Prestige Appraisal, LLC upholds the utmost professional ethics

Appraising is a profession, and appraisers are professionals. Requirements to become a licensed appraiser have increased more than ever before. So it goes without question in this day and age that real estate appraisal can unquestionably be considered a profession rather than a trade. As with any profession we are bound by an ethical code.

We have quite a few obligations as appraisers but first and foremost we answer to our clients. Generally, for a normal residential appraisal, the appraiser's client is the lender ordering the appraisal. Appraisers have certain duties of privacy to their clients, and as a homeowner, if you desire a copy of an appraisal report, you should get it from your lender. Other obligations also include, numerical accuracy depending on the scope of the assignment, acquiring and keeping an appropriate level of competency and education, and the appraiser must conduct him or herself as a professional. Here at Prestige Appraisal, LLC, we take these ethical responsibilities very seriously.

Appraisers can also have fiduciary obligations to third parties, including homeowners, both sellers and buyers, or others. Those third parties normally are spelled out in scope of the appraisal assignment itself. An appraiser's fiduciary roll is only to those 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 be able to produce their work files for a minimum of five years - at Prestige Appraisal, LLC you can rest assured that we adhere to that rule.

We only perform to the highest ethical standards possible. 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 can't do assignments on percentage fees. That is perhaps the appraisal industries biggest taboo, because it would invite appraisal fraud since raising the value of the home would raise the their paycheck. We don't do that. Other improper practices may be established by state law or professional societies to which an appraiser belongs.

The Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP) also states a violation in ethics as accepting 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 objectively determine the home or property value.

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