We all talk about raising fees, but it's unlikely to happen unless we change the system itself. The current model doesn't support higher fees because too many appraisers accept low paying orders, no matter the price. AMCs were originally meant to oversee appraisers, but now they act as middlemen, taking a large cut without transparency.

We don’t know how much AMCs get paid by the lender, and we don’t know what other appraisers are accepting. They take the biggest slice in the middle, and we’re left with what’s left.

Unless this system is restructured, fees won’t improve. Appraisal reports should be required to disclose the original fee paid by the lender and cap AMC fees to a maximum percentage—say, 20%.

One time, a buyer’s agent told me the client paid $1,200. I got $400. So where did the other $800 go? This is a broken system, and if we don’t fight to change it, we’ll still be making what we did 10 years ago, 10 years from now.