Mandatory course for appraiser supervisors and trainees

The real estate appraisal profession has seen significant changes over the years in practices, standards, and qualifications. On December 9, 2011, the Appraiser Qualifications Board of The Appraisal Foundation (AQB) adopted a new set of changes to the Real Property Appraiser Qualifications Criteria that specify minimum national requirements that each state must implement no later than January 1, 2015. Included in the changes are new requirements for appraiser trainees and for appraisers who agree to take on the responsibility of supervising trainees. One of these is a mandatory course. Anyone who wants to become a trainee or a supervisor must first complete a supervisor/trainee course that complies with the specifications for course content established by the AQB. Wait you say, another mandatory course? Yes, but only for people who want to become a Supervisory Appraiser or an Appraiser Trainee. The AQB is requiring this course to further meet the goal to promote and maintain a high level of public trust. On August 2, the AQB released the Proposed Supervisory Appraiser and Trainee Appraiser Course Objectives and Content Outline. The final version is expected to be released towards the end of the year and most likely will closely resemble the proposed objectives and outline. Will the new course result in more trainees so that the exodus from the appraisal profession is reversed, or at least stemmed? The public response has been mixed. Says one appraiser: "The requirements imposed on supervising appraisers will make a non-economic situation even worse than it was... I am not willing to swallow the economic cost and also comply with the new requirements for special licensing." An appraiser from Arkansas states: "The recommended course only increases the resolve of most of us approaching retirement that a trainee is an enormous liability and we have no incentive whatsoever to train anyone." Another appraiser says: "Why not simply indicate that you are trying to end our profession. This is another silly idea ... Do something that will encourage, not discourage, this direction for new talent." However not everyone thinks the new course is a bad idea. A Wyoming appraiser says: "I support your efforts to plan and carry out the proposed Supervisory Training." While it isn't clear that the new course requirement will be a detriment to the profession, it is fairly certain that adding costs to Supervisory Appraisers and Trainees will not result in an increase in the numbers of either. To counter this negative impact, Appraisal University, a national provider of online continuing education, is attempting to break new ground with a free course that meets the AQB mandate. John Hauschildt, co-founder of Appraisal University explains, "It is vital to the appraiser profession that we eliminate barriers to entry and encourage appraisers to mentor trainees. Any new cost without a commensurate reward is an obstacle of that goal. We believe that this course can be, and should be, free to anyone who wants to become a trainee or any appraiser who wants to supervise trainees. We are working with the boards and commissions throughout the country to make this possible." While a cost of $0.00 does not eliminate the requirement for the time spent completing the course, it does remove the obstacle of additional capital outlay. During the next six to nine months we hope to see this idea become a reality. Kevin Underriner is a co-founder of Appraisal University, Portsmouth, N.H.