Honesty and Integrity: Appraisal Alliance, LLC

Appraising is generally a long term career. Requirements to become a licensed appraiser have increased more than ever in the past. That's why it goes without question these days that real estate appraisal can certainly be dubbed a profession as opposed to a trade. As with any profession we must follow strict ethical considerations.

We have quite a few responsibilities as appraisers but above everything we answer to our clients. Typically, in residential practice, the appraiser's client is the lender ordering the appraisal. Appraisers are privy to a lot of data, and like an attorney can only discuss many matters with their client. As a homeowner, if you would like to review an appraisal report, you should get it through your lender. Other obligations also include, accurate figures appropriate to the parameters of the assignment, reaching and keeping a respectable level of competency and education, and the appraiser must conduct him or herself as a professional. Here at Appraisal Alliance, LLC, we take these ethical responsibilities very to heart.

Appraisers will frequently be required to consider the interests of third parties, such as homeowners, buyers and sellers, or others. Those third parties normally are spelled out in the appraisal assignment itself. An appraiser's fiduciary responsibility is only to those parties who the appraiser knows, based on the scope of work or other written parameters of the order.

There are also ethical standards that have nothing to do with whom we share information. For example, appraisers must backup their work files for at least five years - at Appraisal Alliance, LLC you can rest assured that we stick to that rule.

We demand the highest professional integrity possible from ourselves. We have a responsibility not to do assignments on contingency fees. That is, we are not able to agree to do an appraisal report and collect the fee only if the loan closes. Another practice that's restricted is doing assignments on percentage fees. That is probably the appraisal industries biggest no-no, because it would invite fraudulent practices since raising the estimate of the home would increase the fee. We set ourselves to a higher standard. Other unethical practices may be established by state law or professional societies to which an 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," as well as other situations. We diligently follow these rules to the letter which means you can be assured we are working hard to objectively determine the home or property value.

With Appraisal Alliance, LLC, you won't have any doubts that you're receiving 100 percent ethical, honest service.