brokers aren't allowed to provide lenders with a catalogue of approved appraisers for the bank to use when ordering appraisals.

The HVCC has effects on not just the end user, but also each individual or company involved in the Home Valuation industry. Right now, only loans sold to Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac are dependent on the HVCC ; however, the FDIC, NCUA, and the Fed Reserve also have outstanding policies that will increase liability to both banks and investors.

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