ISA Blog - Information you can use

Latest Posts

• Office Hours Information from March 2025 Friday, March 14, 2025 in Ask an Instructor, Education, For Appraisers

  Here's a recap of all of the Q and A that was covered during the March 11, 2025 Office Hours with the Director of Education.

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• Sculptures, Googly Eyes, In-Person Inspection and USPAP Wednesday, January 22, 2025 in Ask an Instructor, Fine Art, For Appraisers

  Brandon Zebold’s sculpture “Orb I” was installed in 2005 on the Roundabout Art Route in Bend, Oregon, and was recently subjected to what Stephen Colbert called “lighthearted vandalism.” But how does this impact you as the appraiser?

  Steve Roach, JD, ISA CAPP provides valuable insight about this lighthearted vandalism!

  City of Bend, Oregon, photograph.

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• Office Hours with the Director of Education - January 2025 Friday, January 17, 2025 in Ask an Instructor, Education

  Welcome to the ISA "Post Office Hours" blog post! This post serves as a follow-up to our recent Office Hours session, where members submitted questions in advance. Inside, you'll find answers to these submitted questions.

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• 2024 Moving into 2025 Design Trends Likely to Affect Value of Personal Property Friday, November 8, 2024 in Ask an Instructor, Education, Business Tips, For Appraisers

  State and national elections, conflicts in the Middle East, and global unrest have constantly been on our minds and in our daily conversations. We are bombarded with things over which we have little to no control. Our homes provide us a sanctuary by surrounding ourselves with possessions that feed our souls, keep our memories alive, tell stories, or showcase our interests.  People desperately seek more positivity - as reflected in their buying trends in 2024 and moving into 2025. 

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• Professional Development Credits Demystified Saturday, March 9, 2024 in Ask an Instructor, Education

  This post is all about taking the mystery out of Professional Development Credits! Whether you are taking your first Requalification class or your fifth, reporting on your PDCs is an integral part of passing the course. The Requalification Packet that you receive during the class has a LOT of information in it. We hope this summary can break down the most important points and provide some clarity.

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• Hog Wild Appraisal Problems Saturday, March 2, 2024 in News, Ask an Instructor, Education, For Consumers

  Yesterday I received the following voicemail message:
  “Potential Client calling from Nashville Suburb. I have a hundred-thousand-dollar hog I need appraised for insurance purposes. That’s what I paid for it so I would expect that it would appraise for that. I have all of the paperwork to show what I paid for it. What would you charge to come out and appraise the hog? Give me a call on the fee for that. 

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• Art Authentication Can be a Tricky Business! Wednesday, January 17, 2024 in News, Ask an Instructor, Education, Business Tips, For Consumers, For Appraisers

  Art authentication can be tricky business. The International Society of Appraisers Core Course in Appraisal Studies teaches, “Authentication is a matter of informed and reasoned opinion, explaining, “Authentication is rarely definitive or absolute…. It is subject to revision as additional information becomes available…. It is subject to disagreement among experts.”

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• UPDATES FOR YOUR APPRAISAL PRACTICE Thursday, December 28, 2023 in News, Ask an Instructor, Education, For Appraisers

  There are a few changes to the new 2024 edition of the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP), effective January 1, 2024. It is your responsibility as an ISA Appraiser to educate yourself in the changes to USPAP.

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• The Post-Pandemic New "Work" Order & Design Trends Tuesday, August 29, 2023 in Ask an Instructor, Education, Member Insights

  The media speculated that after the long COVID lock-down, consumers’ day-to-day life would return to the fast paced, activity-filled, dining-out-often existence, including returning to the office for work, that was typical of pre-pandemic life. Quite the opposite, the reality has been that people are continuing to use their homes as their primary workplace, the preferred place to entertain, and a sanctuary to relax and exercise a more financially conservative lifestyle.

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• USPAP - Frequently Asked Questions! Friday, April 14, 2023 in Ask an Instructor, Education, For Appraisers

  The Uniform Standards of Appraisal Practice (USPAP) materials include a lot of Frequently Asked Questions! There are currently 367 FAQs in the 2020-2021 version of USPAP which has been extended through December 31, 2023. These are included as guidance from The Appraisal Standards Board (ASB) of The Appraisal Foundation to respond to questions to illustrate the applicability of USPAP in specific situations.

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