Comments

You must log in or register to comment.

Katana1369 t1_jbo1hyn wrote

Miller, who doesn't have to admit any liability in the case, did not respond to NPR's requests for comment.

So she watches a movie and her insurance premium goes up because of the settlement but she'll just get better at hiding her racism because she doesn't have to admit what she did.

Personally I would rather her have to wear a fucking sign for a year saying I'm a racist bitch and she could keep her money.

83

DrummerGuy06 t1_jboaol0 wrote

>The lender agreed to send a different appraiser.
>
>This time the couple decided to "white wash" the house. They removed family photos and art work, books, hair products and anything else that might indicate that a Black family lived there. They also asked a white friend to be present at the house and greet the appraiser as if she were the homeowner and to display some of her family photos in the house. The Austins were not at home during the appraisal.
>
>The new appraiser concluded the house was worth $1,482,500 – nearly half a million dollars higher than Miller's estimated value.

Inadvertently offering up evidence of your own wrong-doing as a company; you love to see it.

298

gregspresso6 t1_jbob6xx wrote

Replying to xgorgeoustormx (#2,199,939)

I get the sarcasm and don't see why you were downvoted. What incentive is there to obey this "I won't do it again" promise? Sure wish we knew how big the fine was. I'm thinking it should've been a half million dollars plus legal fees. And fines for future under-valuations equal to the under-valuation plus legal fees.

14

boilermakercharm t1_jbol9e8 wrote

The original appraiser should lose their license. This is a profession that is supposed to abide by some ethics. How can this slap on the wrist prevent hundreds of other black families experiencing the same thing in that area?

105

sherm39 t1_jbon5l1 wrote

The amount of the settlement should be disclosed. That's what brings change - the same financial pain that made the homeowners act will keep realtors and bankers in line. All this clucking about education and promises is bullshit.

38

Bitter_Director1231 t1_jbopu1h wrote

This happens way more frequently. The worse part is how long this has been going on and black homeowners took the brunt. Sad.

39

safely_beyond_redemp t1_jbp9jhy wrote

Replying to gregspresso6 (#2,200,346)

The reason is that you won't fix institutional racism by making an example of one older woman who probably is representative of the majority rather than the minority. Add an apology, a little training, a fat payout and an option for the racist company to brush it under the rug and you've got yourself a settlement.

4

El_Grande_Bonero t1_jbpgef2 wrote

Replying to [deleted] (#2,202,475)

I have worked in real estate for nearly a decade and have been involved in over 1000 transactions and I never seen an appraiser lowball a property by 25%. I had one deal where the appraiser was about 10% low. But appraisers don’t work for the bank and have no say in how much money is loaned.

The appraiser here did not follow accepted best practices and while we are not privy to the specifics it seems with the settlement that there must have been some evidence that it was based on race.

16

Meldreth t1_jbpi09l wrote

Replying to El_Grande_Bonero (#2,202,580)

Same time in real estate, but I have seen homes 40, 50, 70k less than sales price. Normally this comes from the agent doing a terrible job on comps to list it. The inflated market where people were buying homes over sales price for the past two years didn't help either.

−1

El_Grande_Bonero t1_jbpiw3b wrote

Replying to Meldreth (#2,202,664)

> 40, 50, 70k less than sales price

And what was the sales price of those homes? You said you had seen appraisers value homes at 66% of market which would imply the sales prices for these homes are between $120,00 and $210,000. The raw number isn’t the issue it is appeasing at a staggering 33% below market that is the issue. Even over the last two years I can understand a 10% delta given how fast things have moved but not 33%. Especially when that single low appraisal is bookended by much higher ones.

7

El_Grande_Bonero t1_jbpkhep wrote

Replying to Meldreth (#2,202,746)

I have to be honest that seems remarkable. I work in a relatively hot market and say 20-30% appreciation in some areas and even then didn’t see appraisals that far off. You must have some uniquely bad appraisers in your area. But it doesn’t change the fact that this appraiser failed to use standard practices and I would bet that in the discovery phase the plaintiffs found evidence that this was not a one time occurrence.

2

greenglasstree t1_jbplh5v wrote

Replying to Bitter_Director1231 (#2,201,088)

I would like to see this study replicated with paid actors who are Latino, Asian, Native American, Pacific Islander, etc. My instinct tells me that appraisers treat these homeowners just as poorly as African Americans, but I would like to see data.

19

MustLoveAllCats t1_jbpz949 wrote

Replying to [deleted] (#2,202,372)

> This is one of those things that actually may not be race based. > > Realtors will tell you that you sometimes get those $&@! Appraisers that will lowball your property regardless of race or anything.

When the numbers show that black and latino-owned homes get lowballed twice as often as white homes, and when the lowball is such an incredibly huge amount, it's pretty safe to say race is probably involved.

Also, it's a pretty safe rule of thumb to never fully trust what a realtor says. They're society's worst people, taking cover behind bad lawyers and politicians.

8

El_Grande_Bonero t1_jbq0k3s wrote

Replying to [deleted] (#2,203,113)

Haha ok bud. Just to be clear I said almost a decade. And you are free to doubt but I have run teams that sell over 200 homes a year and have not seen a huge number of appraisals come up that short. One of my best friends is a lender and another close friend owns an AMC. I’ve also been through multiple refinances. And am currently developing an automated appraisal system using machine learning and AI. Explain to me which standard appraisal practices change based on the type of transaction? I’m not doubting that there are bad appraisers, there certainly are, but I’m doubting that it is a common occurrence. It is especially rare to see appraisals lowballed by 33%. I have been involved in transactions where the appraisal came in 10% below what I felt was market rate and that was outrageous 33% is insane.

2

Hot_Egg5840 t1_jbqdi3n wrote

So, in the end, the couple is happier to pay more taxes because appraised value is usually used as the basis for the tax bill. Right?

−21

Hot_Egg5840 t1_jbqqjni wrote

Is it possible they were originally lowballed to give them a break on their tax bill?

−8

SewSewBlue t1_jbr0n45 wrote

Replying to Bitter_Director1231 (#2,201,088)

I've seen this. My husband is Mexican, I am white. Had the house appraised twice over a 2 year period for reasons. The one where I was home alone was a good appraisal. The one where my husband was also home was a good $100k under value. Market was going crazy the last 2 years but my house only increased in value by $35k?

The guy had a chilly attitude toward as well, that the first guy did not have.

11

Derpaderpplerp t1_jbrh7kg wrote

Replying to Hot_Egg5840 (#2,204,282)

The sale price is used, for the start. Then increases are usually capped to x percent rise per year after for tax purposes.

This protects me as a homeowner from having a massive tax increase just because the housing market has lost its collective mind.

My 300k house now appraises as a million, but im nowhere near that after homestead exemption and the caps on per year increases in my state.

If i sold this place and bought a new place on the other side ofthe road for a million, i would be starting off with that much highersale and appraisal.

This makes it very common for folks to not be able to afford to sell and move up because they would get punched in the wallet by taxes.

5

0b0011 t1_jbt5u26 wrote

Replying to Hot_Egg5840 (#2,204,282)

Sure but that doesn't always mean they pay much more. In my state, house taxes are reaveluated when you buy a house and they tell you how much you have to pay then it can only go up a certain amount per year no matter how much the home value is. Ypu buy a house for 200k and 3 years later the house is worth 600k but you only pay taxes as if it were a 200k house. When someone buys it it's reevaluated and they now pay taxes as if it's a 600k house.

2

El_Grande_Bonero t1_jbtj2ld wrote

Replying to [deleted] (#2,208,719)

I’m curious what state you are in. In most states that I have seen appraisals are private party transactions and are not publicly available. An adjuster may look at your property to determine tax value but in most cases I have seen an appraiser is hired by the bank to determine value for financing purposes and that appraisal is owned by the borrower.

2