If your appraiser sends you a message or a status update during the processing of your order, you will receive an automatic email notification from Appraisal Firewall. The email will be sent to the email address you use to login to Appraisal Firewall.
- If an appraiser sends you a status update, you can anonymously review the information (if you log in as a supervisor/originator) in it and know the current status of your order.
- If an appraiser sends you a message that requires your response, you can communicate with your appraiser anonymously through the Appraisal Firewall features that are available to you in Encompass®.
Follow these instructions to send a message to or reply to a message from your appraiser.
1. Open the loan file that contains the appraisal you need to send or reply to a message on.
2. Go to the Services tab and click Order Appraisal.
3. Login to Appraisal Firewall (enter email address/password if not already entered and click Sign In).
4. When the Details screen opens, you can view any existing messages intended for you, and you can reply to them.
5. Click the Send Message option to send a message or reply to a message that was sent to you.
6. In the New Message section, you can type your message, indicate if the recipient needs to do something by checking the Action Required checkbox, select to whom the message should go, and add attachments. When ready, click the Send Message button. Your message will be logged for compliance purposes in the Communications Log.
7. It is important to remember that, when using the Messaging feature, any statements of value or other statements that can be interpreted as 'appraiser influence' may cause the order to be canceled by your organization. Use caution when messaging your appraisers, and never include your name in a message.
Encompass® is a registered trademark of ICE Mortgage Technology® Inc.