The Administration announced the release of its Interagency Task Force on Property Appraisal and Valuation Equity report designed to address racial and ethnic bias in the home appraisal process.
More: The action plan details a set of commitments and actions, most of which can be taken using existing federal authorities, and include:
- Steps to enhance oversight and accountability of the appraisal industry and improve agency coordination and collaboration.
- Agency guidance and policies to improve the process by which a valuation may be reconsidered.
- A proposed rule to establish quality control standards for automated valuation models.
- Removal of educational and experience barriers that make it more expensive and reduces the number of new entrants into the appraisal profession.
- The creation of an aggregated database of federal appraisal data to study, understand, and address appraisal bias.
Background: ICBA met with various agency staff during the formation of the report to provide input and wrote to the Federal Housing Finance Agency to express challenges faced by community bankers in rural and small-town markets due to a lack of qualified appraisers.