UAD 3.6: The Complete Guide for Residential Appraisers (2026)

UAD 3.6 goes mandatory on November 2, 2026, which as of today is eight days away. If you have spent fifteen years filling in a Form 1004 with your eyes half closed, the redesigned URAR is going to feel strange for a few weeks. The checkboxes you know by heart are gone. The market analysis you used to put on the 1004MC now lives in the report's own Market section. Commentary you used to bury in an addendum now has its own field. And every report you deliver is checked against hundreds of machine-readable rules before an underwriter ever opens the PDF. This guide covers what UAD 3.6 is, what it changes for a working appraiser, the dates that matter, and what to do this week.

Key takeaways

• UAD 3.6 replaces the old form family (1004, 1073, 1075, 1025, 2055, 2090, 2095, 1004C and their desktop and hybrid versions) with one dynamic report: the redesigned URAR.
• The deliverable is a zip: one MISMO 3.6 XML file, one matching PDF and an Images folder, under 60 MB.
• The GSE compliance rules in Appendix H-1 number 728: 592 Fatal and 136 Warning. A Fatal finding stops the submission at UCDP.
• The mandate is November 2, 2026. A one-time lender exception keeps UAD 2.6 alive for some sellers until mid-2027, but that's a lender decision, not yours.
• Your valuation method doesn't change. What changes is how much of your reasoning has to live in structured data.

What UAD 3.6 actually is

The Uniform Appraisal Dataset is the set of data definitions Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac use to read appraisals. The first version, UAD 2.6, arrived in 2011 and sat on top of the existing paper forms. It standardized how you wrote condition ratings, view codes and dates, but the 1004 stayed a 1004.

UAD 3.6 goes further. The GSEs rebuilt the dataset on the MISMO 3.6 reference model and threw out the idea of a separate form for every property type. In its place is one report, the redesigned Uniform Residential Appraisal Report (URAR), that grows or shrinks based on the property. A condo shows the project section. A 2–4 unit shows the rent schedule and income approach. A house with a pool shows the pool rows. A house without one doesn't.

That's the "dynamic" part. The spec marks many fields as Conditionally Required: they appear only when an indicator says so. An easement exists, so you describe it. An ADU exists, so its unit interior shows up. This is why the new report can cover so many property types without being 40 pages of blank boxes.

The specs that define all of this are public on the Fannie Mae Uniform Appraisal Dataset page and the Freddie Mac UAD page. The ones worth knowing by name:

If you read only one of these, read F-1. It's the closest thing to a field-by-field instruction manual, and it's written for appraisers, not developers.

What changes in the report you write

The core of the job doesn't move. You still inspect, select comps, adjust, reconcile and sign. The Freddie Mac UAD 3.6 FAQ and every GSE training session say the same thing: this is a change to how data is reported, not to how value is developed. What does change is where your reasoning goes and how granular it has to be.

Here are the changes most appraisers notice in the first week:

• Section order and layout. The report starts with a Summary and Assignment Information, then moves through Subject, Site, Dwelling Exterior, Unit Interior and onward to Sales Comparison, Reconciliation, Revision History and Certifications. It reads more like a narrative than a grid of boxes.
• Structured defects. Defects, damages and deficiencies are reported item by item, with a cost to repair where you have one. "Typical wear and tear" in a comment box doesn't satisfy a rule that asks whether the amenities have any defects.
• Per-component condition. Roof, windows, foundation and other components carry their own condition and comments. Your overall C rating is still there, but it sits on top of the detail instead of replacing it.
• Site tables. Site influences (a busy road, a body of water, a power line) and site features each have their own rows, with an impact on value and marketability. Utilities and broadband availability are reported as data.
• Market section built in. Active listings, pending sales, median days on market, list and sale price ranges, demand and supply, and a price trend analysis with its sources are part of the report itself.
• Analyzed but not used. Properties you considered and rejected have a place in the report. AMCs have asked for that table for years. Now it's structured.
• Revision history and reconsideration of value. Revisions and ROV outcomes are recorded in a Revision History section instead of disappearing into an email thread.
• Energy, green and disaster mitigation. Solar ownership and financing, efficiency ratings, building certifications and mitigation features get their own sections.
• Area under ANSI terms. The report uses Finished Area Above Grade and Below Grade, with separate nonstandard area fields for space that doesn't meet ANSI Z765 ceiling or access rules.

For a side-by-side of the old form against the new one, see the redesigned URAR vs. the Form 1004. For how one dynamic report covers condos, 2–4 units and exterior-only work, see how one URAR replaces the 1004, 1073, 1025 and 2055.

Tip: Print Appendix C-1 with field IDs once and keep it on your desk for the first month. When a reviewer says "field 4.029," you'll know exactly where to look.

The forms that are retired

The Freddie Mac UAD 3.6 FAQ lists the forms the redesigned URAR retires and replaces:

The FAQ also says the Operating Income Statement (216/998) is retired. Restricted appraisal updates and completion reports move to their own UAD 3.6 report types, delivered in the UAD 3.6 zip format.

The UAD 3.6 deadline and timeline

The dates come from the joint GSE UAD Redesign Timeline and the September 30, 2026 temporary policy exception notice:

Two details trip people up. First, the mandate keys off the UCDP submission date, not your effective date or the loan application date, per the Freddie Mac FAQ. A report you inspect on October 30 and deliver on November 3 may well be submitted as 3.6. Second, the exception belongs to the seller (the lender that sells to the GSEs), not to you. If your AMC's lender has an exception, you may keep getting 1004 orders for a while. If it doesn't, you won't.

The full walk-through, including what to do with reports already in your pipeline, is in the UAD 3.6 deadline timeline.

The delivery format: MISMO 3.6 XML, a PDF and images

Under UAD 2.6, the XML was something your software made behind the scenes and attached to a PDF. Under UAD 3.6, the XML is the report. The PDF is a rendering of the same data.

Appendix B-1 spells out the package. One zip per appraisal, no larger than 60 MB, containing:

1. One UAD 3.6 XML file, UTF-8, built on the MISMO 3.6 reference model.
2. One first-generation PDF of the report, made by the software, matching the XML, not password protected or encrypted.
3. A folder named Images (the capital I matters) holding every photo, map and exhibit, each with a unique file name and each referenced at least once in the XML.

Images are not embedded in the XML. The XML carries metadata and a relative path for each image. That's why a missing photo is now a data problem, not a layout problem: the rules check that the required subject photos (dwelling front, property access and the other subject photos) and a photo of each comp actually exist.

You don't need to read XML to appraise. But it helps to know what's inside the file so you understand why a rule fired. That's covered in MISMO 3.6 XML explained for appraisers.

Note: You don't upload to UCDP yourself in the normal course. You deliver the zip to your client, and the lender or AMC submits it to UCDP (or to EAD for FHA). Make sure your client portal accepts a zip, not just a PDF.

The 728 compliance rules

Appendix H-1 lists the rules the GSEs' UAD Compliance API runs against every submission. Version 1.5 has 728 of them: 592 Fatal and 136 Warning. A Fatal finding makes the submission unsuccessful. A Warning goes back to the lender to review.

Most rules are about completeness: "Provide the interior condition rating," "Provide the 'Proximity to Subject' distance for the sales comparable." Many are conditional: if the property is in a hazard zone, name the zone. A smaller group checks that the numbers agree with each other. The net adjustment total must equal the sum of the line adjustments. The number of ADUs must match the number of units flagged as ADUs. The effective date can't be in the future.

A few that catch experienced appraisers off guard:

"Even if the value is 0" shows up again and again. A blank field and a zero mean different things to a machine. Under the old forms you left a box empty when it didn't apply. Under UAD 3.6 you often have to say "none" on purpose.

The rules, the difference between Fatal and Warning, and the ones that bite most often are covered in depth in the 728 UAD 3.6 compliance rules.

Measuring and GLA under UAD 3.6

Fannie Mae has required the ANSI Z765-2021 measuring standard for most single-unit appraisals with interior and exterior inspections since April 1, 2022 (see Selling Guide B4-1.3-05). Under UAD 2.6 you reported departures with the "GXX001" code in the Additional Features field. UAD 3.6 builds the standard into the report:

• The Sketch section asks for the Measurement Standard: ANSI, AMS or Other. Apartment-style condos use Other with "Not Applicable due to property type." A state-mandated standard also goes under Other, with its name.
• ANSI declarations go in Sketch Commentary.
• Finished area is split into standard and nonstandard areas, above and below grade. Space under ANSI ceiling heights, or reached only through unfinished space, goes in the nonstandard fields, with the reason in Unit Interior commentary.
• When ANSI applies, any level that is partially below grade counts as below grade. A walkout lower level is below grade.

If you measure in the rain with a laser and a clipboard, none of this changes your fieldwork. It changes how cleanly your sketch math has to flow into the report. More in ANSI Z765 and GLA under UAD 3.6.

What it means for your workday

Let's be honest about the first month. The new report asks for more structured data than the old 1004, and many fields you used to skip now need an explicit answer. Your first few UAD 3.6 reports will take longer. Plan for slower turn times early on and set your schedule accordingly.

Some things get easier:

• Fewer addenda. Market conditions, rent schedules for 2–4 units and analyzed-not-used comps live in the report.
• Fewer "please explain" revisions. When the structure asks the question up front, the reviewer has less reason to ask it later.
• Cleaner revisions. Revision history is part of the report, so the trail of what changed and why travels with the file.

Some things get harder:

• Blank is not an answer. Expect to answer "none," "0" or "no" more than you ever did.
• Your software matters more. Under 2.6, a sloppy form program could still produce a passable PDF. Under 3.6, the XML has to validate against the GSE schema and pass the H-1 rules, or the lender gets a Fatal.
• Your archive is in the old format. Ten years of 1004s live in UAD 2.6 or older files. Those are still your comps history, and you'll want them searchable.

Choosing software for UAD 3.6

Appraisal software vendors have spent the last two years building for UAD 3.6, and the GSEs offer a vendor verification process that puts software on a list lenders check. That listing is about the vendor, not about you. There's no UAD 3.6 approval for appraisers to apply for.

When you evaluate options, ask these questions:

1. Does it produce the full zip (XML, PDF and Images folder) to Appendix B-1, or only a PDF?
2. Does it validate the XML against the GSE schema on every build?
3. Does it check the H-1 rules while you work, and does each finding take you to the field?
4. Which property types does it fully support today? Condo, 2–4 unit, manufactured and co-op support varies.
5. Can you bring in your old reports, and what happens to the ones it can't read?
6. What does it cost per year, and are there per-report fees? Tiered desktop appraisal software often runs $1,500 to $3,500 a year.

Carat is one option built for this. It builds the redesigned URAR for 1–4 unit, condo and PUD properties, writes MISMO 3.6 XML validated against the GSE schema on every build, renders the URAR PDF to the Appendix E style guide and packages the UCDP-ready zip for you or your client to upload. AI-powered readiness checks run hundreds of the H-1 rules while you work, and each finding links straight to the field, so you catch it before the AMC does. It also imports your ClickFORMS or MISMO 2.6 archive and turns it into a searchable comps history with median adjustment rates by town and price tier, drawn from your own work. It's $99 a month per appraiser, unlimited reports. You sign. It's always your report.

If you're switching programs at the same time as the format, read how to switch appraisal software without losing a decade of comps before you cancel anything.

Your first-week plan

You have about a week. Here's a short version of the full UAD 3.6 readiness checklist:

1. Ask your clients. Email each AMC and lender: will you order UAD 3.6 on November 2, or are you under an exception? Does your portal accept the zip?
2. Confirm your software. Build one practice report, start to finish, including the zip. Open the zip and look at it.
3. Read F-1 for your bread-and-butter property type. If you mostly do detached single-family, read Site, Dwelling Exterior, Unit Interior and Sales Comparison first.
4. Update your firm profile. License, E&O and certifications need to be current in the new software, since they fill every report.
5. Rework your comment library. Many of your canned comments now belong in specific structured fields. Move them.
6. Re-measure your habits. Check that your sketch reports a measurement standard and that nonstandard area has a home.
7. Block extra time. Schedule your first five UAD 3.6 reports with room to spare.

Watch out: Don't wait for your first live order to build your first UAD 3.6 report. The first one takes the longest, and you don't want it to be a rush order with a 48-hour turn.

Common misconceptions

"The 1004 is just getting a new number." It isn't. The structure, the data and the delivery format all change. A redesigned URAR is not a reskinned 1004.

"I need to get certified for UAD 3.6." You don't. There's no appraiser approval. Training is smart, but no GSE credential is required.

"The exception means I have until June." The exception belongs to specific lenders. Your orders follow your clients. Many lenders are already ordering 3.6.

"Software will fill it all in." Software can fill public-record facts, carry your firm profile and check rules. It can't inspect the house, pick the comps or form your opinion. Nothing in the report should be guessed.

"UAD 3.6 changes the value." It changes the reporting. If your value moves because of the new form, look hard at why.

The bottom line

UAD 3.6 is the biggest change to residential appraisal reporting since the original UAD in 2011. It asks you to state more of what you already know in structured form, and it checks your work against 728 rules before anyone reads your commentary. The appraisers who get through November smoothly will be the ones who built a practice report this week, talked to their clients and set their software up before the orders arrived.

If you want to try the redesigned URAR on your own reports first, you can start an Carat account and build one this afternoon.