COVID-19 Safe Home Appraisal Act of 2020

I 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION H. R. 6791 To waive certain requirements with respect to in-person appraisals, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES MAY 8, 2020 Mr. SHERMAN (for himself and Ms. WATERS) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Financial Services, and in addi- tion to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, for a period to be subse- quently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned A BILL To waive certain requirements with respect to in-person appraisals, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘COVID-19 Safe Home 4 Appraisal Act of 2020’’. 5 SEC. 2. CONGRESSIONAL FINDINGS. 6 The Congress finds that as the United States con- 7 tinues to grapple with the impact of the spread of 8 Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID–19), several adjust- 9 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:46 May 21, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H6791.IH H6791 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 6791 IH ments are needed to ensure that mortgage processing can 1 continue to function without significant delays, despite re- 2 quirements that would otherwise require in-person inter- 3 actions. 4 SEC. 3. WAIVER OF IN-PERSON APPRAISAL REQUIREMENTS. 5 (a) WAIVER.—During the period that begins upon 6 the date of the enactment of this Act and ends on the 7 date of the termination by the Federal Emergency Man- 8 agement Agency of the emergency declared on March 13, 9 2020, by the President under the Robert T. Stafford Dis- 10 aster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11 4121 et seq.) relating to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 12 (COVID–19) pandemic, any appraisal that is conducted 13 for a loan for a single-family residential property with re- 14 spect to which applicable law or policy would otherwise 15 require the performance of an interior inspection may be 16 performed without an interior inspection, if— 17 (1) an exterior-only inspection appraisal is per- 18 formed in conjunction with other methods, including 19 borrower (or prospective borrower) observations or 20 verifiable contemporaneous video or photographic 21 documentation by the borrower (or prospective bor- 22 rower), to the extent they are available; 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:46 May 21, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H6791.IH H6791 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 6791 IH (2) the applicable lender, guarantor, regulating 1 agency, or insurer may order additional services to 2 include an interior inspection at a later date; and 3 (3) the lender certifies that an appraiser re- 4 jected the assignment over health and safety con- 5 cerns related to Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID- 6 19). 7 (b) EXCEPTION TO EXTERIOR ONLY APPRAISALS.— 8 If an exterior-only inspection appraisal pursuant to sub- 9 section (a)(1) is prevented by State or local laws or orders, 10 a desktop appraisal shall be utilized in conjunction with 11 other methods, including borrower (or prospective bor- 12 rower) observations or verifiable contemporaneous video or 13 photographic documentation by the borrower (or prospec- 14 tive borrower), to the extent they are available. 15 (c) STIPULATION.—An appraiser conducting an ap- 16 praisal without an interior inspection pursuant to this sec- 17 tion shall stipulate an extraordinary assumption that the 18 property’s interior quality, condition, and physical charac- 19 teristics are as described and consistent with the exterior 20 view, and shall employ all available methods to maximize 21 accuracy while maintaining safety. 22 (d) RULEMAKING.—Not later than the end of the 7- 23 day period beginning on the date of the enactment of this 24 Act, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:46 May 21, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H6791.IH H6791 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 6791 IH the Secretary of Agriculture, the Secretary of Veterans Af- 1 fairs, and the Director of the Federal Housing Finance 2 Agency shall issue such rules or guidance as may be nec- 3 essary to ensure that such agencies, the Federal Home 4 Loan Mortgage Corporation, the Federal National Mort- 5 gage Association, and the Federal home loan banks make 6 any adjustments to single-family mortgage processing re- 7 quirements that may be necessary to provide flexibility to 8 avoid in-person interactions while preserving the goals of 9 the programs and consumer protection. 10 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:46 May 21, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H6791.IH H6791 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS