USPAP, FIRREA & Who May Appraise

USPAP — the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice — is the ethics-and-methods rulebook appraisers must follow, written by the Appraisal Foundation. FIRREA (1989) requires state-licensed or state-certified appraisers for federally related transactions and created the oversight structure. Appraisers must be independent: no contingent fees tied to hitting a target value, and lenders order the appraisal (often through an AMC) rather than the loan officer choosing a friendly name. An appraisal is an unbiased OPINION of value as of a specific date — not a guarantee, and never 'the price.'