Which statement is TRUE regarding confirmation bias in real property appraisals?

• A. Appraisers never consider pending sale prices
• B. Appraisers sometimes engage in this bias when they try to make an appraised value meet the pending sale price
• C. Appraisers always inflate values to win business
• D. Confirmation bias does not affect appraisals

Answer: (B)

Confirmation bias in real property appraisals shows up when an appraiser unconsciously weighs information to support a preconceived value, rather than evaluating all data objectively. In practice, a pending sale price can create pressure, and an appraiser might, without realizing it, give more weight to comparables or market signals that push the value toward that pending price. This explains why the statement about appraisers sometimes engaging in this bias to align the appraised value with the pending sale price is the best choice: it recognizes that bias can occur in real-world valuation without claiming it happens all the time or in every case. The other ideas aren’t accurate: appraisers do consider pending sale prices as part of market data but should not let it dictate the value, bias does not mean they always inflate values, and confirmation bias can indeed affect appraisals.