AQB Update On Proposed Changes To Appraiser Qualifications

[Ken Masla]

I think the argument about the need for college or not is a valid one, but it can also be made for a number of professions today. (for or against)

A few years back, one of the most prestigious attorneys I've ever known passed. He was trained by a School of Law, but never went to college.

My grandfather was a school teacher, and never went to college. He was considered a master in mathematics and algebra back in those days.

LPN's and RN's come out of Tech Schools everyday without a college degree.

Surveyors who used the long path of apprenticeship for many years, have qualified to sit for their licensing exams without becoming an engineer in some states. No college.

Insurance agents, Real Estate Brokers, Bankers, etc. - None require college degrees to attain high levels of expertise, respect, and money.

College will not make better appraisers but it does put a staple on the level of effort required to become an appraiser. It has certainly weeded out many who probably shouldn't seek out an appraiser
license in the first place.

In saying that, having politics in the profession is a slippery slope in my opinion. I worry that having a school without a real apprenticeship requirement will become a generator of unskilled and unworthy analysts in this profession.

I think the path to becoming a licensed appraiser, with real restrictions of practice, should have the least resistance. Perhaps we look back to the entry requirements when this first began for the licensed appraiser.

Then I think the prohibition of licensed appraisers from FHA work, WITHIN LIMITATIONS, should be removed. That will help some.

Then a sensible path from licensed to certified should be in place. The path may be longer than college, but will keep motivation alive.

If the ability to attain a license can be done without college, and an eventual path to certification can be obtained afterward with time and work, then college level entry for certification can remain as long as it is also within a sensible set of parameters.

I'm sure there are flaws to my logic, but none that can't be tweaked which I can see.

I agree with you.

The only reason the college requirement in an issue is because our education system is garbage. If they really educated people in colleges, I would be a huge proponent of it being a requirement.

You give good examples of why college degrees are not necessary, even more so in today's world where people can self educate very easily. Colleges now should focus heavily on getting students experience asap instead of them memorizing text books.

They should up the hours of signed experience required and give a potential supervisor more incentive to take on trainees. Maybe less liability. They need to rework some regulations.

 

[TRESinc]

Every bank client im my experience asks on the application to their appraiser panel for a list of appraisal education courses plus education level, including proof of a college degree.

personally i've never had that request from any client, ever. for those of your clients who do ask what happens when an appraiser has been licensed or certified for longer than the college degree requirement has been in effect but don't have a degree? are they automatically declined?

 

[gregb]

The VA application to the fee panel asks for education and degree accomplishments.

 

[hastalavista]

I was kicked out of high school in the 11th grade (spent more time in the pool hall than the classroom).
I finished my AA degree when I was 19.
Had a rather successful career in the hospitality industry with that; at 34, I switched careers and became an appraiser.
Finished my 4-year degree when I was in my late 40s.

I don't believe a college degree is a necessity to appraise residential or commercial properties. There are plenty of examples of individuals who (like me) learned much of what we know from the University of the Street. So, is a degree necessary in order to understand how to competently appraise real property? In general, no.
But I do agree with Joe's argument that having a college degree requirement can and does differentiate appraisers (as a group) as professionals.



A formal degree, while constituting an entry barrier (something I don't necessarily like), is a legitimate component of classifying an activity as a "profession" rather than an "occupation".



The requirement to have a formal degree is not just about an individual "feel good" (I'm better than you because I have a degree) because we all acknowledge that PhD doesn't confer professional competence (that requires technical training). This isn't about the individual as much as it is about the group, and the status and acceptance the group receives as professionals from society, which most of us want to achieve and ensure is maintained.

In regard to appraising, everyone who is in is grandfathered at their level. And, there was enough notice given that if anyone wanted to move up, they could have done so prior to the implementation of a formal degree standard. So in my opinion, the formal degree requirement takes nothing away from those who are already licensed or certified. In my opinion, maintaining the formal degree requirement would benefit those who are licensed and/or certified who may not now qualify for that licensing level.

I don't see a conflict or dichotomy here.
There is a legitimate objective ensuring individual appraisers are competent and technically proficient. This objective is achieved without the requirement of a formal degree.
There is a legitimate objective in ensuring that appraisers are considered by stakeholders and the public at large as highly trained experts at what they do. This objective is partially achieved by having a formal degree as part of the requirement for entry into the profession.

The two work in tandem in my opinion.

The requirement doesn't impact those who are already licensed (except if they desired to move up and failed to do so when that opportunity presented itself).
The requirement does impact those who may seek to join the profession; they now have to meet the formal degree standard, which I argue establishes a legitimate threshold that differentiates us as "professionals" and supports our claim that appraising is recognized as a profession that requires a significant degree of education and training (formal and technical).

 

[Mr Rex]

If a 4 year degree is good then why isn't another 3-4 years so much better in matters of competency, ethics and whatever feel good descriptors you can find? +/-40% of House members and +/-60% of Senators have Law degrees and are renowned for their lack of ethics, competency, and general fecklessness. Long live the degree requirement, it builds better people!

 

[TRESinc]

The VA application to the fee panel asks for education and degree accomplishments.

the VA is not a bank client. their application asks if you have one, no proof required. it also asks about high school but does not require a diploma to be submitted. right below that is asks about advanced education or training, vocational, business or special courses as well, none of which are requirements.

i can tell you with no uncertainty that a college degree is not a requirement to join the VA panel. i know of 2 active appraisers on their panel locally who do not have college degrees.

 

[J Grant]

For people who earn a degree later in life, or have a degree but want to make a mid life or later life change, appraising can be especially attractive.

If the degree requirement is rolled back, appraising on res lending side will devolve into lower fees, lower prestige, and vulnerable to control by AMC's, all of which will serve to make it a career path those with a degree will avoid, which will further erode the profession.

 

[Mr Rex]

If a 4 year degree is required to be a Residential Appraiser, when does 10-15-20 years experience as a successful appraiser equal a degree? Or are the powers that be implying that the current college degree requirements are so weak that its equivalent to a high school degree in the past?

 

[hastalavista]

If a 4 year degree is good then why isn't another 3-4 years so much better in matters of competency, ethics and whatever feel good descriptors you can find?

(my bold)

Michael-

It may be better. But should it be an entry-level requirement? I don't think so.


The question I think is, does the concept of requiring a college degree to become a licensed appraiser have merit or not? If so, why? If not, why?

The counter-argument of, "Well if higher is better, and you don't require that, why require anything?" doesn't, IMHO, address the root question.

My answers are: it doesn't necessarily have merit on an individual basis. It does have merit on a group basis.
And, that's why I argue in favor of it.

 

[Ken Masla]

(my bold)

Michael-

It may be better. But should it be an entry-level requirement? I don't think so.


The question I think is, does the concept of requiring a college degree to become a licensed appraiser have merit or not? If so, why? If not, why?

The counter-argument of, "Well if higher is better, and you don't require that, why require anything?" doesn't, IMHO, address the root question.

My answers are: it doesn't necessarily have merit on an individual basis. It does have merit on a group basis.
And, that's why I argue in favor of it.

I think he was being sarcastic.