Kendon Sitton's Appraisals upholds the highest professional ethics

We think of our job as a profession. Requirements to become 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 are bound by ethical considerations.

The appraiser's chief responsibility is to his or her client. Most of the time, in residential practice, the lender places the order to the appraiser, becoming the appraiser's client. Appraisers have rules and regulations they must follow, including confidentiality for their clients a homeowner, if you require to review the appraisal document, you generally have to get it from your lender. Other responsibilities also include, numerical accuracy depending on the assignment parameters, acquiring and sustaining an adequate level of competency and education, and the appraiser must conduct him or herself as a professional. Here at Kendon Sitton's Appraisals, we take these ethical responsibilities very seriously.

There are some scenarios in which appraisers will have fiduciary responsibilities to third parties, such as homeowners, sellers and buyers, or others. Typically the third parties are clearly defined in the appraisal report. An appraiser's fiduciary duty is restricted to those parties who the appraiser knows, based on the scope of work or other written parameters of the order.

Appraisers also have duties outside of boundaries of with whom we share information For example, appraisers must keep their work files for a minimum of five years - something else Kendon Sitton's Appraisals takes very seriously.

When working on an appraisal, we follow the highest ethical standards possible. We never 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. Another practice that's restricted is doing assignments on percentage fees. That is perhaps the appraisal professions biggest no-no, because it would invite fraudulent practices since raising the value of the home would up the fee. We don't do that. 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 states 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 follow these rules to the letter which means you can be confident we are going above and beyond to provide an unbiased determination of the home or property value.

When you request an appraisal from Kendon Sitton's Appraisals 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.