ASA, AI, ASFMRA, NAIFA Send Letter Opposing Maryland Bill Which Would Impose Criminal Sanctions On Real Estate Appraisers Who Know Asking or Selling Price of Property Prior To Appraisal

1/28/2010 12:00:00 AM

ASA, along with the Appraisal Institute (AI), the American Society of Farm Managers and Rural Appraisers (ASFMRA), and the National Association of Independent Fee Appraisers (NAIFA) sent a letter on Jan. 27 to Maryland Delegate Frank M. Conaway, Jr., opposing a bill he introduced that would make it a misdemeanor for an appraiser to “provide real estate appraisal services if the…appraiser knows the asking price or the selling price of the real estate being appraised at the time the appraisal is conducted.”  Penalties would range from a $500 fine for a first offense up to a $5,000 fine and 90-day license suspension for a third offense.  The bill, House Bill 42, would also provide for an additional civil money penalty of up to $5,000 per violation that could be imposed by the Maryland State Commission of Real Estate Appraisers and Home Inspectors.

The letter advises Delegate Conaway that his bill is “in direct violation of USPAP,” and that the legislation would “effectively scuttle the sale of any Maryland residential property”  in a federally related transaction.  In addition, ASA and its partners emphasize that “appraisers are among the most highly regulated and accountable professions in the United States,” pointing to several layers of federal, state, and designating organization regulations.  This position was bolstered by the fiscal note to HB 42, which suggests the “bill’s provisions conflict with current practice under the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice.”

To read the full text of the letter, click here.  To read Maryland House Bill 42, click here.  To read the Fiscal Note to HB 42, click here.

American Society of Appraisers

USPAP NAIFA Maryland Legislative ASFMRA AI