A Call for Volunteers

Christine Guernsey, ISA CAPP

By Christine Guernsey, ISA CAPP

I have just reread President Cindy Charleston Rosenberg’s New Year’s Message. If you haven’t read it, click on the above link and prepare to be stunned by how far ISA has come in the last several years in terms of being an industry leader, guiding its members towards compliance with accreditations and industry qualifications, and helping its membership become (and stay) successful in an extremely competitive field. It is abundantly clear why ISA has become the premiere professional personal property appraisal organization of choice!

But just who is “ISA,” and how is it achieving so many amazing advancements for its members? “ISA” is not some omnipresent “wizard behind a curtain” or a large corporation complete with hundreds of individual staffers working 24/7 to make our members rich and successful. ISA is an organizational name. ISA is comprised of 800+ personal property appraisers, primarily throughout the United States and Canada. ISA is you. ISA is me. Together, we make ISA the organization that it is.

So how have all of these amazing accomplishments happened within the last few years? Because of the hundreds of volunteer hours that, currently, a small portion of ISA members have donated to the following projects and programs:

• Creating new marketing concepts, which are benefiting all of our members.
• Developing strategic partnerships with industry leading companies regarding the use of appraisal services, as well as who can refer business to our members.
• Finding and nurturing sponsorship relationships and monies which fund educational programming for members.
• Creating and teaching methodology and theory courses, pathways to accreditation courses, Requalification and USPAP courses, which members can take on site and online to keep their credentialing current, as required by The Appraisal Foundation. Our courses give members an edge on the competition that we all feel from the many other venues that provide “appraisal services”. Our courses are some of the best in the industry, and they help make our appraisers some of the best in the business.
• Providing an annual conference every year, which extends an opportunity to members to learn, network, and expand their appraisal opportunities.

Can you imagine how much more ISA could accomplish if all 800+ of our members donated even 10 hours a year?

There are so many opportunities to get involved with ISA and help keep our organization strong, healthy and create better business opportunities for its members. We all have special skills of one kind or another, and we all have at least 10 hours a year that we can give back to an organization that is working hard for each and every member.

Here are just a few opportunities which have an immediate need:

Is increasing membership important to you?

Our Membership Committee needs current members from all across the United States and Canada to help spread the word about ISA. Do you know potential members, individuals thinking about getting into the appraisal business that you can approach with the message of our organization? As a current member, you are the perfect volunteer to reach out and give them the "insider's" view of the advantages of ISA membership. This is a committee worth joining, one that will not occupy a lot of your time but that gives you an additional avenue for networking with like-minded folks.

Some specific areas that need help are reaching out to young auction, art and antique professionals who may be interested in adding appraising to their skill sets. We also need volunteers to work on member satisfaction and benefits.  If you are interested in volunteering to increase membership and member satisfaction, contact Judith Martin directly at Judith@theperfectthing.net or call 630-665-5200.

Going to Assets 2015?

Mo Aubry, BOD Liaison to the Membership Committee, is looking for a few friendly faces to help meet and greet new members and first-timers to conference. Remember your first conference? Remember how nice it was to have someone reach out and make you feel welcome? We have so many new and interesting members from all kinds of venues and backgrounds joining us. Help “meet and greet,” and make some new valued colleagues in the process. Contact Mo Aubry at marian.aubry@verizon.net or call (941) 544-6806.

Know a lot about appraising or have product knowledge to share?

Karen Rabe is looking for mentors to help share their wealth of knowledge with new appraisers looking for advice in developing their appraisal skills. I have personally participated in this program and can say from experience that mentoring someone is extremely rewarding! I have made several new friendships with appraisers from different parts of the country. With all our new appraisers' varied backgrounds, the mentor ends up learning as many new valuable tricks as the appraiser being mentored. Contact Karen Rabe at ksrabe@gmail.com.

How are your marketing skills?

Our Marketing Committee could use some volunteers who are savvy with social media and have good writing skills. We need detail oriented volunteers who can help to prepare, write content, copy-edit and place ISA promotional material (ex. publicizing ISA’s LMS and educational webinars) on social media sites. We want to use as many online avenues as we can to get the word out about the conference, our sponsors, and why ISA is the premiere professional personal property appraisal organization of choice. If you know your way around the Internet, this committee is for you. Contact Todd Sigety at toddsig01@gmail.com.

Are you good at fundraising?

The Resource Development Committee can use a few good "money makers." We have sold out of our sponsorship opportunities for Assets 2015 (amazing!), but we need members with good ideas and relationship skills that can help us maintain our sponsor relationships on a year-long basis. Our sponsors are very important to us. In addition to helping cover the many costs of our annual conference, they also provide monies that help us create new educational opportunities for our members. They work with our members in providing referrals, product knowledge and appraisal related services. Want to join this team as it heads off in exciting new directions? Contact Fred Winer at fred@pwpusa.com or call 410-337-0085.

These are just a few of the volunteer opportunities in the immediate future. We would love to have you join the ranks of our valued volunteers. Your participation helps ISA continue to grow and provide valuable member benefits for all.

Make Your Nominations for 2015 ISA Awards

Perri Guthrie, ISA CAPP

As Assets 2015 draws near, it is time to think about who among our peers has stepped up this past year, dedicating their time and expertise to help enhance ISA and the personal property appraisal profession.

Is there someone you know within ISA that deserves special recognition? Is there a fellow ISA appraiser who has been an exceptional leader and/or mentor? Should your local ISA Chapter be recognized for an outstanding year?

During our March 20-23 conference in Philadelphia, we will honor these individuals and chapters for their exceptional work.

This year we are considering award nominations in ten categories:

2015 Award Categories

• Lamp of Knowledge
• Leadership
• Outstanding Member
• Distinguished Service
• Chapter of the Year
• Publication
• Media
• Marketing
• Special Merit
• Service

Please view the 2015 Award Nomination Form for explanations of the applicable categories and the requirements for each nomination.

I would like to encourage you to take a moment to consider those in our profession who stand out, who are deserving of honor for their commitment, dedication and diligence. Completed Award Nomination Forms must be submitted via email to perriguthrie@yahoo.com by Feb. 20. 

Looking forward to seeing you all in Philadelphia!

Perri Guthrie, ISA CAPP, Co-Chair, Awards Committee

Ask Leon: How Do I State My USPAP Compliance?

ISA members are invited to send in their questions on all things appraising and education to Leon Castner, ISA CAPP. Leon will share his answers on the ISA Now Blog. Please send questions to leoncastner@comcast.net.


Question: Could you please let me know, unequivocally, how I’m supposed to state that I am up to date on my USPAP?

Answer: This is one of many versions of the same question that seems to be foremost in our members’ minds. USPAP is a set of minimum standards-not a certification or accrediting organization. One belongs to ISA-an appraisal organization that mandates their members write appraisals according to USPAP and ISA Report Writing Standards. This requires members to take an initial 15 hour USPAP class and a 7 hour update every 2 years. If you have, you are in compliance with those requirements. You are required to write your reports in conformity with those standards and provide an attestation (a signed certification) that is an integral part of the appraisal.

Since we have previously discussed the fact that taking the USPAP class (15 hour and/or 7 hour updates) does not provide any kind of “certification” to the appraiser, it becomes important to be able to demonstrate and express to the public and our clients that we are following the rules and are current in our ISA membership and the requirement that we attend USPAP courses on a regular basis. This is done by including the attestation (certification) in our report.

Often, however, this is not sufficient for advertising or explaining our credentials to the public. I would suggest a declaration similar to the following that states exactly your position.

I am an ISA member (either member, accredited member, or certified member) in good standing, having fulfilled all the membership requirements including the completion of mandatory USPAP classes. My reports are done in compliance with the current version of USPAP and the ISA Report Writing Standard.

FAAQ

(Frequently Asked Appraisal Questions)

Question: Are photographs required for estate appraisals?

Answer: To my knowledge there is no requirement for photographs for estate appraisals. It is always a wise idea, particularly if it is a significant estate. Remember that a picture is worth a thousand words. It will certainly clarify your descriptions and allow the IRS to decide whether the comparable sales are indeed comparable and accurate. (I would use common sense in my use and placement of the photographs. Not every single item needs one, particularly if they are nominal items. Room shots would be appropriate in those cases.) It’s always better to have more than necessary – even if they are only kept in the files.

Question: One of the guardians that I do work for needs a letter of opinion. I usually do this instead of an appraisal due to the fact the contents of the condo are pretty much worthless (everyday items totaling less than $500, if sold at an estate sale), but the probate court needs a letter. I usually state in a letter to my client that the contents should be donated or disposed and I don’t put down a dollar amount. 1. Should I put down a dollar amount? 2. If I don’t put down a dollar amount is it still an appraisal?

Answer: According to both USPAP and ISA, an appraisal is an opinion of value. This can be expressed as a single number, a range of numbers, greater than or less than, or something in relationship to a previous value opinion or numerical benchmark. For example, if you say something is worth more than zero but less than $500 (or use the term “junk”), it is still an opinion of value from someone calling themselves an appraiser. As such it must include all the elements of a properly prepared appraisal.

There’s no reason, however, that you can’t provide this to the client in a form or template. This would contain all the elements, including the USPAP certification. The “body” of the report would be a short description of the property (could be the entire houseful) with an opinion of the value-even if it is “worthless.” It wouldn’t take that much extra effort to provide this to your client, still keeping expenses low. This would provide the client exactly what they need and make your performance a lot more professional.