Narrative Report Writing 11 - Addendum

Do you include an Addenda or Addendum in your narrative appraisal reports?  An Addenda is the plural of "an item of additional material added to the end of a book or other publication," while an Addendum usually indicates one.  Since I break my additional areas up into sections with their own headings like "flood maps / soils map" I consider them together the Addenda and not simply one Addendum.  If you put everything into one area without separation then you have an Addendum.

What do you included in your Addendum?  I have looked at many reports and most commercial appraisers include; zoning maps, plat maps, flood maps, engagement letters, surveys, title reports, environmental studies, soils maps, deeds, leases, purchase agreements, assessor data and a wide range of miscellaneous documents that relate to the assignment.

There are usually documents that must be included in an appraisal report but including them in the body of the report would break up the content and force a reader to jump around.   The Addendum is thus the area of an appraisal report where important supplemental documents that have not been integrated into the report are included for completeness.

In what used to be a "self-contained" appraisal report I would include more than I did in a "complete appraisal report."  Clients understood that they were paying for more detail and they received it in part via more documents included in the Addendum.  Since USPAP changed I only include documents in my Addenda items that I deem relevant based on the scope of work.  If in my opinion a document adds little or nothing to my report it will remain in my work file.  I may still consider the content of the document that I left in the work file but I'm no longer going to include it in the report to make them "all-inclusive."

I'm not aware of any USPAP provision that requires that you as the appraiser include the engagement letter in the Addendum but some clients may still want to see it there.  Some appraisers always include the engagement letter in their Addendum while others include it but delete the assignment fee so that third-party does not know what was paid for the work.

The Addendum or Addenda usually end with the inclusion of the appraisers qualifications.  Again there is no requirement that your appraisal ends this way, it has just become a traditional way to end it.

For more appraisal information contact Glenn Rigdon MA, MRICS, ASA is a Las Vegas / Henderson Nevada appraiser who can be contacted via email or via his business website Appraiser Las Vegas  (http://www.appraiserlasvegas.com), or you can also click on “Contact Us” on the home page of this website or visit my public profile at LinkedIn at http://www.linkedin.com/pub/glenn-rigdon-ma-mrics-asa/1a/30b/879/. 

Article source: http://www.appraisalarticles.com/Narrative-Report-Writing/4425-Narrative-Report-Writing-11-Addendum.html