It May be Trite, but Truth Tends to Get Repeated…

The acting of appraising, is one that is complex but simple, commonplace and quite rare. We as appraisers should take a moment to remember that our profession was borne out of a time mistrust and calamity. Actually it has been said, that the appraisal profession is the second oldest profession in the world… that is to say, somebody had to put a price on it… but I digress.

So often we can get sucked into the practice of trying to balance the guidelines, the time restrictions, the unreasonable client demands and (a little thing I like to call) life, that we can forget that ours is a noble profession. We are the ones that people turn to when they are seeking accuracy and reliability. They want to know that value they are placing on an item is one that others would also agree with or tend to accept.

The reasons for this need vary greatly, but the basic foundational premise is that we all need someone who we can trust to make sure our thoughts on a matter are reasonable or accurate.

Of course, you can put this in the context of real estate and mortgage lending, and greed and profit, and people pushing the limits just to close a deal and once you do place your mindset into their realm, then you run the danger of being sucked into the vortex of endless attempts to satisfy unreasonable demands using antiquated methods and approaches that were designed years ago by men who understood the need to place objectivity into the world of money. They wanted to make sure that the process of lending money was backed by solid reasoning unimpeded by greed or corruption. At least that is the “truth” I choose to believe. It helps me sleep at night to believe there are still a few good men and women out there who are not only interested in lining their pockets at whatever cost necessary.

To all who continue to treat appraisal as a profession, I tip my hat.

See you around the water cooler!

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By John Reynolds aka UncleZev ~ Source Appraisers Speak Out