Becoming a Commercial RE Appraiser - Advice needed

[JOWSIK]

For the past few months, I have been thinking more and more about trying to get into commercial real estate appraisal. I'm graduating from grad school this June (MBA in Real Estate Finance) and am thinking about making a switch. I've been in commercial real estate for almost 5 years (2.5 years in property management(Office Bldg), and 2.5 years in healthcare real estate portfolio management)

What would you guys recommend? I was thinking about first finding a local commercial real estate appraiser and starting from there, but wasn't sure if it makes sense to start state certification courses first.

Any advice is greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

 

[Michigan CG]

I have moved this to the Commercial section because of the OPs experience and education.

 

[Terrel L. Shields]

Do both. Don't quit your day job. Take appraisal courses and try to find work with a commercial appraiser for experience. Work as a consultant as well. As Bat Masterson said, "Take your time and don't miss."

Clearly, there is a better market for commercial appraisers than residential ones. The downside is it is difficult to find mentors and it is difficult to control the way your career path will lead when you have to put emphasis on finding a mentor over appraising the kinds of properties that you are familiar with.

I would start by taking a few basic courses. That prepares you for what lies ahead. Once you find a mentor then you can choose the kinds of courses that will fit your mentor's line of appraising since many of these are specialists. Industrial, Retail Malls, Food Court/Truckstops, etc. Even a specialty like agriculture includes Ag Business consultants, row crop appraisers, building intensive appraisers (dairies, poultry plants, etc.), conservation appraisers, resource appraisers, etc.

Don't ignore opportunities out their in the public sector as well. Government jobs are a good stepping stone or a career path.

It's a big field out there in commercial.

 

[Ryan Bailey]

I just did the same thing. I graduated from ASU with a Masters in Real Estate Development. I owned a residential appraisal firm for 6 years prior to graduating and did almost all divorce/estate work - I had almost no commercial experience. I was lucky enough to get a great job with a MAI, FRICS, SR/WA, SRA, CCIM guy and really like my job. I had a couple other offers from some of the big firms (C&W, CB, and Earnst & Young) all offered entry level positions. I was also accepted to MIT for their doctoral program in real estate development (Finance), but have decided to get some more experience before I decide if I want to go or not.

I would try to identify what specific type of work you want to do and go from there. I wouldn't recommend just starting to work for an appraiser. I doubt they will utilize your experience. Personally, I wouldn't take any courses other than the most basic appraisal courses until you find a specialty that you want to concentrate on.

I would caution you on the public sector stuff unless you just need a job. I was offered a management position with the assessor's office. The pay was good; however it didn't have a lot of room for advancement. You will also tend to be labeled by some the senior appraisers in your area as a government employee and will be passed over for other possible trainees. I was told this by at least four local MAI's in the area.

Find a mentor first, then ask him what he wants you to do regarding licensing.

You can email at ryan.bailey2 @ asu.edu if you want other information.

Good Luck,

Ryan

 

[Mountain Man]

With your experience, you could find doing nothing but appraisals on health care facilities to be very lucrative. I agree with Terrel, do both... keep working while taking classes and also work towards MAI. Use your current contacts to market for appraisal work.

 

[josephdifranco]

With your experience, you could find doing nothing but appraisals on health care facilities to be very lucrative. I agree with Terrel, do both... keep working while taking classes and also work towards MAI. Use your current contacts to market for appraisal work.

I made a transition a little over a year ago. Before that, I interviewed with a company in downtown Chicago called Wellspring, a division of Huron consulting, maybe a year and a half ago. At the time, the position consisted entirely of appraising Healthcare facilities. The downside was that out of town travel was required on a weekly basis. I was torn over that position and eventually turned it down because of the combination of downtown location and travel (I am a father of four). I thought very highly of the MAI who was going to hire me, made the decision very tough, but was less comfortable with the Finance guy he reported to.

Taking classes and keeping your current position (outside of real estate appraisal) might be difficult if you take courses from the leader, the Appraisal Institute. The first course most beginning appraisers would take is Real Estate Appraisal Principles, but it is only offered as an all day class which goes four days in a row. Possibly other providers would offer evening or weekend classes.

Another option...

Take an online class from the AI that might show your interest in the profession and then include it on your resume. Second, talk to some appraisers about the types of property you would like to appraise. Third, take an entry level position with a commercial appraiser or firm, who might be more sympathetic to the class schedules. The advantage is you will gain commercial experience much faster jumping in full time. The downside is you would likely face a decrease in pay, depending on the type of firm. I don't have knowledge of what the larger firms pay, but the smaller MAI offices were on the low side starting out, but I think its fair considering what they invest. The upside of that is the potential earning after two to three years can jump.

I don't think this option is better, just a different way to go.

Let us know how your story turns out.

 

[CBBoston]

There is a market for healthcare appraisers. I assume that you know all the legal and medicare/medicaid ins and outs. That is a hugh hurdle that most people have to clear. The MBA with RE should have given you enough background in valuation to have a headstart over others. Like others have said don't limit yourself to just healthcare. As has been said 'what a long strange trip its been.'

Ryan -- I'm curious why did you apply to MIT's Ph.D. program?

 

[Ryan Bailey]

Ryan -- I'm curious why did you apply to MIT's Ph.D. program?

Because I love learning, I'm almost addicted to it, I have questions about everything. The masters program that I was part of at ASU is directly tied into MIT's program. The ASU students go to Boston for a week and the MIT students come to the Phoenix area for a week. Basically to get general feel for the different types of density and development that takes place between the two areas. When I was at MIT for the week I skipped out on the tours and went to the lectures and classes the MIT masters students were taking. I was fascinated by what they were learning, which was much more theory based than the hands on approach taken by ASU. I remember one day we went over derivatives, we didn't discuss them at all in the ASU program. I liked the professors, the other students and the campus so I applied. I didn't think I would get accepted but I guess miracles do happen.

 

[Ken B]

A Master's degree opens doors, a PhD closes them. You become over-qualified unless you want to become an academician.

 

[Ryan Bailey]

A Master's degree opens doors, a PhD closes them. You become over-qualified unless you want to become an academician.

I agree with that statement on some cases, however I am very interested in litigation work. Based on everything I have been told by appraisers, lawyers, and other expert witnesses the more letters after your name the better. I know that real world experiance is also a must. I also think where the degree comes from is very important to the general public and ASU isn't all that impressive, while MIT is. A PhD from MIT also has a certain personal appeal to me.