With the shortage of qualified appraisers a priority issue for bankers — particularly those in rural markets — ABA today urged the federal banking agencies to take action to mitigate the ongoing challenge.
Specifically, as the Appraiser Qualification Board deliberates slowly on changing qualifications to address the shortage, ABA urged the regulators to decide whether they can issue guidance that would prod the process along. “If left unresolved, we forecast negative effects on banks’ abilities to process and originate real estate related loans and to serve their customers,” ABA said.
ABA also recommended that the agencies double to $500,000 the de minimis transaction threshold at which bankers may use an evaluation instead of an appraisal by a licensed professional and clarify the definition of “federally related transactions” with respect to appraisals. Today’s letter is part of an ongoing effort led by ABA to address the appraiser shortage in rural areas, including advocacy before the Appraiser Qualifications Board and education of regulators and members of Congress. For more information, contact ABA’s Rod Alba.
