Appraisals play a critical role in the home purchase process and a credit union’s assessment of the safety and soundness of providing a home loan, CUNA wrote to a House Financial Services subcommittee Wednesday. The House Financial Services subcommittee on housing, community development and insurance conducted a hearing on appraisals, which included a discussion of the Homebuyer Assistance Act of 2019.

“The bill would increase uniformity in the federally-backed mortgage loan market by ensuring that the Federal Housing Administration’s appraiser requirements are identical to those currently employed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac concerning licensed appraisers,” the letter reads. “As a result, credit unions would be able provide members with more choices for federally-backed loans without having to worry that an appraisal will not satisfy a program’s requirements due to their differing appraiser certification standards.

If passed, the Homebuyer Assistance Act of 2019 will be a positive change for both consumers and lenders in the mortgage market,” it adds.

CUNA believes that greater uniformity and consistency in the federal standards governing appraisers would help reduce the costs associated with issuing mortgage loans to credit union members.