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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Appraisal Institute Introduces Shared Interest Groups
Release Date: August 27, 2006
CHICAGO, IL Shared Interest Groups (SIGs) give Appraisal Institute members who share common challenges, interests or a passion for a given practice area the opportunity to interact professionally and build community. Through niche networking, e-newsletters, online forums, annual business meetings and educational events, members of SIGs can share their ideas and expand their knowledge on the various issues and trends in the SIGs particular area of focus.
These member-directed groups provide:
- The opportunity to discover real solutions for real practice issues
- A topical forum for coordinating efforts and sharing practical and theoretical knowledge
- Targeted opportunities to network, both face-to-face and online
- A vehicle to identify market forces and trends and respond more quickly to change
You can read more about SIGs by downloading the article Creating Community: New Shared Interest Groups Cater to Member Needs from VIP, 1st Quarter 2006.
The Appraisal Institute is currently piloting this exciting new program. Read more about our initial SIGs below.
Valuation in the Government Sector SIG
This forum provides government employed and contract appraisers opportunities to interact and discuss the various aspects and needs of government-related clients, including local, state and federal agencies. Others that may have an interest in this group include lawyers, consultants, planning board members and appraisers who provide or use services relative to easements, rights of way, eminent domain, federal land acquisition and disposition and other services.
Technology and Appraisal Practice SIG
The role of technology in appraisal is ever-changing. It both enhances and challenges the profession in important ways. This SIG will provide a forum for members who are interested in technology developments like AVMs, open standards, MISMO and CMISMO, databases and emerging trends.
Valuation and Litigation Services SIG
Appraisers are often called upon to lend their expertise in the legal arena, grappling with and reporting on real property valuation from the witness stand and in the courtroom. Appraisers providing services to clients and lawyers for purposes of expert witness, litigation/litigation support, mediation, arbitration and dispute resolution may be particularly interested in this SIG.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Appraisal Institute Members Featured in Washington Post
Release Date: January 17, 2004
Appraisal Institute members were featured in a January 17 Washington Post article discussing the role an appraiser plays in the homebuying process, including custom building and involving the appraiser early in the process. The article serves as a consumer information piece, which the Appraisal Institute has licensed for use on its Web site.
William Harvey, MAI, Great Falls, Va.; Karen Mann, SRA, Fremont, Calif.; Alan Hummel, SRA, Des Moines, Iowa; and Karen Williams, of Raleigh, N.C., were all featured in the article, Assigning Value a Daunting Task for Appraisers, available at www.appraisalinstitute.org/about/inthenews/washpost011604.asp.
New home buyers know that an appraiser stands between them and a mortgage, but few appreciate the appraiser's central role in the mortgage underwriting process or what, exactly, the appraiser does, the article starts, and goes on to explain what information is gathered, for what purposes, and how the lender uses that information.
The lender turns to the appraiser for this information because the appraiser is an objective third party who has no vested interest in the sales transaction. The appraiser is paid a flat fee for his services, and, unlike the broker, the seller and the buyer, he has nothing to gain or lose in determining a dollar value for the house, the Post stated.
The article also addressed the appraisers role in custom housing, including an anecdote from Mann, who recalled measuring a finished house that turned out to be 345 square feet short. After determining that the final cost of the house was $162 a square foot, the builder had to refund $54,200 to the owners. However, the paper also quoted Manns assessment that determinations do not always come out in favor of the homeowner, such as a case where a couple had spent $30,000 to convert their attic into an observatory. "They were mad that I gave the observatory so little value, but most buyers are not interested," Mann said. Clearly these owners could have avoided a substantial financial loss at resale if they had sought advice before they proceeded with their projects. Some appraisers are beginning to do just that work with architects and lenders to advise owners of their potential risk when a new home is still in the planning."
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Appraisal Institute Informs Congress On Impact Of Leaking Underground Storage Tanks On House Values
Release Date: September 12, 2002
WASHINGTON, D.C. Appraisal Institute member William C. Harvey, II, MAI, testified before the Subcommittee on Housing and Community Opportunity of the House Committee on Financial Services today regarding the damaging effects environmental contamination, such as leaking underground storage tanks, poses on communities and the value of real estate. The hearing took place in the Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill.
The Appraisal Institute has had a great deal of experience and expertise with this issue, and has developed and teaches seminars relating to environmental issues impacting the value of real estate.
The Appraisal Institutes testimony addressed the issues of valuing contaminated property in its pre-contaminated state and the impact that leaking underground storage tanks can have on the housing market. The methodology and valuation process for appraising contaminated property in its pre-contaminated condition, which is referred to as a retrospective appraisal, and the reliability of such methodology, was explained.
The testimony also addressed the fact that communities in many parts of the country have witnessed leaking underground storage tanks that have had a wide-ranging impact on the economic condition of such communities as well as the health and productivity of their citizens. Mr. Harvey stressed, No two cases are alike. Each detrimental condition must be analyzed on a case-by-case basis due to the variety of impacts on values.
The Subcommittee also heard testimony from a resident and state and local officials representing a community in Pennsylvania that is contending with underground storage tank contamination. In addition, Rep. Paul E. Kanjorski (D-PA) testified on legislation he is sponsoring that amends the Solid Waste Disposal Act. The bill would authorize the Environmental Protection Agency to guarantee loans to homeowners with contaminated properties and assist them in moving from such properties on a temporary or permanent basis. As the Appraisal Institutes Mr. Harvey stated, There are instances where the dream of homeownership turns into a nightmareand were trying to address that.
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