Frequently Asked Questions

The Department of State receives communications from appraisers and other interested parties concerning the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP), licensing regulations and other matters. We will provide responses to those inquire of greatest interest.
Note: The following information is provided by the Appraisal Standards Board (ASB). If you have additional questions about USPAP or other related topics, please go to the Appraisal Foundation Website at www.appraisalfoundation.org .

Question 1:
Recently I have considered maintaining only electronic work files (i.e. saving only electronic versions of my reports and supporting data, and scanning any paper documents used so that copies may be stored on electronic media). Is this prohibited by USPAP?

Response:
No. There is nothing in USPAP that would prohibit an appraiser from maintaining only electronic versions of work files.
The Record Keeping section of the ETHICS RULE states, in part:
The work file must include:

the name of the client and the identity, by name or type, of any other intended users; true copies of any written reports, documented on any type of media; summaries of any oral reports or testimony, or a transcript of testimony, including the appraiser's signed and dates certification; and all other data, information, and documentation necessary to support the appraiser's opinions and conclusions and to show compliance with this Rule and all other applicable Standards, or references to the location(s) of such other documentation.

As long as an electronic work file contained these items, it would be sufficient.

An appraiser must also be mindful of the requirement to have access to the work file for the applicable required time period. The appraiser must ensure that the proper software is maintained to allow access to the electronic files.

Question 2:
The Management section of the ETHICS RULE requires an appraiser to disclose, fees, commissions, or things of value... paid in connection with the procurement of an assignment. If a referral fee was paid in conjunction with an assignment, must the amount of the fee be disclosed, or is it sufficient to simply disclose that a fee was paid?

Response:
Disclosing the fact that a payment was made in the appraisal certification and any transmittal letter where the conclusions are stated is sufficient to meet the requirement. However, this is a minimum requirement and does not prohibit full disclosure of the amount of the fee.

Question 3:
I am a licensed trainee with approximately six months of experience. My supervisory appraiser recently deemed me competent to perform inspections on my own; however, many of our clients require the supervisory appraiser to physically inspect the property as well. If I do the inspection by myself but take numerous representative photos of the interior of the subject property, may my supervisory appraiser check the box indicating that he “Did Inspect” the interior of the property?

Response:
No. A physical inspection of the interior of the property is not the same as a physical inspection of photographs of the interior of the property. It would be misleading for an appraiser to indicate that a physical inspection was performed when in fact the appraiser viewed photographs of the property. An appraiser, who only inspects photographs of a property, but signs a certification indicating that he or she physically inspected the subject property, is in violation of USPAP’s prohibition against the communication of a misleading or fraudulent report (Conduct section of the ETHICS RULE).

Department of State Web Site Volume 1, Number 2 - Fall 2004