About Us

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Appraising Hawaii's principals have made Hawaii home since 1987 and have been or are currently involved in the real estate industry in various capacities since that time covering real estate sales, residential and commercial mortgage lending and full residential appraising services. We understand Hawaii's various markets completely, have built and remodeled many homes on many of the five major Hawaiian islands.

We're always ready to answer questions when you call or e-mail us.

Call us today at 808-728-8073, or email at info@appraisinghi.com for a quick and accurate appraisal.

Honesty and Integrity: Appraising is a long term career. Requirements to become a licensed appraiser have increased more than ever in the past. So it goes without question in this day and age that real estate appraisal can certainly be considered a profession as opposed to a trade. In our field, as with any profession, we have a strict ethical code.

We have many responsibilities as appraisers but our main duty is to our clients. Normally, for a normal residential appraisal, the lender places the order to the appraiser, becoming the appraiser's client. Appraisers are privy to a lot of data, and like an attorney, can only discuss many matters with their client. As a homeowner, if you want to review an appraisal report, you normally have to obtain it through your lender. Other obligations also include, accurate sums appropriate to the scope of the report, attaining and keeping a particular level of competency and education, and the appraiser must conduct him or herself as a professional. Here at Appraising Hawaii, we take these ethical responsibilities very seriously. 

Appraisers will frequently be obligated to consider the interests of third parties, such as homeowners, both sellers and buyers, or others. Those third parties normally are listed in scope of the appraisal assignment itself. An appraiser's fiduciary duty is limited to those parties who the appraiser is aware of, based on the scope of work or other things in the framework of the job.

 There are also ethical rules that have nothing to do with clients and others. For example, appraisers must backup their work files for at least five years - something else Appraising Hawaii takes very seriously. 

We demand the highest ethical standards possible from ourselves. We don't do assignments on contingency fees. That is, we can't agree to do an appraisal report and collect payment on the contingency of the loan closing. We don't do assignments on percentage fees. That is perhaps the appraisal professions biggest no-no, because it would invite appraisal fraud since raising the value of the home would raise the fee. We set ourselves to a higher standard. Other unprofessional practices may be established by state law or professional organizations that the appraiser belongs to.

The Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP) also defines unethical behavior as accepting of an assignment that is contingent on "the reporting of a pre-determined result (e.g., opinion of value)," "a direction in assignment results that favors the cause of the client," "the amount of a value opinion," in addition to other situations. We follow these rules to the letter, which means you can be confident we are going above and beyond to objectively determine the home or property value. 

With Appraising Hawaii, you can be assured of 100 percent ethical, honest service.

Appraiser Licensing varies from state to state. To participate in what is called a "federally-related transaction," which is, for example, a mortgage being underwritten by a national bank, an appraiser must be licensed or certified by his or her state.

The license or certification is evidence the appraiser has performed a certain number of hours as a trainee under the supervision of a practicing appraiser, may have passed an examination, and completes a certain number of hours of continuing education each licensing period.

Prior to the Savings and Loan crisis of the 80s, which gave rise to appraiser licensing, appraisers had to market their expertise, service, professionalism and association designations. Many feel that state licensing has diluted the appraisal profession. Many consider licensure a bare minimum of what you should expect from an appraiser.

We have worked hard to establish a reputation for quality and prompt work, performed professionally and ethically, with outstanding customer service. You should never just look for a licensed appraiser; you should be discriminating in choosing your service providers.

You should always be sure your appraisal service provider is licensed and in good standing. The Appraisal Subcommittee (ASC) of the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC) maintains a national database of appraisers and their license/certification status. Click here to view the database.

Among other things, this database, which relies on reports from each state appraisal board, will tell you if a service provider you are considering has had his or her license suspended, revoked, or whether the license has lapsed. You can rest assured that our license is current and in good standing!