For honest and ethical appraisals, rely on Mark Storch Enterprises, Inc

We think of our job as a profession. The rigors of becoming a licensed appraiser have increased more than ever in the past. That's why it goes without question these days that real estate appraisal can certainly be dubbed a profession rather than a trade. As with any profession we are bound by an ethical code.

An appraiser's main responsibility is to his or her client. More often than not, in residential practice, the appraiser's client is the lender ordering the appraisal. Appraisers are required to only disclosing information to their clients, and as a homeowner, if you would like a copy of the appraisal document, you should request it through your lender. Other obligations also include, accurate sums appropriate to the parameters of the assignment, reaching and keeping an adequate level of competency and education, and the appraiser must conduct him or herself as a professional. Maintaining high ethics and client confidentiality is standard operating procedure for us at Mark Storch Enterprises, Inc.

Appraisers may frequently have fiduciary responsibilities to third parties, including homeowners, both buyers and sellers, or others. Typically the third parties are specifically defined in the appraisal report. An appraiser's fiduciary duty is only to those third parties who the appraiser knows, based on the scope of work or other things in the framework of the order.

There are also ethical duties that have nothing to do with clients and others. For example, appraisers must store their work files for a minimum of five years - at Mark Storch Enterprises, Inc you can rest assured that we adhere to that rule.

When creating reports, we follow the highest ethical standards possible. We don't 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 don't do assignments on percentage fees. That is probably the appraisal industries biggest taboo, because it would invite appraisal fraud since raising the estimate of the home would up the fee. We don't do that. Other improper practices may be defined by state law or professional societies to which an appraiser belongs.

The Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP) also defines 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 follow these rules to the letter which means you can be confident we are doing everything we can to provide an unbiased determination of the home or property value.

With Mark Storch Enterprises, Inc, you can be assured of 100 percent ethical, honest service.