My New Blog

I was wondering when the first article would be published accusing the appraisal industry of the recent mortgage fiasco that has caused an upheaval in the real estate industry and ripple effects throughout the economy. 

It was approximately one month later that I found an article which hinted at the appraisal industry being the root cause of the problem.  It was "the appraisers", the article explained, "that led the market higher and higher with artificially high appraisal values". 

Snickering with disbelief of what my eyes were reading, I began to worry what would happen if this accusation began to stick and we appraisers were again the culprits of an entire market to fall (remember the Savings & Loan debacle)!  How can we appraise higher and higher when we are utilizing historical sales data as comparables?  Would it not be the irrational exhuberance of the buyers that would cause higher and higher values in the marketplace?

Fortunately, the accusation did not stick, although I do recall subsequent articles which did try and pin at least some of the blame on the appraisal industry.  While every industry has its share of ethically challenged workers, I believe the appraisal industry, by its (policing)nature, has reliably ethical people who subscribe to sound business practices within the context of USPAP.

I believe we are off the hook for now, but stay diligent in your quest for "true" values.