Karl,
Do you not think it would be a better idea if Financial Institutions removed all unscrupulous brokers from their panels and The Financial Regulator struck off Brokers acting in cohoots with them. Allowing Brokers instruct valuers speeds up the application process considerably and greatly assists the entire process in that the client and broker know exactly how much a property is valued at prior to submitting the application to the most suitable lender. Most lenders have different LTV policies and products. If you follow through with your argument clients could end up paying multiple valuation fees if the Bank’s valuers do not agree with the Client’s opinion on the value of their property.
As Independent Brokers we need to continue to portray as positive an image as possible during these very difficult times hence an article by one of our own highlighting that Brokers could be in collusion with and ‘sway’ valuers is most unhelpful and potentially very damaging for our industry.
Gerry
I appreciate the comment and agree with many aspects of it. What you have said is true in terms of speeding up the process but the actual valuation is not a brokers job, it is done for the benefit of the bank and the valuer answers to the bank, in that respect we are actually doing the work for a third party for the bank on something that has the potential for bad practice.
The best way to avoid this is not stop it from happening at all, on any facet. It would be best if Financial Institutions removed brokers who have been proven guilty but there is the issue of 1. the burden of proof and 2. banks removing profitable firms from their panel. I have seen – with more than one company – situations where brokers literally forged documents and were fired then rehired a year later once the storm blew over!
If the banks don’t agree with the clients opinion then that is between the bank, the client and the valuer, the broker has a natural interest in wanting the valuation to be at the level they were told so that we don’t have to revise the whole deal or worse yet, see it fall through.
I think that valuations should be instructed and paid for by the bank, it is their ultimate interest at stake. And in the current market (at least in our firm) we are having massive issues with valuations because of the changing marketplace. In speaking to valuers they are telling me themselves it is nigh impossible to give a reliable valuation, currently they are using words like ‘indication’ which we have not heard before.
I do agree with you whole heartedly on portraying brokerage in a positive light, surely weeding out potentially bad practice is an element of that? If we got rid of any aspect which can be abused then it would stand that we are actually the most honest operators in the market.
Karl,
Do you not think it would be a better idea if Financial Institutions removed all unscrupulous brokers from their panels and The Financial Regulator struck off Brokers acting in cohoots with them. Allowing Brokers instruct valuers speeds up the application process considerably and greatly assists the entire process in that the client and broker know exactly how much a property is valued at prior to submitting the application to the most suitable lender. Most lenders have different LTV policies and products. If you follow through with your argument clients could end up paying multiple valuation fees if the Bank’s valuers do not agree with the Client’s opinion on the value of their property.
As Independent Brokers we need to continue to portray as positive an image as possible during these very difficult times hence an article by one of our own highlighting that Brokers could be in collusion with and ‘sway’ valuers is most unhelpful and potentially very damaging for our industry.
Gerry
Hi Gerry,
I appreciate the comment and agree with many aspects of it. What you have said is true in terms of speeding up the process but the actual valuation is not a brokers job, it is done for the benefit of the bank and the valuer answers to the bank, in that respect we are actually doing the work for a third party for the bank on something that has the potential for bad practice.
The best way to avoid this is not stop it from happening at all, on any facet. It would be best if Financial Institutions removed brokers who have been proven guilty but there is the issue of 1. the burden of proof and 2. banks removing profitable firms from their panel. I have seen – with more than one company – situations where brokers literally forged documents and were fired then rehired a year later once the storm blew over!
If the banks don’t agree with the clients opinion then that is between the bank, the client and the valuer, the broker has a natural interest in wanting the valuation to be at the level they were told so that we don’t have to revise the whole deal or worse yet, see it fall through.
I think that valuations should be instructed and paid for by the bank, it is their ultimate interest at stake. And in the current market (at least in our firm) we are having massive issues with valuations because of the changing marketplace. In speaking to valuers they are telling me themselves it is nigh impossible to give a reliable valuation, currently they are using words like ‘indication’ which we have not heard before.
I do agree with you whole heartedly on portraying brokerage in a positive light, surely weeding out potentially bad practice is an element of that? If we got rid of any aspect which can be abused then it would stand that we are actually the most honest operators in the market.
Here’s another reason why it is a bad idea
http://www.irish-lawyer.com/journal/2008/10/15/expert-who-surveys-wrong-house-liable.html