Department of Veterans Affairs Circular 26-20-14

New Appraisal Review Requirements and Instructions Regarding Department ofVeterans Affairs Appraisal Management Service for the Lender Appraisal Processing Program and the Servicer Appraisal Processing Program Staff Appraisal Reviewers. Read the full circular here. 

ASC COVID-19 Outbreak - State Appraisal/AMC Program Guidance Revised 3-31-2020

The Appraisal Subcommittee released a corrected version of the COVID-19 Outbreak - State Appraisal/AMC Program Guidance. Click here to read the revised version. 

ASC Memo to All States COVID-19

In their memo, the ASC reminds States that the 2020 Compliance Reviews have been postponed and that States have flexibility around deadlines when files are properly documented due to COVID-19 issues. 

The memo also reiterates the AQB's decision to allow classroom continuing education courses (NOT qualifying education courses) to be delivered synchronously if the following four items are all met: 
     1) The educational offering under consideration is currently approved for traditional classroom presentation;
     2) The platform utilized for distance education is live and interactive;
     3) The instructor verifies photo identification of the students; and 
    4) The instructor maintains an attendance roster, which includes verifying 100% classroom attendance by, for example, taking attendance at various established times during the course. 





 

Letter to Congresswoman Waters and Senator Brown

Peter Fontana and Jonathan Miller sent a letter to Congresswoman Maxine Waters and Senator Sherrod Brown on Tuesday, March 24, 2020 urging appraisers and their work to be classified as an essential business. 

You can read the full letter here. 

Frequently Asked Questions for Financial Institutions affected by the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (Referred to as COVID-19)

From The Appraisal Foundation: FDIC has compiled a list of FAQs, which answers questions about inspections (Answer # 12) and Appraisals (Answer # 13).
You can access the FAQs here. 

Selling Guidance Related to COVID-19 Bulletin 2020-5

Freddie Mac issued selling guidance related to COVID-19 on March 23, 2020. The bulltein, found here, covers: 

• Temporary guidance related to our credit underwriting requirements
• Temporary guidance related to our property valuation requirements
• Expansion of our automated collateral evaluation eligibility
• An extension to the deadline for certain annual reporting requirements

• Use of Electronic Records and Signatures
• Title insurance
• Seller/Servicer business continuity plan requirements and information about Freddie Mac's business continuity plan

Fannie Mae Lender Letter LL-2020-04

Fannie Mae issued a lender letter (LL-2020-04) to all Fannie Mae single-family sellers regarding the impact of COVID-19 on appraisals under the guidance of the FHFA. Read the full letter here. 

FHFA Directs Enterprises to Grant Flexibilities for Appraisal and Employment Verifications

Today, to facilitate liquidity in the mortgage market during the coronavirus national emergency, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) directed Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (the Enterprises) to provide alternative flexibilities to satisfy appraisal requirements and employment verification requirements through May 17, 2020.​ 

The full article can be found here. 

PSI Letter RE: COVID-19

PSI has cloased its closed its owned and operated test centers. During this time, candidates can reschedule their exams with no penalty or documentation required. Click here to read the full letter. 

TAF-AARO-ASC Guidance

A joint message between TAF, AARO, and the ASC regarding COVID-19.