Sounding Bored is my semi-regular column on the state of the appraisal profession. This time I wonder what is in a name.
The other day, I was doing research about the appraisal profession in response to the WSJ article on Saturday that covered appraisal inflation. My post [No Smoking Gun: Appraisal Inflation Is More Widespread Than You Think [Matrix]](http://matrix.millersamuel.com/?p=757) covered a lot of issues regarding the problems with the current state of the profession.
In the process of researching that post, I came across an appraisal firm I am not familiar with and have no firsthand knowledge of their quality and reputation.
I was only interested in the selection of their company name: [Aggressive Appraisals -(scroll to bottom of their page)](http://www.orderhomeappraisal.net/).
One of the basic rules of [USPAP](http://www.appraisalfoundation.org/s_appraisal/sec.asp?CID=3&DID=3) is not to mislead the reader. I suspect that includes the name of an appraiser’s firm?
The term “[Aggressive](http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/aggressive)” suggests Of or relating to an investment philosophy that seeks to achieve above-average returns by accepting above-average risks. From the definition, the name could suggest that they take above average risks to benefit their client’s return.
hmmmm…
Read the marketing copy on Aggressive Appraisals site:
- 24-Hour Turn Time! – How much research can be done in 24 hours considering that the inspection would likely be the day after the report would be ordered from the bank.
- Additional Bank Conditions Usually Done Same Day – They must get a lot of addenda requests since it is featured in their advertising so prominently. This also illustrates how the review function is now fairly mechanical and doesn;t have a lot to do with the overall quality of the report.
This is the direction the residential appraisal profession seems to be going in.