FINAL_RFI_Sources_Sought.pdf

SOURCES SOUGHT NOTICE (AG-CSC1-SS-AP15)

Appraisal Services

UDSA, RD, CSC

12/24/2015

1.0 DESCRIPTION

1.1 The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Rural Development (RD) Centralized Servicing Center,(CSC), St. Louis MO, is soliciting information on potential sources to provide NATIONWIDE APPRAISAL SERVICES and technical support for its foreclosure activities and USDA Real Estate Owned (REO) properties. It will be for the procurement of Appraisals Services for Rural Development (RD) Centralized Servicing Center, to be national in scope, supporting an RD portfolio that is located in all 50 states to include Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands, Guam, N. Mariana Islands, and the American Samoa. Inventory would include single family homes and vacant lots. The Centralized Servicing Center is issuing this sources sought as a means of conducting market research to identify SMALL DISABLED VETERAN OWNED SMALL BUSINESS (SDVOSB) concerns having an interest in and the experience, ability, capacity and resources to provide the supervision, labor, materials, equipment, and supplies necessary to provide appraisal services nationwide to CSC. The result of this market research will contribute to determining whether there are adequate SMALL DISABLED VETERAN OWNED SMALL BUSINESS (SDVOSB) resources from which to receive competitive proposals. Status as a service-disabled veteran-owned small business concern is determined in accordance with 13 CFR parts 125.8 through 125.13. Please refer to the Federal Acquisition Regulation at www.acquisition.gov, Part 19 for additional detailed information. The applicable North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code to be assigned to this procurement is 531320. The size standard is $7.5M.

1.2 THIS IS A SOURCES SOUGHT NOTICE ONLY and a SOLICITATION IS NOT CURRENTLY AVAILABLE. This notice is for information and planning purposes only and shall not be construed as a solicitation or an obligation on the part of the Government to issue a request or proposals (RFP) in the future. This request for capability information does not constitute a request for proposals and does not commit the Government to contract for any supply or service, whatsoever. Further, the USDA, Rural Development is not at this time seeking proposals and will not accept unsolicited proposals. Submission of any information in response to this market survey is purely voluntary. The government assumes no financial responsibility for any costs incurred associated to this request for capability information. Not responding to this sources sought does not preclude participation in any future RFP, if any is issued. If a solicitation is released, it will be synopsized on the Federal Business Opportunities (FedBizOpps) website. It is the responsibility of the potential offerors to monitor these sites for additional information pertaining to this requirement. Responses do not guarantee award nor http://www.acquisition.gov/ exclude/include you in the acquisition process. No feedback on evaluations will be provided to companies regarding their submissions.

2.0 BACKGROUND

Rural Development (RD) is a nationwide lender and provides loans to low and moderate income applicants located in rural geographic areas to assist them in obtaining single family housing through multiple programs. RD maintains a portfolio of approximately 280,000 Direct Single Family Housing loans for 250,000 borrowers. Section 502 Direct loans are generally secured by first mortgages on modest dwellings located on non-farm tracts of one acre or less.

A limited number homes are located on larger than one acre of land. The Single Family Housing Direct loans are located in each of the 50 states and U.S. territories that include Puerto Rico, Guam (and its Islands) and the Virgin Islands.

RD currently processes all loan originations through State Offices and approximately 550 Field Offices. The Centralized Servicing Center (CSC), located in St. Louis, Missouri provides support to the field offices for loan originations and are responsible for most servicing functions.

RD is currently utilizing a decentralized model for servicing foreclosure and inventory properties in approximately 40% of the country. CSC services the remainder of the country. In all states, foreclosure services are contracted through a decentralized contract acquisition process. Once a property is vacant or in the Agency’s custody through the “custodial” process and/or REO, CSC utilizes a nationwide vendor to handle the 60% of those properties that CSC has responsibility to service (this is commonly referred to as “Centralized States”).

The Foreclosure and REO portfolios are currently serviced in a “mixed servicing” environment.

Approximately 60% of the states are serviced by CSC with the remainder being serviced throughout the country by the State and /or field Office. The purpose of the centralized default management division is to minimize risk to the Federal Government, the taxpayer as well as reduce the cost associated with servicing defaulted customers. CSC is seeking information from companies who possess the capability to handle appraisal services for the United States and its Territories on a Nationwide portfolio with and without subcontracting.

3.0 REQUESTED INFORMATION

Interested parties, who consider themselves qualified SDVOSB’s that can provide these services are invited to provide a written response to the questions below and electronically submit your responses to: Connie Williams at connie.williams@stl.usda.gov, no later than 4:00

PM CENTRAL TIME (CT) JANUARY 15TH, 2016.

Your responses should provide: Existing demonstrated capability, demonstrated capacity, demonstrated knowledge, and demonstrated past experience. (For the purposes of this Capability Statement, capacity shall refer to matters such as the magnitude of the tasking, the amount of equipment or facilities involved, and the size of the staff needed).

1. Are you currently providing Appraisal services nationwide? If so, in what capacity?

2. Has your company had experience developing appraisal reports according to the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP) and/or familiar with the property standards of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Handbook 4000.1? Please provide your demonstrated experience.

3. Companies must possess competence and recent experience in appraising residential property and have access to a suitable source of Market Data relevant to the properties to be appraised. What experience do you have in providing residential appraisal services for foreclosure activities nationwide and/or managing this specific kind of tasking? Do you currently utilize or maintain an electronic database for locating appraisers nationwide that hold advanced designations (i.e. MAI, SRPA, SRA, AI-GRS, AI-RRSO)? If so, please list the databases.

4. Please demonstrate what experience you have dealing with unique state/county laws, regulations and licensing applicable to nationwide appraisal services? Are there any known concerns with providing these services nationwide?

5. Does your company have “quality assurance standards” in place for performing appraisals and submitting appraisal reports. If so, please briefly explain your process.

6. Do you have experience interfacing through the MortgageServ/FiServ/Fasteller system or some other Mortgage Servicing System? If so, please list the systems with which you have experience.

mailto:connie.williams@stl.usda.gov

7. Do you possess the capability of providing appraisal reports electronically within 10 working days from receipt of order?

8. Would your company have the capability of providing a volume discount and/or an agreed upon nationwide (contiguous United States) flat-fee for specific routine recurring appraisal services? If so, briefly explain your discount strategy structure. If not, please state your reasons.

9. Companies will be required to be knowledgeable about the required Licenses necessary to conduct business in the various states and their respective counties, to include any specialty licenses. Does your company possess this expertise? Please provide evidence how your company can meet this requirement. You must demonstrate your existing capability, or your potential to acquire this capability.

10. Initially, companies may be asked to provide up to 1000 appraisal reports per month.

Please provide existing capabilities of your company to manage, as prime contractor, the types and magnitude of tasking associated with a nationwide appraisal service contract. (You may cite and describe the same or similar relevant current and past performance of a task of this magnitude; however, this does not limit the interested contractor’s approach to demonstrate capability).

11. What is your current policy for handling environmental issues/ concerns that are identified in the appraisal? Do you have any experience in completing environmental checklists for other clients? If so, please provide a brief explanation of your process.

12. What percentage of the work would you do with your firm's employees and what percentage of the work would you be interested in subcontracting? If subcontracting opportunities are available, do you anticipate any difficulties in subcontracting with 8(a), small business, veteran-owned small business, service-disabled, or women-owned small business concerns?

13. Have you participated in any cost performance, schedule or delivery performance or quality performance measurement incentive programs that were results-oriented and structured to encourage and reward superior performance? If so, briefly explain the program(s) that you found were particularly effective?

4.0 RESPONSES

4.1 SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS: Interested parties are requested to respond to this Sources Sought with a white paper. All communication shall be in writing and submitted electronically via email, referencing AG-CSC1-SS-AP15. No information will be taken by telephone.

4.2 White papers in Portable Document Format (PDF) are due no later than 4:00 PM CENTRAL TIME (CT) JANUARY 15, 2016. Your entire submission shall be limited to 8 pages (8x11), single spaced, 12-point font minimum and should be separated by Sections. Proprietary information, if any, should be minimized and MUST BE CLEARLY MARKED. To aid the Government, please segregate proprietary information. Please be advised that all submissions become Government property and will not be returned.

Do not submit a cost proposal.

4.3 SECTION I of your submission shall provide administrative information: and shall include the following at a minimum:

4.3.1. Name, mailing address, DUNS number, GSA Contract number (if applicable) phone number, fax number, and e-mail of designated point of contact.

4.3.2. Scope of services your company currently provides nationwide.

4.3.3. Provide a short paragraph of your recommended “start-up/transition strategy” to mitigate, reduce, or eliminate startup risk.

4.4 SECTION II of your submission shall provide responses to the questions listed in 3.0 of this document and any additional information to substantiate your demonstrated capability to deliver nationwide appraisal services.

5.0 INDUSTRY DISCUSSIONS

CSC representatives may or may not choose to contact sources to gather additional information. Such discussions would only be intended to get further clarification of potential capability to meet the requirements.

6.0 QUESTIONS

Questions regarding this announcement shall be submitted in writing, via e-mail, to the Contract Specialist, Connie Williams @ connie.williams@stl.usda.gov. Verbal questions will NOT be accepted. The Government does not guarantee that questions received after January 13, 2016, 2:00 pm (CT) will be answered.

7.0 Summary

THIS IS A SOURCES SOUGHT ONLY to identify SDVOSB concerns that can provide NATIONWIDE APPRAISAL SERVICES. The information provided in the sources sought is subject to change and is not binding on the Government. The USDA, Rural Development, has not made a commitment to procure any of the services discussed, and release of this sources sought should not be construed as such a commitment or as authorization to incur cost for which reimbursement would be required or sought.

mailto:connie.williams@stl.usda.gov