Honesty and Integrity: Premier Appraisals, Inc.

Appraising is a profession, and appraisers are professionals. Requirements to become a licensed appraiser have become more difficult than ever in the past. That's why it goes without question these days that real estate appraisal can certainly be considered a profession rather than a trade. As with any profession we must follow strict ethical considerations.

We have many obligations as appraisers but above everything we answer to our clients. More often than not, for a standard residential appraisal, the lender places the order to the appraiser, becoming the appraiser's client. 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 require a copy of the appraisal document, you normally have to request it through your lender. Other responsibilities also include, numerical accuracy depending on the assignment's nature, reaching and keeping a certain level of competency and education, and of course, the appraiser must behave in a professional manner. Here at Premier Appraisals, Inc., we take these ethical responsibilities very to heart.

Appraisers can regularly have fiduciary obligations to third parties, such as homeowners, sellers and buyers, or others. Those third parties normally are listed in the appraisal assignment itself. An appraiser's fiduciary duty is only to those third parties who the appraiser is aware of, based on the scope of work or other written parameters of the assignment.

Appraisers also have rules outside of boundaries of with whom we share information For example, appraisers must backup their work files for at least five years - something else Premier Appraisals, Inc. diligently adheres to.

When creating reports, we follow the highest ethical standards possible. Working on assignments that contingency fees is not something we can consider That is, we can't agree to do an appraisal report and get paid only if the loan closes. We can't do assignments on percentage fees. That is probably the appraisal industries most important rule, because it would tend to make appraisers raise the value of homes or properties to increase their paycheck. We don't do that. Other improper practices may be defined by state law or professional societies that the appraiser belongs.

The Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP) also states 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," as well as other situations. We follow these rules to the letter which means you can rest easy knowing we are doing everything we can to provide an unbiased determination of the home or property value.

When you engage Premier Appraisals, Inc. we'll make sure you're getting the professional service you expect along with the ethical handling of appraisals that we're known for.