Borrower Wants Answers Appraiser Can’t Give
Q:
"I completed an appraisal a few weeks ago for a purchase loan. The borrower/purchaser has called my office now 3 times and left messages. He sounds like a young guy, maybe a first-time buyer. He said he has some "questions" about the report. It doesn’t sound like he is calling to complain about anything, but in the last message he left he sounded a little angry because I had not returned his previous calls. I know I am not supposed to talk to this guy, but I feel badly about not calling him back. What am I supposed to do?"
A:
Obviously, the borrower doesn’t understand your duty of confidentiality and probably thinks you are just being rude. The problem with returning the call is that it is difficult to say that you are returning the call and then say you can’t talk about anything - that may just serve to frustrate the borrower even more.
You could contact the agent and tell them that their client has been calling and suggest that any questions be forwarded to the lender. You could contact the lender with the same message. If the borrower is truly calling with simple questions perhaps someone else can provide the answers. If it appears he has some kind of a “complaint” then you do need to put your E&O on notice so we can determine if further steps need to be taken.