Appraiser Select, LLC upholds the highest professional ethics

Appraising is, by and large, a long term career. Requirements to become a licensed appraiser have increased more than ever before. That's why it goes without question in this day and age that real estate appraisal can certainly be considered a profession rather than a trade. In our field, as with any profession, we are bound by ethical considerations.

We have many responsibilities as appraisers but above everything we answer to our clients. Typically, in residential practice, the lender places the order to the appraiser, becoming the appraiser's client. Appraisers have certain duties of privacy to their clients, and as a homeowner, if you desire to obtain a copy of the appraisal document, you generally have to request it from your lender. Other responsibilities also include, accurate calculations appropriate to the nature of the assignment, reaching and sustaining a certain level of competency and education, and the appraiser must conduct him or herself as a professional. Here at Appraiser Select, LLC, we take these ethical responsibilities very seriously.

There are some scenarios in which appraisers will have fiduciary responsibilities to third parties, such as homeowners, both buyers and sellers, or others. Those third parties normally are spelled out in the appraisal assignment itself. An appraiser's fiduciary duty is limited to those parties who the appraiser is aware of, based on the scope of work or other written parameters of the assignment.

There are also ethical rules that have nothing to do with whom we share information. For example, appraisers must store their work files for a minimum of five years - at Appraiser Select, LLC you can rest assured that we stick to that rule.

We demand the highest ethical standards possible from ourselves. Doing orders on contingency fees is never an option. That is, we are not able to agree to do an appraisal report and collect payment on the contingency of the loan closing. Another practice that's restricted is doing assignments on percentage fees. That is probably the appraisal industries biggest taboo, because it would tend to make appraisers raise the value of homes or properties to increase their fee. We set ourselves to a higher standard. Other unethical practices may be established by state law or professional societies that the appraiser belongs.

The Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP) also 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," "the amount of a value opinion," in addition to other situations We follow these rules to the letter which means you can rest easy knowing we are doing everything we can to objectively determine the home or property value.

When you order an appraisal from Appraiser Select, LLC we'll make sure you're getting the professional service you expect along with the an ethical approach with appraisals that we're known for.