Appraiser Income

Real estate appraiser wins invasion of privacy lawsuit against CoesterVMS

It’s been a rough couple of months for Brian Coester, and it doesn’t seem like things are turning around just yet.

Coester once ran CoesterVMS, one of the largest appraisal management companies in the country. But in late 2018, word of financial troubles began to circulate, and appraisers were complaining that they weren’t being paid. By February, the AMC had officially closed its doors.

Now, Coester will likely be forced to cough up damages as a judge ruled against him Monday in a lawsuit brought on by Mark Skapinetz, a subcontracted appraiser who worked for CoesterVMS.

The U.S. economy has been sending mixed signals in recent days, but the nation’s top economists say there’s likely more harm than good.

Escalating trade tensions between the U.S. and China, slowing growth around the world and waning fiscal stimulus are all acting as a headwind to growth, according to the 20 leading experts polled for Bankrate’s Second-Quarter Economic Indicator survey. The majority (80 percent) of respondents say that these risks are more heavily tilted toward the downside, while just 10 percent say they’re tilted toward the upside — down from 19 percent in the prior quarter’s survey.

“Monetary policy has overly tightened, and fiscal stimulus will dry up by the end of the year,” says Dan North, chief economist at Euler Hermes North America. “Add in trade fears, decaying housing and manufacturing sectors, global weakness, and geopolitical tensions, the result is definitely more downside risk.”

The U.S. economy has been sending mixed signals in recent days, but the nation’s top economists say there’s likely more harm than good.

The Appraisal Foundation President David Bunton testified before the Congress at a hearing entitled, “What’s Your Home Worth: A Review of the Appraisal Industry.”

Highlight video:

To learn more about Dave’s powerful defense of professional appraisers and the importance of appraisals, click on one or all of the options below:

• Read Dave’s opening statement
• Read Dave’s written testimony

Complete Video starting at 19.22

• [If you watch the hearing, it starts at 8 mins 40 seconds. David’s testimony begins at 19.22] 

THIS IS A MUST LISTEN! WE NEED TO ALL GET INVOLVED IN PROTECTING OUR PROFESSION! ~ Bryan

On average, home buyers are willing to pay an additional $8,728 upfront on a home in order to save $1,000 a year in utility bills, according to NAHB’s recently released study, What Home Buyers Really Want (2019 Edition) (Figure 1). The study is based on a survey asking recent and prospective home buyers (people who bought homes in the previous three years or are planning to do so in the next three years) about what they want in a home and community.

It is important to note that while the average amount a home buyer is willing to pay is $8,728, the median is $5,000. The difference can be explained by the presence of some very green-motivated home buyers who are willing to pay more than $50,000 upfront to save $1,000 a year. It may also be the case that these particular home buyers have the means to make a bigger upfront payment. In fact, the study shows that home buyers who expect to pay more than $500,000 for their homes will pay an average of $10,560 more to achieve those savings, about 60 percent more than the $6,653 those buying the most modest homes (less than $150,000) are willing to pay.

An equivalent way to present this information is in terms of the rate of return a buyer requires on the up-front investment.  If a buyer is willing to pay $5,000 up front to save $1,000 a year, this means the buyer requires an annual return of 20 percent.

For more valuable data on green features and what home buyers are willing to trade off, please visit BuilderBooks.com and download the latest edition of What Home Buyers Really Want.