Appraiser Ethics
Appraisal is a profession and Appraisers are expected to be professionals. In my field, as with any profession, we are bound by uniform standards and ethics. Appraisers are obligated to comply with the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice as promulgated by the Appraisal Standards Board of the Appraisal Foundation created by the U.S. Congress. The USPAP establishes the foundation of public trust in appraisal practice.

An Appraiser's primary responsibility is to remain independent, impartial and objective so as to preserve the public trust and protect the confidential nature of the Appraiser-Client relationship. Often, in much of residential appraisal practice, the Appraiser's client is a mortgage lender ordering an appraisal service to decide whether potential loan collateral meets their criteria and has sufficient market value to enable them to approve a secured loan and better manage exposure to financial risk. Appraisers have certain obligations to their clients and the public to protect confidentiality. As a homeowner, if you want a copy of an appraisal report ordered by a lender, you have to request it through your lender because they are the Appraiser-Client who owns the report. Additionally, Appraisers are prohibited from discussing or disclosing their analyses, opinions, statements and conclusions contained in an appraisal report to parties other than the Appraiser-Client. These are some of the ethical obligations placed on the Appraiser by the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice and applicable laws and regulations. There are many additional ethical obligations and standards rules that have nothing to do with the clients such as the requirement that an Appraiser must keep their assignment work file in either hard copy or digital format for a minimum period of five years. 

I only perform valuation services to the highest ethical standards. I don't accept assignments based on contingency fees. That is, I don't agree to conduct an appraisal and get paid only if an associated loan settles or if the value comes in at a pre-determined high or low direction or a desired outcome which favors one party over another. I don't accept a percentage fee arrangement where my fee is associated with the value opinion as all of these types of conduct would breach our independent, impartial and unbiased obligations. Other ethical obligations are further defined in state law and professional associations or societies to which an Appraiser may belong.

Bottom line... an Appraiser is not permitted to be an advocate as is common to a fiduciary such as an attorney advocating for a client or a real estate agent advocating for a buyer or seller.