Before you let someone measure and photograph your home for a mortgage transaction, ask a basic question: “Are you the appraiser, or are you collecting information for someone else?”

The distinction matters. In a hybrid appraisal, the person visiting the property and the appraiser developing the value opinion may be different people. Fannie Mae describes property data collection and appraisal reporting as separate assignments. Its value acceptance + property data option does not require an appraisal.

A property data visit should not leave a homeowner guessing about the visitor’s role, the information being gathered or the company responsible for the work.

What the existing requirements do

For its value acceptance + property data program, Fannie Mae requires lenders to verify professional training, competence and annual background checks. Lenders must also review qualifications annually and monitor the work through their quality-control programs.

Those are meaningful safeguards. A background check, however, is not the same as a professional license, insurance coverage or a clear explanation of how interior photographs and floor plans will be used.

Homeowners should receive understandable answers about each of those matters before the appointment.

A comparison worth discussing in Arizona

Arizona has a certification framework for home inspectors. State law requires specified qualifications and financial assurance, which may take the form of qualifying errors-and-omissions insurance, a bond or minimum net assets.

Home inspection and mortgage property data collection serve different purposes. The home-inspector statute does not, by itself, establish which requirements apply to a particular collector. But the comparison raises a reasonable policy question: Should people entering homes to document them for mortgage decisions meet clear, publicly verifiable standards too?

In my view, Arizona should consider a collector registry, verified competency, disclosure of professional status, applicable insurance or other financial protection, written data-use rules and a direct complaint process. Any framework should identify the responsible company as well as the individual entering the home.

Five questions to ask before the visit

• What are your name, company and role, and can my lender confirm the appointment?
• Do you hold a professional license or certification, and how can I verify it?
• What coverage applies to property damage or errors in the collected information?
• Who receives the photographs, scans and floor plan, how may they be used, and how long are they retained?
• Who handles complaints, corrections and a data-security incident?

Ask the lender or ordering company for clarification if the answers are unclear. Do not assume that a person collecting information is also developing an appraisal or performing a home inspection.

Arizona homeowners deserve clear answers before the visit begins.

Jeffrey Blum, Certified Residential Appraiser
Matrix Appraisal Group

Need an independent residential value opinion for a private decision in Maricopa County? Explore Matrix Appraisal Group’s residential appraisal services: https://www.matrixappraisalgroup.com/Services

Sources
Fannie Mae — Hybrid Appraisals: https://guide-selling.fanniemae.com/sel/b4-1.2-03/hybrid-appraisals
Fannie Mae — Value Acceptance + Property Data: https://guide-selling.fanniemae.com/sel/b4-1.4-11/value-acceptance-property-data
Arizona Revised Statutes § 32-122.02: https://www.azleg.gov/ars/32/00122-02.htm