AARO Annual Conference to take place this weekend in D.C.
The Association of Appraiser Regulatory Officials (AARO) will meet on Oct. 10-13 in Washington D.C. for their Annual Conference. The conference will include meetings and conferences regarding AQB Oversight, ASB Oversight, and Investigator Training and Education. In addition to these meetings, several panel discussions and guest speakers have been scheduled. Topics of these panel discussions include “Consistent Enforcement - Enforcing USPAP”, “The Changing Face of the Appraisal Profession”, “HVCC - Appraisal Management Companies and Broker Price Opinion Issues” and “Lender Policy Updates and Issues”.

To read more about the AARO Annual Conference, read the article at the Appraiser Active blog: http://appraiseractive.blogspot.com/2009/10/aaro-association-of-appraiser.html

Real estate tax credit deadline approaches; extension could be on the horizon
Robert Selna, of the San Francisco Chronicle, reports bidding wars have sparked on lower-priced homes as first-time buyers rush to take advantage of the $8,000 tax credit, which expires on November 30.

"The refund has had a tremendously positive impact," said James Liptak, president of the California Association of Realtors. "Home prices are down considerably, and one of the big things that has made people jump into the market is the credit."

The real estate industry across the nation is lobbying to Congress to extend the tax credit deadline through the summer of 2010. Rep. Ken Calvert (R-CA) and other legislative members have sponsored a bill that would extend the tax credit for a year, increase the credit amount to $15,000, and make it available to any buyer (regardless of income bracket) who stays in the home for at least two years.

"California needs to stimulate demand; there's a lot of inventory out there and increasing the program to $15,000 could help (decrease) some of that supply," said Calvert's spokeswoman, Rebecca Rudman.

To read more about the $8,000 tax credit and its effects on the economy, click the link below: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/09/29/MNCH19U14D.DTL

Banks Sued over Use of AVM to Reduce HELOC
In what appears to be a growing trend, Wells Fargo was recently sued for lowering homeowners’ home equity lines of credit (HELOC). According to a class-action lawsuit filed by Illinois consumer Michael Hickman against Wells Fargo, the lender is accused of improperly lowering Hickman’s HELOC by using a faulty automated valuation model (AVM) that artificially deflates property values.

Hickman's suit has been filed on behalf of all U.S. homeowners who find themselves in situations similar to his own — consumers who have had their HELOC vastly reduced or cancelled altogether. The surge in lawsuits against some of the country's largest banks brings to the forefront doubt about the reliability of AVMs and the line that exists between home valuation accuracy and potential fraud.

Since the current recession hit, banks have been trying to minimize their liability by reducing HELOCs — often citing declining property values as the reason for restricting or cutting lines of credit. Under the terms of the Truth in Lending Act, banks are prohibited from arbitrary HELOC reductions unless they can be justified by consistent late payments or a reduction in the homeowner's credit standing. Banks are claiming that declining property values should also serve as a justification. The issue for lenders is that homeowners disagree with the way the banks are determining property values. While using an AMV is convenient for lenders, the downside to AVMs is that they are often unable to accurately assess the impact of non-quantitative factors, factors that the homeowners filing lawsuits believe make the banks’ AVMs faulty.

Come see us in New Orleans at Valuation 2009
REGISTER NOW with Discount Code Val-BT and SAVE $50 TODAY on a full conference pass! Expires 10/30/09.

Where: New Orleans, Louisiana
When: November 8-11, 2009
Why: To Learn, Network and Prosper

• 14 Hours of Continuing Education
• GREAT National Keynote Speakers
• Big Cocktail Party
• Trade Show with over 25 exhibitors
• Win FREE Stuff
• Recruiting by Lenders & Management Companies
• Special $129 Roosevelt room rate
  Group code: Valuation Expo 09
  Limited number of rooms 'til October 15th.

For details contact Karen Connolly at (513) 490-0226 or karen@appraisalbuzz.com.

Tech Tip: Edit your custom dictionary
Do you know how to edit your custom dictionary?
Here’s how to delete or edit words added to your dictionary:
1. In ClickFORMS, go to Tools > Spelling > Report.
2. Next, click the Options button.
3. Now click the Dictionaries button.
4. Click the Dictionary you want to edit and click the Edit button.
• If you select Spelling.adu click on the word and click the Delete button.
• If you select Custom.dic, Notepad will open and you should select the word you added by mistake and delete it. Please save the file when you close the Notepad screen.