Current efforts in the regulation of appraisal quality and fairness are fettered by obsolete appraisal methods. Traditional appraisal methods were designed to tackle sparse, subjective, non-electronic data. These vintage practices enable bias, hinder diversity initiatives, and conceal risk quantification. We have written about the “Five Frictions” hindering improvement in regulated appraisal valuation. Most other valuation […]
Biased Appraisals: A Cause or Symptom? In biology, there is a distinction between “proximate cause” and “ultimate cause.” In appraisology, the proximate (immediate) cause of valuation bias is the appraiser’s opinion. – For example, the appraiser reporting a “too high” number shows the ‘impact’ proximate bias. The ultimate (underlying) cause of this bias might be […]
Who you knew was important when I was a trainee. What you knew was simple: compare comps. Find some comps. Make adjustments. Or — avoid adjustments. (My expert MAI trainer said “if you make adjustments, then the other attorney will ask you how you got the number.” “Just say better, worse, or similar!) Finding comps […]