How much is free advise worth? Sometimes I wonder???

The other day I received a phone call from an individual looking for an appraisal on a property here in Huntsville, TX. The client was getting ready to place an offer on a house. I was excited to get the call as these types of assignments are better than the one you typically receive from a management company.. For one, you get to keep the entire fee and secondly you don't have to wait four to eight weeks to be paid. But that's not what this is about...

I accepted the order, the client accepted the fee bid and gave me an address. I started working on it as it was a rush. About 15 minutes later I received a phone call from the cient..it went like this:

Client: Alyssa? (no one ever pronounces my name correctly)...

Me: Yes?

Client: I have to cancel my appraisal order.

Me: Oh, okay. May I ask why?

Client: Well, I have a friend who does appraisals and he/she told me that I didn' t need an appraisal that they knew the property well, it is a sound building and that I should jump on it

Me: Ah..okay, may I ask who it was?

Client: appraiser name divulged.

Now, this appraiser happens to be experienced in our area and probably did know the building BUT..was that ethical? AND was USPAP followed with a signed certification in the file? Because sure enough that appraiser gave a verbal appraisal report. I have to wonder about that...

You're probably thinking I am just upset that an assignment was taken away from me..and well, honestly, that is true...but if the tables were turned I would NOT have told anyone they didn't need an appraisal. It is just not fair to the person you are advising when you do that.

How could that person know what the property was like AT THIS TIME....things change so easily and if you've not been in a house in a few months (or longer) how can you know what's been done to it? Or not done to it? How would you know that the roof has been leaking and there is now a big brown spot over the dining room? Or worse? You wouldn't... No, we are not home inspectors but we do have to be aware of things that affect the value.

In short..or maybe in the long run...I would not give that kind of advise without some research and well, frankly, a full appraisal....I would not advise someone to cancel an appraisal ..what if my off the cuff assessment led them to making a costly error in the purchas price? AND last...I would not want to take away someone's assignment....

I suppose if I am to look at it from that appraiser's side they were probably just trying to be helpful..but..were they really helpful? I say, if you are a consumer...be careful in situations like this because you are making a decision that will cost you a lot of money...don't let it cost you more than it should.