Ongoing pursuit of updating appraisal requirements
The recent Executive Order promoting mortgage access presents numerous policy opportunities, and America’s Credit Unions joined a letter to the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) on Friday with appraisal-related recommendations for implementing the order.
Issued in March, the order provides mortgage regulatory relief to credit unions and other community financial institutions. Friday’s letter follows up a meeting with FHFA and other agencies last week, and additional joint letters.
In the letter, the organizations recommend:
- Expanding use of hybrid and alternative valuation methods, including allowing borrowers, agents, and loan officers to submit authenticated property photos through secure portals and quality controls;
- Broadening GSE appraisal waiver policies by increasing the value acceptance cap to $2 million and aligning it with rising loan limits, with annual reviews and updates; and
- Providing appraisers with limited access to the GSE appraisal dataset and other tools to improve reliability and reduce costs.
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