S K Appraisals & Consulting maintains the utmost professional ethics

We think of what we do as a profession. Requirements to become a licensed appraiser have become more difficult than ever before. That's why it goes without question in this day and age that real estate appraisal can definitely be dubbed a profession as opposed to a trade. In our field, as with any profession, we have a strict ethical code.

The appraiser's primary obligation is to his or her client. Typically, for a standard residential appraisal, the appraiser's client is the lender ordering the appraisal. Appraisers have certain duties of confidentiality to their clients, and as a homeowner, if you would like to obtain a copy of an appraisal report, you should get it from your lender. Other responsibilities also include, numerical accuracy depending on the scope of the assignment, attaining and maintaining an adequate level of competency and education, and the appraiser must conduct him or herself as a professional. Here at S K Appraisals & Consulting, we take these ethical responsibilities very to heart.

Appraisers can often 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 responsibility is only to those third parties who the appraiser knows, based on the scope of work or other written parameters of the job.

There are also ethical duties that have nothing to do with clients and others. For example, appraisers must be able to produce their work files for a minimum of five years - at S K Appraisals & Consulting you can rest assured that we stick to that rule.

We demand the highest professional integrity possible from ourselves. We don't do assignments on contingency fees. That is, we are not able to agree to do an appraisal report and collect the fee only if the loan closes. We don't do assignments on percentage fees. That is perhaps the appraisal professions biggest no-no, because it would tend to make appraisers increase the value of homes or properties to increase their fee. We set ourselves to a higher standard. Other unprofessional practices may be established by state law or professional organizations to which an 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 diligently follow these rules to the letter which means you can be confident we are working hard to provide an unbiased determination of the home or property value.

With S K Appraisals & Consulting, you won't have any doubts that you're receiving 100 percent ethical, honest service.