We all know how vital a good appraisal system is to the real estate market. The Division of Real Estate has started a program to help keep the appraisal system healthy. It’s called an Appraisal Inquiry. Basically this program allows people to report inaccurate appraisals to the DRE. The DRE will keep a log of these appraisals and audit the log periodically. If the DRE spots a pattern of inaccurate appraisals from certain providers, then it can address the issue with those appraisers.
For example: if you got an appraisal back that you thought was lower than it should be, but you can’t see any outright problems with the appraisal that need to be addressed (like bad comps), then you could log an Appraisal Inquiry with the DRE. If the DRE notices that this same provider has had multiple Appraisal Inquiries, then the DRE can look closer at the appraisals and determine if they believe there is a consistent problem that should be addressed.
If you come across appraisals that just don’t meet industry standards, then you would file a complaint with the DRE and they could investigate.
Here’s how you log an Appraisal Inquiry:
- Email the DRE at kadeewright@utah.gov
- Include Appraisal Inquiry in the subject line
- Attach the appraisal and any other supporting documentation
- Include a brief paragraph in the body of the email explaining why you are logging this appraisal (i.e. too high, too low, or other issues).
- Include the address of the property and the appraiser’s name
The process is easy and anonymous. A majority of our appraisers do a great job. This system simply allows the DRE to detect if there are any issues that need to be addressed.