For honest and ethical appraisals, rely on Mindi Kitten Appraisals

Appraising is a profession, and appraisers are professionals. The rigors of becoming a licensed appraiser have become more difficult than ever in the past. So it goes without question in this day and age that real estate appraisal can unquestionably be called a profession as opposed to a trade. As with any profession we have a strict ethical code.

We have a lot of obligations as appraisers but our primary duty is to our clients. More often than not, in residential practice, 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 desire to obtain a copy of an appraisal report, you normally have to get it from your lender. Other obligations also include, accurate calculations appropriate to the nature of the report, attaining and maintaining an appropriate level of competency and education, and the appraiser must conduct him or herself as a professional. Here at Mindi Kitten Appraisals, we take these ethical responsibilities very seriously.

Appraisers may also have fiduciary obligations to third parties, such as homeowners, both buyers and sellers, or others. Normally the third parties are explicitly defined in the appraisal report. An appraiser's fiduciary roll is limited to those third 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 rules that have nothing to do with clients and others. For example, appraisers must keep their work files for at least five years - something else Mindi Kitten Appraisals diligently adheres to.

We meet or beat the industry standards and rules set in place for ethics. We won't accept anything less from ourselves. Working on orders that contingency fees is not something we can consider 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 probably 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 unethical 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 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 diligently follow these rules to the letter which means you can rest easy knowing we are working hard to objectively determine the home or property value.

With Mindi Kitten Appraisals, you won't have any doubts that you're getting 100 percent ethical, professional service.