This document summarizes Cushman & Wakefield's evaluation solutions service. It discusses when regulatory agencies allow for evaluations instead of appraisals, including for transactions under $250,000, business loans under $1,000,000, and renewals/refinances. Evaluations typically cost less than appraisals. Cushman & Wakefield's evaluations are completed by licensed professionals and provide a customized report drawing on their brokerage network, to help financial institutions reduce costs while meeting regulatory requirements.
2. Cushman & Wakefield
Mr. Ping has a distinctive background which provides clients with an advantage over many of their competitors. He has
been actively involved in the real estate valuation and consulting profession since 1983 with employers in the banking
and public accounting arenas. His extensive experience in real estate ranges from the valuation of single assets to entire
bank loan portfolios.
In 2012, he joined Cushman & Wakefield and is currently serving as National Director of the Alternative Valuation
Services Group of Valuation & Advisory for Cushman & Wakefield Global Services, Inc. In this role he is responsible for
new business generation, supplying platforms, processes, and procedures, and quality control for the reviews for various
appraisals and evaluations.
In the 17 years prior to joining Cushman & Wakefield, he served as Chief Appraiser at PNC Bank and Huntington Bank.
Mr. Ping has experience and knowledge of the regulatory environment associated with valuation issues and with
underwriting policies and procedures. He continues to enjoy a very integrated relationship with the regulatory agencies.
Paul E. Ping, MAI
National Director
Alternative Valuation Services
The Lower-Cost Response to Regulatory Exemptions
Evaluation Solutions
3. Cushman & Wakefield
1. All transactions in which the “transaction value” is $250,000 or less
2. Real estate-secured business loans with a transaction value of $1,000,000 or less
and when the sale of, rental income derived from real estate is not the primary
source of repayment for the loan; and
3. Renewals, refinances, or other transactions involving existing extensions of credit.
a. There has been no obvious and material change in market conditions or physical aspects
of the property that threaten the adequacy of the institution’s real estate collateral
protection after the transaction, even with the advancement of new monies; or
b. There is no advancement of new monies other than funds necessary to cover reasonable
closing costs.
Regulatory Basis for Evaluations
When are Evaluations an option?
There are at least three acceptable scenarios for using an Evaluation
4. Cushman & Wakefield
Key Definition from the Agencies’ Appraisal Regulations
Transaction Value
• For loans or other extensions of credit, the
amount of the loan or extension of credit;
• For sales, leases, purchases, and investments
in or exchanges of real property, the market
value of the real property interest involved; and
• For the pooling of loans or interests in real
property for resale or purchase, the amount of
the loan or market value of the real property
calculated with respect to each such loan or
interest in real property.
For purposes of this definition, the transaction
value for loans that permit negative amortization
should be the institution’s total committed amount,
including any potential negative amortization.
5. Cushman & Wakefield
Appraisal or Not…
Evaluation: A valuation permitted by the Agencies’ appraisal
regulations for transactions that qualify for the appraisal
threshold exemption, business loan exemption, or subsequent
transaction exemption.
That should clear up any confusion!
Seriously, the subtlety of the definition is important. The word valuation versus the
word appraisal is key.
An Evaluation is not necessarily an Appraisal…
but an Appraisal can be an Evaluation as an Appraisal is a valuation.
What is an Evaluation?
6. Cushman & Wakefield
Appraisal or Not…
From a regulatory perspective, an Evaluation is not required to
be completed by an appraiser; however, in some states
Evaluations are encompassed in the state licensing laws and
requires the use of an appraiser.
In the agency guidelines,
• The person selected possesses the requisite education, expertise, and
experience to competently complete the assignment, and
• Persons who perform evaluations should possess the appropriate appraisal or
collateral valuation education, expertise, and experience relevant to the type of
property being valued. Such persons may include appraisers, real estate lending
professionals, agricultural extension agents, or foresters.
• The person is unbiased, independent and has no direct, indirect, or prospective
interest, financial or otherwise, in the property or the transaction.
What is an Evaluation?
7. Cushman & Wakefield
Is it more simple to order appraisals?
Evaluations typically cost less in terms of money and time
than appraisals. If not, you may be ordering appraisals
from the wrong people.
The agencies are enamored by a risk-based decision-
making approach. Every institution operates in different
types of markets, have different portfolio dynamics, and
have credit cultures.
Take advantage of where the regulations allow an
institution to be cost effective.
Why Use Evaluations?
8. Cushman & Wakefield
When to be careful
• Loans with combined loan-to-value ratios in excess of the supervisory loan-to-
value limits;
• Atypical properties;
• Properties outside the institution’s traditional lending market;
• Transactions involving existing extensions of credit with significant risk to the
institution; or
• Borrowers with high risk characteristics
Why Use Evaluations?
These risk factors can be minimized when ordering an Evaluation
from a qualified individual with the requisite experience.
9. Cushman & Wakefield
Why have a different process/procedure?
The Need for an Evaluation Program
Simply put…
Cost Reduction and Speed of Execution
• Make your customer’s happier
• Reduce your administrative burden, thus
internal costs
• Address safety and soundness
• Differentiate between risk parameters
10. Cushman & Wakefield
Why Choose Us?
The Cushman & Wakefield Experience
We know there are others that provide Evaluation
reports, but Cushman & Wakefield differentiates
our services and product from the industry.
• Reviewable Restricted Appraisal Report on “steroids”
• Fully customized report, not a checkbox form
• Completed by a full-time, state licensed
Cushman & Wakefield employee in the area
of the property
• Draw upon our extensive brokerage and
leasing network
• Process managed by experienced
personnel with bank valuation
oversight history
11. The Lower-Cost Response to Regulatory Exemptions
Cushman & Wakefield Evaluations
Let’s open this up for Q&A
Evaluations are exemptions to FIRREA’s appraisal requirements and are used to fulfill the requirements for loans meeting the de minimis thresholds.
Interesting concept is the definition of de minimis
Webster defines this as:
lacking significance or importance : so minor as to merit disregard
What this tells us is that the real estate in question is not the source of repayment is really ancillary in the decision to extend credit.
Typically we talk about owner occupied real estate wherein the bank also has a loan on the operations of the owner and are looking at the source of repayment from the cash flow of the business operations. The real estate would only come into play when there is a foreclosure scenario.
As banks do not go into a loan assuming foreclosure, the real estate is a secondary or tertiary source of repayment
The important thing to understand is that the transaction value is not the property value, but rather the loan amount.
The distinguishing characteristic is that the loans should be “stand-alone”. Individual loans to borrowers may need to be aggregated to determine transaction value.
The agencies do not give us a really good idea of what an Evaluation is but rather make a key differentiation by not using the word “appraisal”.
The December 2010 Interagency document tells us what should be in an Evaluation, but not the form in which the report should be presented.
Another important aspect is that we are told Evaluations are not required to be completed by appraisers.
Only someone with the requisite education, expertise and experience.
Appraisers can complete Evaluations as long as they follow the USPAP guidelines.
In order to accomplish this the Evaluation must be completed in either a Restricted appraisal report or an Appraisal report.
Look back at the concept of the definition of de minimis.
Look at the risk of the transaction as a function of how it fits into the bank’s credit requirements, culture and portfolio. RISK is key to the agencies philosophy regarding most transactions and the due diligence that is required.
There are instances when the agencies tell us that Evaluations may not be the best product to use.
However, even these situations may be overcome by using a competent source for the Evaluation.
For example:
A golf course is considered by many to be a unique property.
If you were to use a leading industry golf course specialist to complete the Evaluation, the risk may be mitigated.
The agencies explain that a program should be documented and a process/procedure put in place for the entire valuation function.
An Evaluation is a component of the valuation function and thus you should have a procedure in place to utilize Evaluations correctly.
Cushman & Wakefield is uniquely qualified to complete Evaluations. We use of existing employees (state licensed/certified appraisers) familiar with the local markets to complete Evaluations.
Following USPAP we use the format of a restricted appraisal report to fulfill the Evaluation requirements. The key difference between our product and others is that our restricted appraisal report is more in-depth and provides the bank with the information necessary to review and understand the logic used by the appraiser.
Most all the competitors use a form driven, check box approach by independent contractors throughout the country. They may not even have a state license or certification.
Of note: the Appraisal Institute recently had a seminar on how appraisers can provide Evaluations to banks…..REALLY? We have been providing this product for over 5 years and the appraisers are just now understanding this?
I came to this firm with the intent to create this product and provide to institutions what is really been missing. In all my years of banking, Evaluations were a source of irritation. There was never a credible source for acquiring Evaluations from external sources.
Internally prepared? Many banks have internal departments to handle this but the cost of production of a variably demanded product with fixed costs can be detrimental to a cost effective program.