TS Appraisals upholds the highest professional ethicsWe think of our business as a profession. Requirements to become a licensed appraiser have become more difficult than ever before. That's why it goes without question these days that real estate appraisal can definitely be called a profession rather than a trade. In our field, as with any profession, we must follow strict ethical considerations. An appraiser's primary obligation is to their client. Typically, in residential practice, the lender places the order to the appraiser, becoming the appraiser's client. Appraisers are required to only disclosing information to their clients, and as a homeowner, if you desire a copy of an appraisal report, you should request it from your lender. Other obligations also include, accurate calculations appropriate to the nature of the assignment, reaching and sustaining a particular level of competency and education, and of course, the appraiser must behave in a professional manner. Here at TS Appraisals, we take these ethical responsibilities very seriously. ![]() TS Appraisals has worked hard for its track record for producing appraisals with the highest of ethics. To learn more Contact us Appraisers can also have fiduciary obligations to third parties, such as homeowners, sellers and buyers, or others. Generally the third parties are explicitly defined in the appraisal report. An appraiser's fiduciary responsibility is only to those parties who the appraiser is aware of, based on the scope of work or other things in the framework of the job. There are also ethical standards that have nothing to do with clients and others. For example, appraisers must backup their work files for a minimum of five years - at TS Appraisals you can rest assured that we stick to that rule. We only perform to the highest ethical standards possible. We never do assignments on contingency fees. That is, we can't agree to do an appraisal report and collect the fee only if the loan closes. We can't do assignments on percentage fees. That is probably the appraisal industries biggest no-no, because it would invite fraudulent practices since increasing the estimate of the home would increase the fee. We set ourselves to a higher standard. Other unprofessional practices may be established by state law or professional societies that the 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," in addition to other situations We diligently follow these rules to the letter which means you can be at ease knowing we are going above and beyond to provide an unbiased determination of the home or property value. With TS Appraisals, you won't have any doubts that you're getting 100 percent ethical, honest service. |