Florida Statutes 475.624 – Discipline of appraisers
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Terms Used In Florida Statutes 475.624
- Appraisal: A determination of property value.
- Appraisal report: means any communication, written or oral, of an appraisal, appraisal review, appraisal consulting service, analysis, opinion, or conclusion relating to the nature, quality, value, or utility of a specified interest in, or aspect of, identified real property, and includes any report communicating an appraisal analysis, opinion, or conclusion of value, regardless of title. See Florida Statutes 475.611
- Appraiser: means any person who is a registered trainee real estate appraiser, a licensed real estate appraiser, or a certified real estate appraiser. See Florida Statutes 475.611
- Board: means the Florida Real Estate Appraisal Board established under…. See Florida Statutes 475.611
- Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
- Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
- Customer: means a member of the public who is or may be a buyer or seller of real property and may or may not be represented by a real estate licensee in an authorized brokerage relationship. See Florida Statutes 475.01
- Department: means the Department of Business and Professional Regulation. See Florida Statutes 475.611
- Discovery: Lawyers' examination, before trial, of facts and documents in possession of the opponents to help the lawyers prepare for trial.
- employee: when used in this chapter and in rules adopted pursuant thereto to describe the relationship between a broker and a sales associate, include an independent contractor relationship when such relationship is intended by and established between a broker and a sales associate. See Florida Statutes 475.01
- Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
- Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
- Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
- Nolo contendere: No contest-has the same effect as a plea of guilty, as far as the criminal sentence is concerned, but may not be considered as an admission of guilt for any other purpose.
- person: includes individuals, children, firms, associations, joint adventures, partnerships, estates, trusts, business trusts, syndicates, fiduciaries, corporations, and all other groups or combinations. See Florida Statutes 1.01
- Plea: In a criminal case, the defendant's statement pleading "guilty" or "not guilty" in answer to the charges, a declaration made in open court.
- Probation: A sentencing alternative to imprisonment in which the court releases convicted defendants under supervision as long as certain conditions are observed.
- real estate: means any interest or estate in land and any interest in business enterprises or business opportunities, including any assignment, leasehold, subleasehold, or mineral right; however, the term does not include any cemetery lot or right of burial in any cemetery; nor does the term include the renting of a mobile home lot or recreational vehicle lot in a mobile home park or travel park. See Florida Statutes 475.01
- Registered trainee appraiser: means a person who is registered with the department as qualified to perform appraisal services only under the direct supervision of a certified appraiser. See Florida Statutes 475.611
- writing: includes handwriting, printing, typewriting, and all other methods and means of forming letters and characters upon paper, stone, wood, or other materials. See Florida Statutes 1.01
The board may deny an application for registration or certification of an appraiser; may investigate the actions of any appraiser registered, licensed, or certified under this part; may reprimand or impose an administrative fine not to exceed $5,000 for each count or separate offense against any such appraiser; and may revoke or suspend, for a period not to exceed 10 years, the registration, license, or certification of any such appraiser, or place any such appraiser on probation, if the board finds that the registered trainee, licensee, or certificateholder:
(1) Has violated any provision of this part or s. 455.227(1); however, any appraiser registered, licensed, or certified under this part is exempt from s. 455.227(1)(i).
(2) Has been guilty of fraud, misrepresentation, concealment, false promises, false pretenses, dishonest conduct, culpable negligence, or breach of trust in any business transaction in this state or any other state, nation, or territory; has violated a duty imposed upon her or him by law or by the terms of a contract, whether written, oral, express, or implied, in an appraisal assignment; has aided, assisted, or conspired with any other person engaged in any such misconduct and in furtherance thereof; or has formed an intent, design, or scheme to engage in such misconduct and committed an overt act in furtherance of such intent, design, or scheme. It is immaterial to the guilt of the registered trainee appraiser or licensed or certified appraiser that the victim or intended victim of the misconduct has sustained no damage or loss; that the damage or loss has been settled and paid after discovery of the misconduct; or that such victim or intended victim was a customer or a person in confidential relation with the registered trainee appraiser or licensed or certified appraiser, or was an identified member of the general public.
(3) Has advertised services in a manner that is fraudulent, false, deceptive, or misleading in form or content.
(4) Has violated any provision of this part or any lawful order or rule issued under this part or chapter 455.
(5) Has been convicted or found guilty of, or entered a plea of nolo contendere to, regardless of adjudication, a crime in any jurisdiction that directly relates to the activities of a registered trainee appraiser or licensed or certified appraiser or that involves moral turpitude or fraudulent or dishonest conduct. The record of a conviction certified or authenticated in such form as admissible in evidence under the laws of the state shall be admissible as prima facie evidence of such guilt.
(6) Has had a registration, license, or certification as an appraiser revoked, suspended, or otherwise acted against; has been disbarred; has had her or his registration, license, or certificate to practice or conduct any regulated profession, business, or vocation revoked or suspended by this or any other state, any nation, or any possession or district of the United States; or has had an application for such registration, licensure, or certification to practice or conduct any regulated profession, business, or vocation denied by this or any other state, any nation, or any possession or district of the United States.
(7) Has become temporarily incapacitated from acting as an appraiser with safety to those in a fiduciary relationship with her or him because of drunkenness, use of drugs, or temporary mental derangement; however, suspension of a license, certification, or registration in such cases shall only be for the period of such incapacity.
(8) Is confined in any county jail, postadjudication; is confined in any state or federal prison or mental institution; or, through mental disease or deterioration, can no longer safely be entrusted to deal with the public or in a confidential capacity.
(9) Has failed to inform the board in writing within 30 days after pleading guilty or nolo contendere to, or being convicted or found guilty of, any felony.
(10) Has been found guilty, for a second time, of any misconduct that warrants disciplinary action, or has been found guilty of a course of conduct or practice that shows that she or he is incompetent, negligent, dishonest, or untruthful to an extent that those with whom she or he may sustain a confidential relationship may not safely do so.
(11) Has made or filed a report or record, either written or oral, that the registered trainee appraiser or licensed or certified appraiser knows to be false; has willfully failed to file a report or record required by state or federal law; has willfully impeded or obstructed such filing; or has induced another person to impede or obstruct such filing. However, such reports or records shall include only those that are signed or presented in the capacity of a registered trainee appraiser or licensed or certified appraiser.
(12) Has obtained or attempted to obtain a registration, license, or certification by means of knowingly making a false statement, submitting false information, refusing to provide complete information in response to an application question, or engaging in fraud, misrepresentation, or concealment.
(13) Has paid money or other valuable consideration, except as required by this section, to any member or employee of the board to obtain a registration, license, or certification under this section.
(14) Has violated any standard of professional practice established by rule of the board, including standards for the development or communication of a real estate appraisal.
(15) Has failed or refused to exercise reasonable diligence in developing an appraisal or preparing an appraisal report.
(16) Has failed to communicate an appraisal without good cause.
(17) Has accepted an appraisal assignment if the employment itself is contingent upon the appraiser reporting a predetermined result, analysis, or opinion or if the fee to be paid for the performance of the appraisal assignment is contingent upon the opinion, conclusion, or valuation reached upon the consequences resulting from the appraisal assignment.
(18) Has failed to timely notify the department of any change in business location, or has failed to fully disclose all business locations from which she or he operates as a registered trainee appraiser or licensed or certified appraiser.