In this episode, we take a clear-eyed, plain-language look at professional ethics in real estate appraisal.  And why ethics is far more than rule-following or box-checking.

Too often, ethics is treated as compliance: follow USPAP, disclose conflicts, don’t lie, don’t cheat. All of that matters, true.  But it’s not the whole story. This episode explores what USPAP is actually designed to do.  It differentiates between honest mistakes, professional carelessness, and intentional bias.  And it makes clear why those distinctions matter for public trust, credibility, and the future of the appraisal profession.

We walk through three fundamentally different kinds of ethical failure that appraisers face in the real world:

• Carelessness and negligence.  This is when assumptions go untested or data goes unchecked
• Knowing misrepresentation.  When an appraiser recognizes a problem but proceeds anyway
• Systemic pressure.  Those times when speed, volume, or client influence quietly undermine independence

Using USPAP SR 1-3 and SR 2-3, this episode explains why intent matters just as much as accuracy, and why a report can be “technically correct” yet ethically indefensible. We unpack why USPAP places responsibility squarely on the appraiser, even when the system makes ethical practice uncomfortable.

This is not a scolding and not a lecture. It’s a professional conversation about judgment, responsibility, and what it actually means to sign your name to an appraisal certification.

If you’re an appraiser, reviewer, regulator, attorney, or lender who wants to understand why USPAP is written the way it is, how ethics differs from mere compliance, and why professional judgment cannot be delegated to forms, templates, AVMs, or clients, then this episode of the Appraiser’s Advocate is for you.

Because USPAP isn’t asking for perfection.