For honest and ethical appraisals, count on Priority Appraisal

Appraising is a profession, and appraisers are professionals. The rigors of becoming a licensed appraiser have increased more than ever before. So it goes without question these days that real estate appraisal can definitely be called a profession as opposed to a trade. As with any profession we have a strict ethical code.

We have a great deal of obligations as appraisers but first and foremost we answer to our clients. Typically, for a regular residential appraisal, 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 want to obtain a copy of the appraisal document, you generally have to request it from your lender. Other responsibilities also include, accurate sums appropriate to the parameters of the assignment, reaching and maintaining an appropriate level of competency and education, and of course, the appraiser must behave in a professional manner. Here at Priority Appraisal, we take these ethical responsibilities very to heart.

In some cases appraisers will have fiduciary responsibilities to third parties, such as homeowners, buyers and sellers, or others. Normally the third parties are specifically defined in the appraisal report. An appraiser's fiduciary duty is restricted to those third parties who the appraiser knows, based on the scope of work or other written parameters of the job.

Appraisers also have standards outside of boundaries of with whom we share information For example, appraisers must store their work files for a minimum of five years - at Priority Appraisal you can rest assured that we stick to that rule.

We require the highest ethical standards 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 payment on the contingency of the loan closing. We don't do assignments on percentage fees. That is perhaps the appraisal professions most important rule, because it would invite fraudulent practices since increasing the value of the home would up the their paycheck. We set ourselves to a higher standard. Other unprofessional 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 unethical behavior 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 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.

As soon as you engage Priority Appraisal 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.