Appraisal Firewall Updates Coming Later This Week
Release Information for Managers for Friday Morning, August 9th, 2019

Starting Friday morning, August 9th, 2019, a new version of Appraisal Firewall will be available for you and your clients.  This release includes Appraisal Scorecard enhancements, updates to assist in streamlining billing, a new mobile site option, and more. 


Read on for complete detail.


The Appraisal Scorecard: Reliable Appraisal Risk Management as a Standalone Product
The Appraisal Scorecard is one of the most complete, competitive auto-review tools available today. With its modern approach to connecting all parties on the review results – including the Lender Admin, the reviewer, Loan Officer, the underwriter, etc. – it’s no wonder that lenders have requested it be a standalone product.

In early June, we released the ability for lenders to use the Scorecard to upload appraisals completed outside of Appraisal Firewall into the Scorecard for review. With this release, we have enhanced the standalone Scorecard option because numerous lenders are using it as a standalone product, and they need more from it.  Hint: it’s a great way to attract lenders into Appraisal Firewall and get them hooked!
  • A More Complete Appraisal Risk Solution: Order Manual Reviews from Standalone Scorecard
    We have expanded the standalone Scorecard solution to include the ability to order a manual appraisal review from the Scorecard results.  Lenders can now use the Scorecard results to drive higher appraisal quality by using the review results as a roadmap for their appraisal reviewers. Additionally, the user assigned to do the manual review will now be notated on the Scorecard results to keep track of who performed the review.

    How to use this feature:
    If any of your clients’ divisions are setup to offer the standalone Scorecard to your clients, you simply need to make sure that the same division is enabled for manual review. Then, once the Scorecard completes and the results are returned, your clients can go to the Parties tab and click the Assign Reviewer button to select a reviewer.  Once a reviewer is assigned, the order will go to a Manual Review status and the reviewer will receive an email notifying them that they have a new order to review.  They can then access the order, review the appraisal and the Scorecard results, and click the Approve or the Reject button based on their review.
Click here to review setup and user training on the standalone Scorecard offering.

Want to learn more about the Appraisal Scorecard? Contact Danielle Walker for more information, or to request a demo: (800)452-1174 ext 1260, or Danielle.Walker@SharperLending.com
 

Additional Appraisal Scorecard Enhancements

Ability to Add General Notes to Scorecard in New Review Summation Section
What sets the Scorecard apart from the competition is not only the ability to instantly provide accurate insights into the appraisal: it is an appraisal risk management hub for lenders, reviewers and underwriters to jointly collaborate.  We have extended the ability to collaborate on Scorecard results: users can add general notes about the entire appraisal review into the Review Summation section. This can help users get a better idea about the entire appraisal and the approval or rejection of it.

How to use this feature:
On the web version of the Scorecard output, there is a new Review Summation section.  Users can click the pencil icon at right to add general comments about the appraisal, then Save their changes. 

 
Scorecard Notes Now Editable
Users can now edit or remove notes that have been added to the sections on Appraisal Scorecard results. This is helpful when typos happen, or if an underwriter wants a note edited or removed altogether from the Scorecard review.

How to use this feature:
When a note has been added by a user to the Scorecard results, each reviewer’s note will now each have a pencil icon for editing existing notes, and a red “X” icon for removing the note.  Use caution when removing notes – this action cannot be undone.
 

Other Enhancements Include...

New Ability to Bill Same Credit Card for Payment on 1st and 2nd Appraisals
To save your clients time when they order a 2nd appraisal from the first appraisal, there is a new payment option to reuse the same credit card that was used as payment type on the first appraisal. Of course, this option is only available if a credit card was used to pay for the first appraisal. This option will reduce clicks and make it easier to place orders on second appraisals.

How to use this feature:
Open an order that was paid for by credit card, and at right, click the Order 2nd Appraisal button.  On the New Order screen, fill out any required fields for the second appraisal, and in the Payment Method section, make sure the Credit Card (From Original Order) is selected.  Proceed with placing the order, and the same credit card that was used on the first order will be billed on the second appraisal order.
 
Appraisal Firewall Mobile Device Site Now Links to Full Site for More Functionality
More lenders and brokers are working remotely and need access to full Appraisal Firewall functionality from their mobile devices.  As you know, Appraisal Firewall is smart enough to detect when a user is attempting to access the site from their mobile device.  When detected, it presents the user with a slimmed down mobile version that provides basic functionality for a better visual experience on a smaller screen.  With this release, users that visit the mobile site will have the choice of browsing to the full site to maximize functionality.

How to use this feature:
Go to the mobile login page (www.AppraisalFirewall.com/m) from a device, and you will see a new link to the Full Site of Appraisal Firewall.  When clicked, this redirects users to the full Appraisal Firewall site on a mobile browser where users can login, place orders, cancel orders, send messages, view Relationships, run management reports, and all functionality that the standard Appraisal Firewall desktop version offers.