 For honest and ethical appraisals, count on Residential Appraisal ResourceBy and large, appraising is a long term career. The rigors of becoming a licensed appraiser have increased more than ever in the past. So it goes without question in this day and age that real estate appraisal can unquestionably be dubbed a profession rather than a trade. In our field, as with any profession, we have a strict ethical code.
An appraiser's primary obligation is to their client.
Normally, for a regular residential appraisal, the lender (or an agent of the lender) places the order to the appraiser, becoming the appraiser's client.
Consequently, appraisers have certain duties of privacy to their clients, plus strict rules and regulations that must be followed. As
a homeowner, if you desire a copy of the appraisal document, you generally should obtain it via your lender instead of the appraiser.
In some cases appraisers will have fiduciary responsibilities to third parties, including homeowners, sellers and buyers, or others. Normally the third parties are explicitly defined in the appraisal report. An appraiser's fiduciary responsibility is restricted to those third parties who the appraiser knows, based on the scope of work or other things in the framework of the job.
There are also ethical duties that have nothing to do with whom we share information. For example, appraisers must store their work files for at least five years - something else Residential Appraisal Resource takes very seriously. We only perform to the highest ethical standards possible. Accepting assignments where our fee is dependent on our value conclusion is not something we can consider. That means we can't agree to do an appraisal report and collect payment on the contingency of the loan closing. There's an obvious conflict of interest if an appraiser can report a greater value and then get paid more money! This isn't how we operate. Finally, the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice clearly defines a violation in ethics as the acceptance of an assignment that is contingent on "the reporting of a pre-determined result (e.g., opinion of value)", "a direction in assignment results that favors the cause of the client", or "the amount of a value opinion" in addition to other situations We follow these rules to the letter which means you can be at ease knowing we are working hard to get you an accurate home or property value. As soon as you engage Residential Appraisal Resource, we'll make sure you're getting the professional service you expect along with the high ethical standards we're known for. |
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