The Appraisal Alliance Privacy Policy

The Appraisal Alliance and its partners respect your privacy:

This Privacy Statement informs you of our privacy practices and of the way your information is collected online and how that information is used. This statement is readily available on our home page and at the bottom of every TAA Web page.

The Appraisal Alliance has also self-certified its privacy practices as consistent with U.S.-E.U. Safe Harbor principles: Notice, Choice, Onward Transfer, Access and Accuracy, Security, and Oversight/Enforcement. More information about the U.S. Department of Commerce Safe Harbor Program can be found at http://www.export.gov/safeharbor/  non-HP site.


If you have questions or concerns regarding this statement, you should contact The Appraisal Alliance using the contact information included at the end of this statement.

1. Sites covered by this Privacy Statement:

This Privacy Statement applies to all Appraisal Alliance-owned websites and domains and the websites and domains of our wholly owned subsidiaries , except that a privacy policy or statement posted on TAA websites specific to a particular TAA program or service will apply instead of this Privacy Statement.

Links to non-TAA websites:

The Appraisal Alliance website may provide links to third-party websites for your convenience and information. If you access those links, you will leave the The Appraisal Alliance website. The Appraisal Alliance does not control those sites or their privacy practices, which may differ from The Appraisal Alliance's practices. We do not endorse or make any representations about third-party websites. The personal data you choose to provide to or that is collected by these third parties is not covered by the Appraisal Alliance Privacy Statement. We encourage you to review the privacy policy of any company before submitting your personal information.

2. Collection of personal information:

To serve you better and understand your needs and interests, The Appraisal Alliance collects, exports, and uses personal information with adequate notice and consent, along with required filings with data protection authorities, when applicable. For example, when you order products or services, apply for network access, request information, subscribe to marketing or support materials, register yourself , enter contests or participate in surveys, or apply for a job at The Appraisal Alliance, we will ask you to provide personal information to complete these transactions. The types of personal information you provide to us on these pages may include contact information such as your name, address, telephone number, and email address; financial information such as your credit card number; and other unique information such as user IDs and passwords, billing and transaction information, product and service preferences, contact preferences, educational and employment background, and job interest data.

In addition to the information you provide, The Appraisal Alliance may also collect information during your visit to The Appraisal Alliance website through our Automatic Data Collection Tools, which include Web beacons, cookies, embedded Web links, and other commonly used information-gathering tools. These tools collect certain standard information that your browser sends to our website such as your browser type and language, access times, and the address of the website from which you arrived at our website. They may also collect information about your Internet Protocol (IP) address, clickstream behavior (i.e. the pages you view, the links you click, and other actions you take in connection with The Appraisal Alliance websites) and product information. An IP address is a number that is automatically assigned to your computer whenever you are surfing the Web, allowing Web servers to locate and identify your computer. Computers use IP addresses to communicate on the Internet, allowing users to browse and shop. The Appraisal Alliance may also use some of these Automatic Data Collection Tools in connection with certain emails sent from The Appraisal Alliance staff as well as system generated e-mails, and therefore may collect information using these tools when you open the email or click on a link contained in the email.

3. How we use your information:

The information The Appraisal Alliance collects to understand your needs and interests helps The Appraisal Alliance deliver a consistent and personalized experience. For example, The Appraisal Alliance may use your information to 
  • assist you in completing a transaction or order;
  • prevent and detect fraud or other malicious activity;
  • communicate with you about products and services;
  • provide service and support;
  • update you on new services and benefits;
  • provide personalized promotional offers;
  • select content to be communicated to you;
  • personalize some TAA websites;

We will give you the opportunity to choose your privacy preferences regarding the communications we send.

The testimonials posted on our Web site are only posted with the expressed permission of the individual or company who provided that testimonial.

Credit card information is used only for payment processing and fraud prevention. Credit card information and other sensitive personal information required to process a credit decision is not used for any other purpose by our financial services providers or The Appraisal Alliance and will not be kept longer than necessary for providing the services, unless you ask us to retain your credit card information for future purchases.

4. How we share your information:

The Appraisal Alliance will not sell, rent or lease your personal information to others except as described in this Statement. The Appraisal Alliance shares personal information in the following ways:

The Appraisal Alliance retains service providers and suppliers to deliver complete products, services and customer solutions and to assist The Appraisal Alliance with marketing and communication initiatives. These providers and suppliers include, for example, credit card processors, providers of customer support and live-help, email service providers, automated data processors, and shipping agents. Suppliers and service providers are required by contract to keep confidential the information received on behalf of The Appraisal Alliance and may not use it for any purpose other than to carry out the services they are performing for The Appraisal Alliance.

From time to time, The Appraisal Alliance may elect to participate in marketing initiatives with other companies. As part of these initiatives, certain TAA services and marketing communications are delivered at the same time as those from other companies. Some of these services and communications offer you the option to share personal information with both The Appraisal Alliance and the other companies participating in these initiatives. For example, you may receive marketing communications from The Appraisal Alliance and other companies or have the opportunity to register online for software products from multiple companies. If you choose to provide personal information only to The Appraisal Alliance, we will not share this information with the other companies participating in that marketing initiative. If you choose to provide personal information to the other companies, that personal information will be handled according to the privacy policy of those companies.

The Appraisal Alliance will require the export of your personal information to other partner business entities in the US and Worldwide in accordance with this Statement to satisfy your request. Such export is a requirement of providing the information to The Appraisal Alliance.

Except as described in this Statement, The Appraisal Alliance will not share the personal information you provide to The Appraisal Alliance with non-TAA third parties without your permission, unless to: (i) respond to duly authorized information requests of police and governmental authorities; (ii) comply with any law, regulation, subpoena, or court order; (iii) help prevent fraud or to enforce or protect the rights and properties of The Appraisal Alliance or its subsidiaries; or (iv) protect the personal safety of The Appraisal Alliance employees and third parties on The Appraisal Alliance property.
Circumstances may arise where, whether for strategic or other business reasons, The Appraisal Alliance decides to sell, buy, merge or otherwise reorganize businesses in some countries. Such a transaction may involve the disclosure of personal information to prospective or actual purchasers, or the receipt of it from sellers. It is The Appraisal Alliance’s practice to seek appropriate protection for information in these types of transactions.

5. Children's privacy:

The Appraisal Alliance does not knowingly collect information from children under the age of 18 and does not target its websites to children under 18. We encourage parents and guardians to take an active role in their children’s online activities and interests.

6. Your choices and selecting your privacy preferences:

The Appraisal Alliance gives you the choice of receiving a variety of information that complements our products and services. You can subscribe to receive certain product- and service-specific information and also choose to receive The Appraisal Alliance general communications. We give you a choice regarding delivery of The Appraisal Alliance general communications by postal mail, email and telephone.

You can make or change your choices about receiving either subscription or general communications at the data collection point or by using other methods, which are listed in the following sections. This option does not apply to communications primarily for the purpose of administering order completion, contracts, support,or other administrative and transactional notices as the primary purpose of these communications is not promotional in nature.

The email communications that you receive from The Appraisal Alliance will be provided in accordance with this statement. Some email communications may utilize automatic data collection tools.

Subscription communications:

Subscription communications include email newsletters, software/user profile updates, etc. that may be expressly requested by you or which you consented to receive. After you request such communications, you may opt out of receiving them by using one of the following methods:

  • Select the email "opt out" or "unsubscribe" link, or follow the opt-out instructions included in each subscription communication.
  • Return to the Web page(s) where you originally registered your preferences and follow the opt-out instructions. Access to many TAA subscriptions is available at the Subscriber’s Choice web page.
  • Write to the The Appraisal Alliance compliance dept. Be sure to provide your name, email and postal address, and specific relevant information about The Appraisal Alliance subscriptions that you no longer wish to receive.

Please be aware that when you opt out of receiving certain subscription communications, it may affect the services you have chosen to receive from The Appraisal Alliance where accepting the communications is a condition of receiving the services.

The Appraisal Alliance general communications:

The Appraisal Alliance general communications provide information about products, services, and/or support. This may include new product information, special offers, or invitations to participate in market research.

You will often be able to use The Appraisal Alliance compliance dept. to indicate whether you want to receive general communications from The Appraisal Alliance. Your preferences will apply across The Appraisal Alliance websites,blogs, email, and other communication vehicles.

7. Access to and accuracy of your information:

The Appraisal Alliance strives to keep your personal information accurately recorded. We have implemented technology, management processes and policies to help maintain data accuracy. The Appraisal Alliance provides individuals with reasonable access to personal information that they provided to The Appraisal Alliance and the reasonable ability to review and correct it or ask for anonymization, blockage, or deletion, as applicable. To protect your privacy and security, we will also take reasonable steps to verify your identity, such as requiring a password and user ID, before granting access to your data. To view and change the personal information that you directly provided to The Appraisal Alliance you can return to the Web page where you originally submitted your data and follow the instructions on that Web page.

8. Keeping your personal information secure:

The Appraisal Alliance takes seriously the trust you place in us. To prevent unauthorized access or disclosure, to maintain data accuracy, and to ensure the appropriate use of the information, The Appraisal Alliance utilizes appropriate physical, technical and administrative procedures to safeguard the information we collect.

When collecting or transferring sensitive information such as credit card information we use a variety of security technologies and procedures to help protect your personal information from unauthorized access, use, or disclosure. The personal information you provide us is stored on computer systems located in controlled facilities which have limited access. When we transmit highly confidential information (such as credit card number or password) over the internet, we protect it through the use of encryption, such as the Secure Socket Layer (SSL) protocol.

Credit card numbers are used only for processing payments and are not used for other purposes. As part of real-time payment processing, The Appraisal Alliance subscribes to a fraud management service. This service gives you and The Appraisal Alliance an extra level of security to guard against credit card fraud and to protect your financial data.  

9. Changes to this statement:

If we change our privacy statement, we will post the revised statement here, with an updated revision date. If we make significant changes to our statement, we may also notify you by other means, such as sending an email or posting a notice on our home page.

10. Contacting us:

We value your opinions. If you have comments or questions about our privacy statement, please send them to the The Appraisal Alliance compliance dept. or write to us at the following address:

United States,and Canada:
The Appraisal Alliance Privacy Mailbox
PO BOX 871480
Vancouver, Washington 98687
USA