I want to thank everyone for the opportunity to serve as our chapter’s President this past year. It has been a great experience and I will continue to support the goals and initiatives of our chapter and the appraisal industry. Again, many thanks.

Our incoming President, David Ortegon, has served our chapter for years. Many of the recent successes we have achieved in Education have been a direct result of his knowledge, participation, and hard work. We are fortunate to have him and I know he will be an effective President for our chapter.

One important topic I want to briefly mention is government relations and the ongoing efforts of the Appraisal Institute. At our recent regional meeting, I was impressed with the progress being made by our National staff and outside lobbyists who are working diligently to give us a voice. However, our resources are limited. As Congress and federal agencies continue to consider legislation that could drastically affect the way financial institutions and real estate transactions are regulated, it is critical to the future of our industry for our members to step up now and support the efforts of our organization. Appraisers work very hard for their income and it is obvious that we do not want to see our fees beaten down further or appraisals replaced by Broker Price Opinions or Automated Valuations. This is already happening and it could get much worse if we don’t devote additional resources toward fighting this battle. We face the possibility of being steamrolled by the interests of the banking industry, realtors, and appraisal management companies if we don’t do more. That being said, if you have the ability to financially support the government relations efforts of the Appraisal Institute, now is the time to invest in your future.

On a more positive note, I want to wish everyone a very safe and happy holiday season. Our chapter meeting and annual Christmas dinner will be held on December 10th in Nashville. Our guest speaker will be our very own Leslie Sellers, MAI, SRA, who was recently installed as the 2010 National President of the Appraisal Institute. Many congratulations to Leslie and we hope to see you on December 10th.

Sincerely,

S. Todd Rogers, MAI
2009 Chapter President
 

Leslie P. Sellers, MAI, SRA, of Clinton, Tenn., was sworn in Friday, November 13th, as 2010 president of the Appraisal Institute during the organization’s fourth-quarter Board of Directors meeting in Cancun, Mexico. The Appraisal Institute is the nation’s largest organization of real estate appraisers.

“I am honored to have the opportunity to continue serving this fine organization during such a crucial juncture,” Sellers said. “With all the challenges currently facing our profession, I can’t think of a more important time to help lead our 26,000 members.”

Sellers has been a member of the Appraisal Institute for 30 years. Having served as vice president in 2008, he was president-elect this year and also served on the Executive Committee, along with the president, vice president and immediate past president. From 2002 to 2007, he represented Region IX on the Board of Directors.

In 2007, he headed up the Chapter-National-Regions Project Team, and was co-chair of the 75th Anniversary Project Team. He served on the national Audit Committee from 2003 to 2005, and was chair of the committee in 2004 and 2005. He was a member of the Strategic Planning Committee in 2005 and 2007. In addition, Sellers was a member of the project teams that formulated and implemented the Appraisal Institute’s current governance structure.

Sellers is an Appraisal Institute certified instructor and seminar author and has served on the Education Committee. He also has held various offices for the Greater Tennessee Chapter, including serving as president in 1999.

Sellers is the owner of several real estate companies, offering real estate appraisals, property management, brokerage, development and investment services.
 

Hola! It was an honor and pleasure to represent our Chapter at the Joint Regional Meetings of the Appraisal Institute in Cancun, Mexico this November. Especially exciting was Hurricane Ida’s brief but noted presence the weekend prior to the conference!

The regional meetings took place jointly this year in combination with the National meetings and The International Valuation Congress. In attendance from the Greater Tennessee Chapter was President, Todd Rogers, MAI and me, David Ortegon, SRA, Regional Representative. Here are the highlights of which to be aware:

Joe Magdziarz, MAI, SRA, gave the National financial report. So far this year National shows a net loss of approximately $374K which is down dramatically from the net loss of $1.2M in 2008 thanks to the efforts of the Board of Directors and the National finance committee. Cost cutting efforts along with improvements in educational offerings during 2009 has made this possible. Magdziarz did allude to a possible dues increase for 2010 but reminded everyone that the last dues increase took place in 2003. Joe was also proud to be able to present a balanced budget for 2010.

Discussion of other items included the proposal for the creation of a new Appraisal Review Designation. This was probably the most heated discussion of the joint meeting. The concerns raised by members included a concern that SRA and MAI designated appraisers could now be under the weight of a new review designation held by some nonpracticing appraisers who may not have any appraisal knowledge. Other points of view argued that technical appraisal review does not necessarily require formal appraisal knowledge or experience. This topic is expected to be taken up during the national board meeting here in Cancun but is not likely to gain traction.

Leslie Sellers, MAI, SRA, discussed the efforts made this year by the Government Relations team, as well as, the opportunities that both Leslie and Jim Amorin have had to speak on Capital Hill and to congressmen. Leslie emphasized the importance of financially supporting the Government Relations function, especially in the upcoming year as many important bills make there way through congress. To that effort many regional representatives in Region IX volunteered regional reimbursement toward the Government Relations campaign, specifically the NorthStar Challenge.

The Board of Directors is making a request to change the Region Meeting Structure for 2010. Currently, each region is required to hold two annual meetings in person. The proposed change is to have four region meetings annually consisting of at least one in person meeting and three virtual meetings held via some sort of online net meeting, etc. The topic is expected to be taken up during the national board meeting here in Cancun. If passed our Region IX still expects to continue the tradition of two in person region meetings. The next one is scheduled for March of 2010, but whether it will be in person or via the internet is yet to be known.

Ultimately, the meeting was a success. It was well attended and the enthusiasm seemed high for the coming year and all it’s bringing with it. It is certainly an exciting time for The Greater Tennessee Chapter as one of our own steps in to the position of National President. If his history is any indication of things yet to come, one can bet that Leslie Sellers will be an outstanding leader for the Appraisal Institute and our industry as a whole in 2010.

David Ortegon, SRA,
Regional Representative

Please join us for the annual installation banquet on December 10, 2009 at the Sheraton Hotel in Downtown Nashville.  Wonderful items will be available to bid on during the silent auction/reception from 6pm to 7pm in which all proceeds will benefit 2010's Habitat for Humanity effort in Williamson County.  Then you will want to stay for dinner as National President Leslie Sellers, MAI, SRA, will be in attendance to install the Greater Tennessee Chapter Officers for 2010.   A cash bar will be available throughout the evening.  The dinner is complimentary for members and $25.00 for guests.  Please email our Executive Director at myra@tnappraiser.org  and let her know if you plan to attend. 

The Business Practice & Ethics Course will be held the following day, December 11th, also at the Sheraton downtown.  Danny Wiley, SRA , is instructing.  Be sure and visit our website www.tnappraiser.org to register.