Oakland Homeowner Settles with Appraiser, Lender after $300,000 Lowball Appraisal

OAKLAND, Calif. (KGO) -- An East Oakland homeowner has reached a settlement agreement with a California appraiser and a mortgage company after receiving an appraisal that came in more than $300,000 lower than expected. The Black homeowner alleged in a complaint with the California Civil Rights Department that she was discriminated against due to her race.

In December 2021, in the thick of the COVID-19 pandemic when home mortgage loan rates were at historic lows, the East Oakland homeowner applied to refinance her mortgage to take out money from the equity in her home to pay for home repairs.

The details of the allegations were shared by the Fair Housing Advocates of Northern California (FHANC) in a release to ABC7 News announcing the settlement agreement.

The name of the mortgage company was not publicized as a part of the terms agreed to in the settlement. The homeowner asked ABC7 News not to share her identity.

The appraiser hired by the lender appraised the homeowner's property at $785,000--a value much lower than the homeowner expected.

"First thing I thought was he doesn't like me because of my race," the homeowner told ABC7 News. "I wasn't happy with the amount of what he valued my home at. And then I looked at the (comparable homes) in my area, and I knew something was wrong."

The homeowner asked the lender to reconsider the value in a process known as reconsideration of value (ROV).
The company sent the report back to the same appraiser who did not raise the value of the home.

"I was very hurt and disappointed and got upset and cried a little bit," the homeowner said. "He was discriminating against me because of who I was. I was single, a senior. But he felt that I, my property, wasn't of value."

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