Parker Schofield’s Essential Guidelines for Hiring a Personal Property Appraiser
Boca Raton, FL, August 20, 2007 --(PR.com)-- Parker Schofield Inc., (www.parkerschofield.com) is a Personal Property Appraisal company providing an array of appraisal services in Florida, nationally and worldwide. The CEO, Evin Daly, is an expert in the appraisal of jewelry, diamonds, gemstones, plus antique and modern firearms. A life-long collector, he is a Gemological Association of America (GIA) alumni, President and co-founder of the International Appraisers Association (IAA) in Miami, and a member of the International Society of Appraisers. In addition, Mr. Daly is a trained and accomplished writer and expert witness in his areas of expertise. Mr. Daly offers the following advice for hiring a personal property appraiser to attorneys, accountants, financial advisors and the public.
Personal property appraisers, unlike real estate property appraisers, deal with valuing what’s inside the client’s house: the jewelry, fine art, collections, antiques, residential contents, silverware, coins, stamps, rugs, crystal. Some also deal with business contents and machinery. Their clients are, for the most part, attorneys and accountants.
Any attorney or accountant who’s been around a while knows that the days of asking Aunt Tess or Jimmy the Jeweler for an appraisal for an estate, donation, IRS deduction, divorce etc., are long gone. Not too long ago appraisers were itinerant valuers who perhaps owned a dusty antiques store on the side and hopped between retailing, appraising and buying odd and ends. No more.
Today your appraiser is of a different caliber of professional and you should expect them to be. They are intensely trained in their area of expertise. You’ll know these types; they’re walking and talking volumes of information. They live and love their area of knowledge. Importantly they’ll also tell you what they don’t know and bring in or refer you to another complimentary expert to cater to your needs. And they can do this seamlessly so that you have just one point of contact.
So, when looking or hiring, what else should you expect from your appraiser?
1. USPAP (Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice and Advisory Opinions) certification is, in this writer’s and the Internal Revenue services opinion, mandatory and comes with its own certification.
What is a USPAP Certified Appraiser? The Appraisal Foundation (AF) is the Congress-authorized source of appraisal standards and appraiser qualifications – both real and personal property. The AF issues a set of guidelines every two years, in which appraisers must be certified every five years referred to as USPAP. Certification is essential when doing business with the IRS or other government bodies. No certification? Your appraisal is worthless. This is especially important if you have to go to court.
2. A Curriculum Vitae with an overview of their areas of expertise – backed of course by copies of relevant certification and continued education should you want to see them.
3. Membership of an Appraisal Association would be helpful if only to know that your appraiser has been fully trained in how to do an appraisal properly, ethically and with accountability. The associations are self-policing and respond to complaints about members promptly. A certificate demonstrating membership is issued to appraisers.
There are five main associations – The International Association of Appraisers (ISA) in Renton, Washington, American Association of Appraisers (AAA) in New York, American Society of Appraisers (ASA) in New York, the International Appraisers (IAA) in Miami and the National Association of Jewelry Appraisers (NAJA) in New York.
4. Expert Witness training and experience: Your appraiser should have expert witness training preferably with court and deposition experience. As you well know, what’s in the report is worthless unless the appraiser can convincingly defend what they have written in court.
If you’re already using a Personal Property Appraiser you know they’re worth their weight in gold. They take the stress out of a process that can be a source of contention and stress for families and clients alike They are truly independent professionals who are, by law, advocates for no-one, only the work that they product. This is stipulated by the professional associations and the Appraisal Foundation’s USPAP, and is an essential position in the type of work that you need your appraisal for be it divorce, probate, estates, trusts or tax deduction preparation.
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Personal property appraisers, unlike real estate property appraisers, deal with valuing what’s inside the client’s house: the jewelry, fine art, collections, antiques, residential contents, silverware, coins, stamps, rugs, crystal. Some also deal with business contents and machinery. Their clients are, for the most part, attorneys and accountants.
Any attorney or accountant who’s been around a while knows that the days of asking Aunt Tess or Jimmy the Jeweler for an appraisal for an estate, donation, IRS deduction, divorce etc., are long gone. Not too long ago appraisers were itinerant valuers who perhaps owned a dusty antiques store on the side and hopped between retailing, appraising and buying odd and ends. No more.
Today your appraiser is of a different caliber of professional and you should expect them to be. They are intensely trained in their area of expertise. You’ll know these types; they’re walking and talking volumes of information. They live and love their area of knowledge. Importantly they’ll also tell you what they don’t know and bring in or refer you to another complimentary expert to cater to your needs. And they can do this seamlessly so that you have just one point of contact.
So, when looking or hiring, what else should you expect from your appraiser?
1. USPAP (Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice and Advisory Opinions) certification is, in this writer’s and the Internal Revenue services opinion, mandatory and comes with its own certification.
What is a USPAP Certified Appraiser? The Appraisal Foundation (AF) is the Congress-authorized source of appraisal standards and appraiser qualifications – both real and personal property. The AF issues a set of guidelines every two years, in which appraisers must be certified every five years referred to as USPAP. Certification is essential when doing business with the IRS or other government bodies. No certification? Your appraisal is worthless. This is especially important if you have to go to court.
2. A Curriculum Vitae with an overview of their areas of expertise – backed of course by copies of relevant certification and continued education should you want to see them.
3. Membership of an Appraisal Association would be helpful if only to know that your appraiser has been fully trained in how to do an appraisal properly, ethically and with accountability. The associations are self-policing and respond to complaints about members promptly. A certificate demonstrating membership is issued to appraisers.
There are five main associations – The International Association of Appraisers (ISA) in Renton, Washington, American Association of Appraisers (AAA) in New York, American Society of Appraisers (ASA) in New York, the International Appraisers (IAA) in Miami and the National Association of Jewelry Appraisers (NAJA) in New York.
4. Expert Witness training and experience: Your appraiser should have expert witness training preferably with court and deposition experience. As you well know, what’s in the report is worthless unless the appraiser can convincingly defend what they have written in court.
If you’re already using a Personal Property Appraiser you know they’re worth their weight in gold. They take the stress out of a process that can be a source of contention and stress for families and clients alike They are truly independent professionals who are, by law, advocates for no-one, only the work that they product. This is stipulated by the professional associations and the Appraisal Foundation’s USPAP, and is an essential position in the type of work that you need your appraisal for be it divorce, probate, estates, trusts or tax deduction preparation.
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Contact
Parker Schofield Inc.
Evin Daly
561 654 6154
www.parkerschofield.com
Evin Daly
561 654 6154
www.parkerschofield.com
Contact
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