6-5082 - Letcher County - NRCS Buyout - Appraisal Review IFB - Round 2.docx.pdf

Invitation For Bid

5082 Letcher County NRCS Buyout Appraisal Review Services Round 2

Letcher County Fiscal Court is seeking services from a Kentucky Certified Appraisal Reviewer to provide desk technical reviews of approximately one hundred and fifty (150) residential properties, in support of a Floodplain Acquisition Project.

Services to be provided include a desk technical review of appraisals to ensure they are prepared in accordance with the Uniform Standards for Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP). The appraisal value is to reflect the Fair Market Value immediately prior to the flood event that occurred in February, 2025.

The contractor awarded appraisal services may not be awarded for appraisal review services.

Submission:

● Bids and all required forms shall be submitted through the online DFS Procurement Portal at dfs.bonfirehub.com/portal no later than May 14th, 2026, at 9:00 a.m. ET. Submissions received after the due date and time will be considered non-responsive and will not be considered.

● Bids will be opened on May 14th, 2026, at 10:00 a.m. ET at the Fiscal County Judge Executive's Office.

● Award will occur at the Fiscal Court meeting scheduled for May 18th, 2026 at 10:00 AM

ET.

● Questions regarding bids should be submitted in the procurement portal. For questions regarding procurement portal navigation, email: procurement@erassist.com.

● Review Appraiser Qualifications:

○ Any real property appraisal reviewer (review appraiser) performing technical reviews must be a State-certified general real property appraiser, in conformance with title XI of the Financial Institution’s Reform, Recovery and Enforcement Act of 1989 (FIRREA).

○ The review appraiser. must be in good standing with the licensing authority where the applicable credential was issued, and must not have had any disciplinary action taken by the licensing authority.

○ Review appraisers must have demonstrated competency in compliance with USPAP in conducting and reviewing appraisals of the same type of property,and must have completed at least 40 hours of coursework in conducting technical

5082 Letcher County Appraisal IFB - Round 2 http://dfs.bonfirehub.com/portal mailto:procurement@erassist.com appraisal reviews. These qualifications apply to any review appraiser providing these services

● Required Documents for Submission:

○ Copy of Insurance (liability coverage and workers compensation)

○ Copy of License and Accreditation

○ Proof of active registration with the federal System for Award Management

(SAM) https://www.SAM.gov is required and shall be submitted in the procurement portal.

Awards will be made per property. There is no guarantee of the quantity of work. Structures may fall out of the program, be awarded to another contractor to meet state deadline requirements, or be purchased through another program. Multiple firms may be used if needed to meet the scheduling needs of the county. Preparation of appraisals may not begin without written documentation (email) of Notice to Proceed.

The County reserves the right to negotiate with any and all individuals or firms that submit bids.

Questions:

buyout@erassist.com or 606-268-4228

5082 Letcher County Appraisal Review IFB - Round 2 2/5 mailto:buyout@erassist.com

Scope of Work

● Technical appraisal reviews (technical reviews) will be completed according to the requirements for the Emergency Watershed Protection Program-Buyout (EWPP-Buyout) program. The technical appraisal review will certify compliance with applicable industry standards, the appraisal specifications, and program-related requirements concerning the appraisal.

● The review appraiser must document the results of their technical appraisal review in a technical review report, which constitutes the primary deliverable. The required components and format for the technical review report are described in detail at the end of this document. The format may be a form, be narrative, or a combination of both.

● USPAP APPRAISALS: The purpose of the technical review report is to provide an opinion of the acceptability of the USPAP appraisal that provides a supported market value of the property to be purchased. The market value definition that must be used and stated in developing and reporting this assignment is as follows:

● “Market value” means the most probable price that a property should bring in a competitive, and open market, under all conditions requisite to a fair sale, the buyer and seller each acting prudently and knowledgeably, and assuming the price is not affected by undue stimulus. Implicit in this definition are the consummation of a sale as of a specified date, and the passing of title from seller to buyer under conditions whereby—

○ Buyer and seller are typically motivated

○ Both parties are well informed or well advised, and acting in what they consider their own best interests

○ A reasonable time is allowed for exposure to the open market

○ payment is made in terms of cash in U.S. dollars, or in terms of financial arrangements comparable thereto

○ The price represents the normal considerations for the property sold unaffected by special or creative financing or sales concessions granted by anyone associated with the sale

● NOTE: No other definition of market value is acceptable for USPAP appraisals.

● The scope of work is a desk technical review and examination to ensure:

○ The appraisal meets the definition of appraisal as required

○ That it meets applicable appraisal requirements, which include USPAP

○ That it complies with all appraisal instructions issued by the County or NRCS for the program

● The technical review report must comply with USPAP Standard 4 and these instructions.

It must be available in electronic format, dated, and signed by the review appraiser

● All items contained in Standard 3 of USPAP must be documented by the review appraiser in the technical review report. The review appraiser must make determinations as to the acceptability of the appraisal in accordance with instructions provided to the appraiser

● The review appraiser will determine if the appraisal is approved, or not approved, for County usage

5082 Letcher County Appraisal Review IFB - Round 2 3/5

● If the review appraiser determines the appraisal is approved, the review appraiser must set forth in the technical review report the recommended value of the appraised property as well as a statement indicating the appraisal complies with the assignment standards, adequately supports the value opinion, and complies with requirements. The technical review report must document any corrections or changes that were implemented by the appraiser after submission of the initial appraisal.

● If the appraisal cannot be approved initially when submitted, the review appraiser will contact the appraiser and provide the appraiser with the reasons the appraisal was not approved initially, and permit the appraiser to make the necessary corrections or provide additional documentation to the appraisal. Minor typographical errors or issues that affect a few pages may be corrected through replacement pages. For more substantial corrections or where additional documentation is required, a completely new report must be provided. The decision to have the appraiser provide corrected pages or a new report is the responsibility of the review appraiser. The review appraiser must identify in the technical review report submitted to the County or NRCS all changes to the original appraisal made by the appraiser. The review appraiser must include correspondence to and received from the appraiser in the technical review report as an addendum.

● If, after the review appraiser makes diligent, documented efforts to get the needed support and improvements from the appraiser, the appraisal still does not meet acceptable standards and the value opinion is not adequately supported, the review appraiser may not approve the appraisal. The review appraiser must clearly explain why the appraisal is inadequate in the technical review report. The review appraiser may consult with the client before making a final determination, though such consultation is not required. If the review appraiser determines the appraisal is not acceptable, document any corrections or changes that were implemented by the appraiser after submission of the initial appraisal.

● If the appraisal report clearly does not meet the specifications and the review appraiser feels it cannot be easily corrected, or the appraiser does not meet the qualifications, the review appraiser must contact the County to determine if the appraisal report can be disapproved before contacting the appraiser.

● The review appraiser may not change an appraisal, except for minor mathematical or typographical errors, and must call these to the appraisers attention. No one, except the original appraiser, is permitted to edit or otherwise revise the original appraisal.

● The review appraiser may not substitute personal judgment for that of the appraiser, nor dismiss careful appraisal judgment solely because it cannot be supported by conclusive market data. However, the review appraiser may question the appraiser’s judgment when it is illogical, unreasonable, not supported by data cited, or is inconsistent with other data.

● The review appraiser must not allow goals or adversarial pressure to influence their opinion of an appraisal’s value. The review appraiser’s personal opinion regarding the proposed action must not influence the review process.

● The review appraiser must not attempt to influence the appraiser's judgment or direct the appraiser toward a value estimate. The only effort should be to obtain a properly supported value opinion based on factual evidence and valid analysis of all facts

5082 Letcher County Appraisal Review IFB - Round 2 4/5 available through the use of approved appraisal approaches and techniques. Minor technical nonconformance with the USPAP, or appraisal specifications and instructions, should not be the cause of rejection of an appraisal unless the deficiencies affect the reliability of the value; however, these minor technical nonconformances must be addressed in the technical review report.

5082 Letcher County Appraisal Review IFB - Round 2 5/5