Appraisal Independence and Nondiscrimination
Last updated
Equal Housing Opportunity.
Every value opinion from Mr. Cali Appraisals is developed from the property, its market and the closed comparable sales that best reflect it. It is never developed from who owns the property, who lives in it, or who lives nearby. Appraisals are prepared and signed by Gordon Hall, California Certified Residential Real Estate Appraiser, BREA No. AR003877.
The law that applies
The federal Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination in residential real estate transactions, including appraisals, because of race, color, religion, sex (including sexual orientation and gender identity), disability, familial status or national origin. California's Fair Employment and Housing Act and Unruh Civil Rights Act add protections, including for ancestry, marital status, source of income, genetic information, age, veteran or military status, and medical condition, among others.
The Ethics Rule of the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP), the standards every appraisal here is prepared under, separately requires appraisers to comply with those antidiscrimination laws and prohibits an appraiser from relying on a protected characteristic, or on stereotyped or biased assumptions about one, in developing or reporting an opinion of value.
What that means in practice
- Assignments are accepted without any predetermined value or direction as to outcome. The Appraisal Independence notice sets this out in full.
- Comparable sales are chosen for their similarity to the subject property and their location in the same market, and every adjustment is stated with its reasoning so a reviewer can follow it.
- The report describes the property and its market in neutral, factual terms. It does not describe a neighborhood by the people who live there.
Asking for a reconsideration of value
If you believe a report missed relevant information, you may ask for a reconsideration of value. Requests are welcome, and they work best with specifics: the comparable sales you believe were overlooked, with their addresses and sale dates, or the facts about the property you believe are wrong. Each request is reviewed on its merits, and the response explains what was considered and whether it changed the analysis. If your concern is that the value reflects bias, say so plainly; it will be reviewed as that.
Call (909) 324-6122 or use the contact form at /contact. For a loan appraisal, you can also ask your lender for its reconsideration of value process.
Where to file a complaint
You may file a complaint with any of these agencies, whether or not you have contacted us first:
- U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity: file a fair housing complaint online, or call 1-800-669-9777.
- California Civil Rights Department: the complaint process, or call 800-884-1684 (California Relay Service: 711).
- California Bureau of Real Estate Appraisers (BREA), which licenses appraisers in California and accepts complaints about them: brea.ca.gov.