Correspondent Certification

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Valuation Requirements

Appraisals

With every appraisal report submitted to Pennymac, the Correspondent certifies:

  • The appraisal has been conducted by a licensed or certified appraiser. Correspondent certifies that it has adequate controls to ensure the appraiser is in good standing and licenses/certifications are current.
  • The Correspondent has thoroughly reviewed the report and has concluded that the property is adequate collateral to support the loan.
  • The report complies with Pennymac, USPAP and agency standards.
  • Any information known to the Correspondent that could adversely affect value or Marketability was disclosed to the appraiser.
  • The appraiser has adequately supported any assumptions, data, analysis, rationale, and conclusions made or used to determine value and marketability.
  • The information on the report is accurate, consistent, clearly written, and sufficiently documented.
  • Appraiser comments addressing declining property value (if any) are acted upon appropriately.
  • By delivering loans to Pennymac, the Correspondent represents and warrants that their appraisal process and appraisal reports are in compliance with all agency and HUD requirements, as well as, all applicable state or federal statutes in all aspects of ordering, evaluating, disclosures and processing appraisals. Appraisals provided by a third party, such as a mortgage or real estate broker are not acceptable.

Property Data Collector Independence Requirements (PDCIR)

The Correspondent certifies compliance with the requirements and guidance provided by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac regarding PDCIR, which includes:

  1. General Requirement: No employee, director, agent of the Correspondent, nor any third party acting on behalf of the Correspondent will influence or attempt to influence the observation, reporting, result, or review of a property data collection through coercion, extortion, collusion, compensation, inducement, intimidation, bribery, or any other manner.
  2. Acceptability of Subsequent Property Data Collection Assignments: The Correspondent will not order, obtain, use, or pay for a subsequent property data collection in connection with a Mortgage financing transaction, unless for a valid reason approved by the GSEs.
  3. Independent Party Engagement: The term “Independent Party” refers to the property data collector, property data collection company, any entity or person related to the property data collector, property data collection company, or any other party that is part of the property data collection process.
    1. The Correspondent maintains its sales and Mortgage production functions separate from its property data collection functions. An agent or employee of the Correspondent involved in sales or Mortgage production function must have no involvement whatsoever in the operations of the Correspondent’s property data collection functions. The Correspondent Mortgage production staff are restricted from:
      1. Ordering or managing a property data collection assignment;
      2. Selecting, retaining, recommending, or influencing the selection of property data collection assignments; or
      3. Having substantive communications with an Independent Party related to changing or removing factual observations in a property data collection.
    2. The Correspondent or any third party specifically authorized by the Correspondent (including, but not limited to, property data collection companies, appraisal companies, appraisal management companies, and Correspondent lenders) shall be responsible for selecting, retaining, and providing for payment of all compensation to the property data collector. The Correspondent will not accept any property data collection completed by an Independent Party that is selected, retained, or compensated in any manner by the Borrower or any other third party (including Mortgage Brokers, Loan Originators, and real estate agents).
    3. The Correspondent requires that any person involved in substantive property data collection review or in the selection of Independent Parties for inclusion on a list of approved Independent Parties must be appropriately trained in property data collection.
    4. The Correspondent may maintain lists of approved Independent Parties only if:
      1. The Correspondent has in place a written policy that requires such lists for bona fide administrative or quality control purposes; and
      2. The Correspondent’s employee(s) or vendor(s) involved in the selection of Independent Parties for such lists are wholly independent of the Correspondent’s Mortgage production staff and process.
  4. Use of Property Data Collection by In-House or Affiliated Independent Parties:
    1. If the Correspondent uses a property data collection prepared by an Independent Party employed, engaged as an independent contractor, or otherwise retained by the Correspondent or its affiliate, the Correspondent will maintain adherence to the PDCIR.
    2. If the Correspondent uses in-house staff in ordering, performing, or reviewing property data collection, the Correspondent will maintain adherence to the PDCIR.

By delivering loans to Pennymac, the Correspondent represents and warrants the independence, objectivity, and impartiality of property data collectors and other Independent Parties throughout the property data collection process.