Are all North Carolina County Property Tax Appraisers Subject to USPAP?

This is the exact question that I was asked recently. “Are all North Carolina, county, ad valorem, real estate appraisers subject to the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP)?” This could be a very short blog post. The answer to the question is, “no”. But a different question, “Should all North Carolina county ad valorem appraisers comply with USPAP?” leads to a more in depth discussion.  The answer to that question is, “yes”.  I believe if you act as an appraiser, you should comply with USPAP. To understand why appraisers should comply with USPAP, a little history is useful. In 1986, nine leading professional appraisal organizations (one being the IAAO) formed an Ad Hoc Committee on the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP) in response to the crisis in the savings and loan industry.   In 1987, the Committee established the Appraisal Foundation to implement USPAP as the generally accepted set of appraisal standards in the United States. These organizations recognized the importance of ensuring that appraisals are based upon established, recognized standards. You may have to subscribe to check out this 1990 news article for more about the role of appraisers in the S&L crisis. USPAP is a set of ethical and