New building permit service strengthens real estate appraisers’ ability to report on improvements
PALM COAST, Fla., October 4, 2012 — ACI, a leading provider of real estate appraisal software and innovator in valuation technology for the mortgage industry, announced today that the company has integrated BuildFax information into ACI’s software platform, ACI2010TM. BuildFax specializes in providing the nation’s only automated source for building permit data — including permits for additions and remodels not found in property tax records. The integration of BuildFax’s building permit information into ACI2010 provides more data to appraisers, improves the quality of appraisal reports, and assists in Uniform Collateral Data Portal (UCDP) compliance.
“Professional appraisers constantly strive to provide accurate documentation to further support the value conclusion for the properties they appraise,” said George Opelka, senior vice president of ACI. “We will continue to seek new sources of information and data to help real estate appraisers accomplish that objective. And with that said, we’re very pleased to bring the building permit data provided by BuildFax to the appraiser community.”
Under new Uniform Appraisal Dataset (UAD) requirements, appraisers are asked to state if a subject property has been remodeled or updated in the past 15 years, along with the date the change took place, if applicable. BuildFax building permit data can provide supportive documentation to an appraiser’s overall condition rating on a subject property — helping quantify condition and quality details as well as conclusions regarding any updates or remodeling. Appraisers can save time and money while avoiding callbacks by taking advantage of the same permit data that more than 400 lenders are already using in their review process.
“Properties are ever-changing, comps are changing. BuildFax’s permit data helps appraisers fill in the missing pieces on overall property condition, additions, and remodels — as they change,” says BuildFax President Holly Tachovsky. “Consider this, residential remodels, as tracked by building permits, were at a staggering seasonally adjusted rate of 2,894,000. That’s nearly 3 million homes changing, added to the millions that changed last year and the year before and so on. Those changes are not only relevant to an appraiser’s subject property but can also affect the accuracy of area comps.”
About BuildFax®
BuildFax is the creator of the first and only automated source for national, historical building permit data. BuildFax Reports provide permit-level details on property improvements, condition, valuation, and open permits — insight not found in tax assessor data — critical in analyzing collateral risk. More than 400 lenders already utilize BuildFax data in their loan approval process in accordance with existing GSE guidelines, which acknowledge and recommend permitting data as a trusted source for independent, third-party verification of property improvements and condition. The BuildFax database continues to grow, currently covering over 72 million residential and commercial properties in the United States, with over 6 billion data points. For more information, visit www.buildfax.com.
About ACI
ACI, a pioneer in crafting technology solutions for the mortgage valuation community, has gained industrywide recognition and support from leaders in the field. ACI’s highly scalable appraisal solutions are tailored to the needs of the organizations ACI serves. The ACI client base features many of North America’s premier lenders, national appraisal companies, and real estate brokerage firms. From connecting appraisers nationwide to streamlining quality control, ACI enables organizations to process appraisals and manage exceptions in a consistent and efficient manner. Headquartered in Palm Coast, Florida, ACI is a division of Verisk Analytics (Nasdaq:VRSK).
Release: Immediate
Contact:
George Opelka
Senior Vice President, ACI
1-800-234-8727
gopelka@aciweb.com