Appraisal Foundation seeks to address labor shortage

The Appraisal Foundation’s Appraiser Qualifications Board is to ease the requirements for individuals to become an appraiser in order to combat labor shortages.

The board will be reducing the number of hours of college coursework that needs to be completed, and also the hours of job training. The process has been under review for the last two years, the Foundation said.

Action is necessary because the appraisal industry has struggled to attract new talent, while many existing appraisers are thought to be approaching retirement. Compounding these problems further is that there’s a lack of enthusiasm among those in the field about mentoring trainees “due to the lack of compensation and benefit, along with lender restrictions,” HousingWire reported.

To remedy the situation, the Appraiser Qualifications Board has updated its requirements to become a qualified appraiser. As of May 1 applicants will no longer require to have the 30 hours of college-level education that was previously a minimum qualification.

A second requirement that’s being canned is the need for certified residential appraisers to have a bachelor’s degree. Now, the board says there are six possible options, including an associate’s degree in one of several fields allowed.

The changes come after the National Association of Realtors wrote to the Foundation in January proposing that it eases the qualification criteria. It said it supported the board in its efforts to “to reduce unnecessary cost and time burdens on potential appraisers and ensure the continued entrance of new appraisers into the profession.”