After US, now in Australia.
Appraiser Agosto provided an appraisal consultancy and service to Australian court. The respondent in a matrimonial property settlement in Federal Circuit Court of Australia acquired his services to provide an opinion of value for properties involved in a litigation.
“I was informed by the solicitors of my client that my appraisal report has been forwarded to the court and now forms part of the evidence,” Appraiser Gus said during the meeting of PAREB-Cebu South.
On August 3, 2017, Finemore Walters & Story Solicitors of Brisbane, Australia wrote a correspondence to Appraiser Agosto, “As part of finalizing the matrimonial property settlement proceedings, in which under the Australian Law, it should be under oath and notarized by the Philippine solicitor to be accepted as an evidence in court.
The Finemore Walters & Story is a law firm for the respondent and specializes in family law and business.
The Federal Magistrate Court of Australia has just ruled to require valuer to sign an affidavit making reference to the report and certify as true and correct.
Appraiser Gus says that the rules in court litigation support in Australia is quite rigorous. Appraisers interested in venturing court appraisal should read the court guidelines like the Federal rules 2001 and other guidelines. Besides notarization cited above, the court require valuer to execute and provide certification of no conflict of interest and the independence of the appraisal.
With his experience in a range of court cases, from divorce settlement, estate taxes to appointment as court commissioner on expropriation and just compensation, Appraiser Agosto fitted in the job. Recently, he was summoned by the San Joaquin County Superior Court in Stockton California, USA to be an expert witness in a divorce settlement case.
Appraisal litigation is a challenging assignment. One of his most interesting case involved in appraising properties and title search. The client, a US Immigrant, have won the case and obtain his share in the matrimonial properties.
“In all cases, the appraiser should consider the caveat in court litigation in this line of work. The report will be scrutinized, and challenged in court. The opposing counsel will surely hire the services of another appraiser with the objective of defending their value as more accurate, reliable and objective. The challenge is to defend your work.”
As a final advice to appraiser who are interested in this line of work, he shared that an appraiser should work hard and practice due diligence, relevance and objectivity. Always have the facts and know the property inside and out. “Know the property, the law and the market well’, Appraiser Gus Agosto concluded.
Thinking outside the box is essential in the valuation profession. It only makes sense that drones would come to be in the hands of appraisers.
Location, location, location is perhaps the age-old adage that we have learned in real estate. Real estate market is dynamic, seldom static and always in transition, with property values either increasing or decreasing. Hence, the importance of analyzing the market is immeasurable.
In every appraisal assignment, the appraiser should see to it that the client understand not only the final value, but the appraisal report in its entirety.
Some property owner downplays the importance of appraisal. In determining the price of certain properties for example, some still uses the zonal value as a benchmark in knowing the worth of the property. Other sees the appraisal as a process of comparing the listing price of properties in an area. There are price-sensitive client that bargains in lowering appraiser’s fee, while there are also reliant on the opinion of certain real estate practitioners in pricing their properties to evade in paying the appraisal fee.
There is a learning gap for new appraisers. Recent statistics from the Philippine Regulatory Board of Real Estate Service shows that the total number of licensed appraisers is now at 9,932 (PRBRES). But most of the newly passed appraisers need coaching and mentorship from the experienced and competent appraisers. “How do I get started?”, the common question asked by a newly passed appraiser.
Real Appraisal 