CoVid-19 Awareness Update #7
To all Members:
As most of you know, we continue to provide updates and notices that are important for appraisers, stakeholders, and the appraisal industry. Governments and Health Authorities are holding daily updates that are vital for all Canadians. We continue to monitor these important statements and recommend that all members do so as well.
Governments are introducing initiatives to assist individuals and small business owners and we advise all members to be aware of any that they may be able to utilize. We are not going to outline these initiatives as they are rapidly changing, the link below is for Federal Government initiatives:
It is also important to check your Provincial Government websites for more local updates.
If you have a business banker, financial planner, or account manager that you work with at a bank communicate with them ongoing to ensure they are aware of any changes to your business. This way they are able to provide you with the best advice and assistance. This could involve deferring mortgage and student loan payments as well as personal and business credit facilities.
Many business owners will be looking to their banks to assist them during these extremely unstable times and part of that assistance will be credit facilities that will need to be secured by real estate. In these cases, appraisers will be called upon to provide the bank with reliable values that assist them and more importantly their clients.
Unfortunately, emergencies like this provide opportunities for fraud and unethical behaviour in all industries and Real Estate is no different; in desperate times we see individuals make desperate decisions. Please be aware of requests for appraisal reports that don’t seem right. Be aware of any additional risks including lenders or clients you have not heard of, requests for reports that are unusually urgent, or undue pressure to complete a report. We are not saying to decline these types of requests but simply be aware of additional risks.
If you have Business Interruption Insurance make sure you contact your insurance provider to determine if this applies should you need it. Many Businesses have Business Continuity Plans and these are important for all businesses no matter the size.
“Business continuity planning (BCP) is the process involved in creating a system of prevention and recovery from potential threats to a company. The plan ensures that personnel and assets are protected and are able to function quickly in the event of a disaster. The BCP is generally conceived in advance and involves input from key stakeholders and personnel. BCP involves defining any and all risks that can affect the company’s operations, making it an important part of the organization’s risk management strategy. Risks may include natural disasters—fire, flood, or weather-related events—and cyber-attacks.
BCPs are an important part of any business. Threats and disruptions mean a loss of revenue and higher costs, which leads to a drop in profitability. And businesses can’t rely on insurance alone because it doesn’t cover all the costs and the customers who move to the competition.” https://www.investopedia.com/terms/b/business-continuity-planning.asp
Business Development Bank (BDC) has excellent information regarding Business Continuity Plans which can be found at the link below.
As mentioned above we continue to post announcements and updates which will provide you with important information in completing appraisal assignments as well as industry updates. We have received numerous calls from members asking questions that have been covered in these announcements, please make sure you are checking for updates daily to avoid these unnecessary calls. If you cannot find an answer to your questions then please do not hesitate to call us at 1-888-399-3366.
It is vital that we all remain informed and heed the advice of Government, Health, and industry experts so we can all remain safe and healthy.