The housing industry has faced shortages in supply, shortages in skilled workers, and now shortages in appraisers.
CNBC reports that appraisers, people who value homes for mortgage lenders, are shrinking in numbers. There are 22 percent fewer appraisers today than in 2007, according to the Appraisal Institute.
The share of on-time closings dropped 13 percentage points, from 77 percent last April to 64 percent today, and appraisal-related issues were cited as the cause in half of the delays.
Ironically, the decline in new appraisers is largely due to new regulations designed to safeguard both banks and borrowers. … Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the FHA changed the rules that would allow appraiser apprentices to do full appraisals and instead require the licensed appraiser to be on-site for the inspection. The result is that appraisers no longer see a need to pay apprentices, but at the same time, licensing requirements to become an appraiser include 2,500 hours of appraisal experience to be completed in two years as an apprentice.
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