There may be nothing so controversial in the real estate industry right now as the Home Valuation Code of Conduct (HVCC). The code was established by Fannie Mae along with the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) in an attempt to regulate the appraisal industry and create more separation between appraisers and lenders.

The HVCC states that Realtors and mortgage brokers are prohibited from selecting appraisers. Lenders can select “in house” appraisers, but due to restrictions, many are hiring appraisal management companies (AMCs) to obtain their appraisals.

Since roll-out, Realtors and mortgage brokers claim low-ball appraisals are killing their deals, and some appraisers feel the real estate industry is just pointing fingers.

Here’s how some on each side of the ring weigh in:

As the accusations fly around, the only thing that’s apparent is that the system remains flawed, and the HVCC is doing nothing to help. Representatives Childers (D-MS) and Miller (R-CA) have introduced a bill calling for an 18-month moratorium on the HVCC in order to work out the kinks, though some think the this will do nothing to solve the issue.

What do you think?

I’ve noticed a lot of news lately regarding homeowners attempting to lower their property taxes due to reduced home values. My first instinct was, “Sign me up!” After all, my home’s value dropped more than 55% in the last few years. On one hand, this could mean thousands of dollars in savings, especially in areas like mine where the decline in home values is significant. On the other, what will it mean for publicly-funded services like fire departments, law enforcement, schools, and libraries?

Perhaps nothing. As the amount of property tax collected decreases, local governments can raise the tax rate to make up for it. Wait, I could actually end up with a tax increase this year?

“Taxes are based on property values times [the tax rate]. We could have declining values but make up for it by raising the rate,” said Bill Donegan, the property appraiser for Orange County, Fla., which includes my hometown, Orlando. (source CNNMoney.com)

But wait, there’s more. He goes on to say that the decline in home values has been so great, it’s unlikely that any increase in tax rate would offset the lower assessments. To make up for it, local governments can raise fees and even taxes in other areas.  In other words, the money is going to come out of your pocket eventually.

In the meantime, if you want to challenge your property tax assessment, eppraisal.com can assist.  Here are some steps to follow:

• Know your home’s property value and compare it to the tax assessment value.
• Verify the information on record (number of rooms, square footage, etc.)
• Research neighborhood property values
• Get an appraisal from a licensed professional appraiser
• Submit your case to the county tax assessor

Today, eppraisal.com launched a new version of its Real Estate Professional Directory, allowing real estate professionals to list their business profiles not only on eppraisal.com, but also on Google Maps, Yahoo! Local, Yellowpages.com, and 80 other search engines and local directories.

Using the advanced directory service, real estate professionals get a profile page on top-ranked eppraisal.com as well as numerous other local directories, improving their online visibility on local search engines and directories.

According to the Kelsey Group, 70 percent of online searchers will use local search to find offline businesses. To support this trend, search engines have dedicated a large portion of their search results page to local search listings. For example, consumers searching for a local professional on major search engines (ie. Appraisers in Orlando) are presented with local business listings and a general map of the area. Additional business listings are shown in the “organic” results from other local directories, like eppraisal.com, Kudzu, and Yellowpages.com. With eppraisal.com’s new Professional Directory, real estate professionals can use one central location to list their business profiles on multiple directories and get greater exposure in both local and organic search engine results.

The eppraisal.com Professional Directory offers a paid service and a scaled-down free service, which is currently available to six real estate professional types: real estate agents, mortgage brokers, home inspectors, appraisers, home stagers, and title and escrow officers. During the next few months, additional professional types will be launched to the site.

Sign up for the eppraisal.com Real Estate Professional Directory.