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Industry Groups Issue BPO Standards

The ""National Association of BPO Professionals"":http://www.nabpop.org/ (NABPOP) and its ""BPO Standards Board"":http://www.nabpop.org/BPOs-BPOSG.php (BSB) have issued new broker price opinion (BPO) guidelines for real estate agents and brokers to use when determining the probable selling price of residential properties.
In a statement endorsing the new standards, Ft. Worth, Texas-based ""eMortgage Logic"":http://www.emortgagelogic.com called the organizations' BPO blueprint ""a quality-oriented set of standards and guidelines for completing broker price opinions."" Since 2002, eMortgage Logic has been providing BPOs to the mortgage servicing industry and Wall Street investors for portfolio acquisitions and loan-level risk assessment, and the company contributed both personnel and resources to the BSB to help formulate the BPO standards.
The newly issued ""BPO Standards and Guidelines"":http://www.nabpop.org/BPOs-BPOSG.php (BPOSG) provide a framework for the preparation of broker price opinions throughout the BPO industry, including suggested practices for the selection and utilization of comparable properties, pricing considerations, the use of photographs, and ethical and competency considerations. The BPOSG were developed with input from sources across the industry, including BPO firms, REO companies, mortgage servicers, and BPO practitioners (sales agents and brokers).
Michael Ramer, president of the ""Real Estate Valuation Advocacy Association"":http://www.revaa.org (REVAA), said, ""The BSB is the embodiment of the best and brightest that comprise the entire supply chain of BPOs. The dedication and selflessness of the participating companies and the brokers that comprise the BSB are a true indication of the high caliber nature of the BPO industry.""
According to eMortgage Logic, BPOs have become an integral component of the property assessment process and a reliable and accurate form of real estate valuation. The company says the introduction of industry-wide standards and guidelines for broker price opinions will help further advance the BPO aspect of the business and the entire property valuation industry. eMortgage Logic plans to begin integrating BPOSG into its operations in the coming months.
Ralph Sells, president and CEO of eMortgage Logic, commented, ""Through education, training, and self-regulation we feel real estate brokers and agents have their finger on the pulse of the market and can offer the best information as the local expert. With a continued focus on standards and guidelines, I am confident the real estate community will set the bar higher for themselves than any externally imposed regulations.""
Bill Morrison, a BSB board member, senior advisor to NABPOP, and a licensed broker in Northern California, added, ""Having standards and guidelines for the preparation and submittal of BPOs is a critical component of increasing transparency to all aspects of the real estate and mortgage market. With all parties working from the same assumptions, resale opportunities and the market are enhanced for properties that are properly priced.""

About Author: Carrie Bay

Carrie Bay is a freelance writer for DS News and its sister publication MReport. She served as online editor for DSNews.com from 2008 through 2011. Prior to joining DS News and the Five Star organization, she managed public relations, marketing, and media relations initiatives for several B2B companies in the financial services, technology, and telecommunications industries. She also wrote for retail and nonprofit organizations upon graduating from Texas A&M University with degrees in journalism and English.
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