What Is a Broker Price Opinion?

Some mortgage borrowers who went into default may have been charged more than they should have had to for a broker price opinion.

A broker price opinion is a bare-bones version of a property appraisal. When a mortgage borrower falls behind on payments, a series of gears starts moving at the bank.

The bank might send property inspectors to ensure the property is continuing to be maintained and is occupied. A yard full of tall grass and weeds will be a red flag to the bank that no one lives there any longer.

The bank also will ask a real estate broker to submit a broker price opinion regarding the market value of the property. Banks depend upon broker price opinions as a starting point to know the home’s value prior to a foreclosure sale or a short sale.

The homeowner doesn’t benefit from the broker price opinion, but the bank often charges the homeowner a fee for the service provided to the bank. In fact, the fees charged to the homeowner often are excessive. They may appear in the mortgage terms as “other fees” or “miscellaneous charges” or some other non-specific verbiage that doesn’t allow the homeowners to realize they are paying for work the bank requested be done on the bank’s behalf.

If you had a mortgage with one of the following banks and went into default in the last three years, you could qualify to participate in this broker price opinion fee class action lawsuit investigation:

• Caliber Home loans
• Flagstar
• Freedom Mortgage
• LoanDepot
• Quicken Loans
• U.S. Bank

Why a Broker Price Opinion?

A broker price opinion is like an appraisal without the magnifying glass. The bank hires a real estate broker to have a real estate agent compare at least three similar properties that have recently sold. The real estate agent makes an educated guess on the differences among the properties to determine a broker price opinion, which is the agent’s opinion of the home’s current market value.

The real estate agent might go to the home to take photos of the interior or might just do an online search to “inspect” the property. As long as a minimum of three other recently sold homes are included in the final broker price opinion, the final judgment is considered valid.

A broker price opinion costs much less than an appraisal, but it’s also not as involved.

Some banks are accused of overcharging homeowners for broker price opinions and for property inspections that are done repeatedly without being warranted. Certain banks allegedly hire multiple real estate brokers to configure broker price opinions, but in the end, the bank does not have to accept the broker price opinion as the market value at all. The broker price opinion might be just one piece of a many-piece puzzle the bank uses to set a price.

Several class action lawsuits already have been filed against banks alleging they violate federal law by ordering multiple property inspections and/or broker price opinions and disguising the charges on customers’ mortgage statements.

If you defaulted on your home loan while you still lived in it, you could be eligible to join this class action lawsuit investigation.

Join a Free Property Inspection & Broker Price Opinion Class Action Lawsuit Investigation

If you were in default on your mortgage in the last three years with one of the following banks, you may qualify to join this property inspection fee class action lawsuit investigation:

• Caliber Home Loans
• Flagstar
• Freedom Mortgage
• LoanDepot
• Quicken Loans
• U.S. Bank

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