UAD 3.6 is almost here. Lenders need to move from awareness to production.

For years, the mortgage industry has discussed the Uniform Appraisal Dataset 3.6 as a future-state initiative. That future is now measured in weeks. Beginning November 2, 2026, every new appraisal report initially submitted to the Uniform Collateral Data Portal must use UAD 3.6. A new UAD 2.6 submission after that date will receive a fatal message and a “Not Successful” status. With warning messages already appearing on UAD 2.6 submissions, lenders have entered the final phase of the transition. The positive news is that the industry is not being asked to make the change overnight. Broad production has been open since January, allowing lenders to submit either UAD 2.6 or UAD 3.6. The opportunity now is to use that window as intended: to place orders, test the complete workflow, learn from real files and increase volume before the mandate arrives. More than a new form It is easy to describe UAD 3.6 as a form redesign, but that understates its significance. The current process relies on multiple property-specific appraisal forms and often places important information in free-form commentary or addenda. UAD 3.6 replaces that structure with a single, dynamic Uniform Residential Apprais...