Course Content Ideas? Feedback

[janeappr]

When it comes to CE I see the same common theme with courses and content. What are some new ideas that would benefit not only you the masses when it comes to taking an online CE class?

Is there any appraisers out there that have courses ready and just not sure how to organize the material to get approval? I would love to see what you have.

Is there anyone interested in writing a course?

 

[Terrel L. Shields]

Is there anyone interested in writing a course?

I've written four courses. They need updates periodically and in the case of my two specialized courses, are state specific (mineral rights). The others (depreciation, rural outbuildings) never got enough "air time" to justify the cost of developing. We had constant calls for our local independent appraiser chapter for cheap education, I taught my classes for FREE and the people who b****ed & moaned for CE were invariably the no-shows. There are dozens of potential topics, but $165 prices cannot monetize the time and expense necessary to develop a class, especially when many courses are state or market area specific. Had I not volunteered to teach those free, our group would not have had funds to do what we do because most of our classes with outside instructors don't break even.

It's hair shirt to create new material. Dull repetitive online courses reduce face time classes despite being little more than mindless taradiddle

 

[reviewbe]

Cool, added 'taradiddle' to my reviewer repertoire. Right up there with tautology. Can hardly wait to use it in my next review.

 

[Terrel L. Shields]

Right up there with tautology

You mean like the Department of Redundancy Department

 

[George Hatch]

I think a course prompting appraisers to go further upstream in their market analysis would help some of them to come off the idea that market analysis starts and ends with the 5 or 6 sales they're presenting as comparables in their Sales Comparison.

I'm not talking about Big Data as such, but about your micro (your comps) existing as a subset of the macro (all properties), and while the different subsets might move at different paces and at different times they all more/less follow each other over the long run. In other words, your comps can be considered an indication of the wider trend rather than as a freestanding trend of their own.

Just as an example, for some SFR assignments I track the high-low-medians in price and GLAs for all homes in a neighborhood, not just the ones I might consider comparable, and I track them on an annual basis going back to the prior economic cycle. I basically comment on the highest prices ever sold in the neighborhood and when it previously happened and how the current value trend relates to that prior peak and the subsequent trough. I think this provides some context for how my subject fits in with its neighborhood and where it's current market segment is in relation to the long term trends.

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In relation to the above, a course exploring the relationship between GRMs and price at different points along the long term economic trends could provide some insight as to where the current pricing is in relation to those prior cycles. For instance, if the previous market topped out with GRMs at 250x and then subsequently bottomed out at 110x; and your current GRM is 225 that might give the reader some indication as to where the current values are in relation to the previous trends without having to interpret for the present value of a 2005 dollar. If in terms of housing expenditures, renting a property is a substitute on the lower end for buying and you can know that investors will add to demand when the GRMs drop below 120 and add to the demand at some point after they exceed 200 or 300 then you can give the reader some context for their exposure that's independent of the number on the bottom line of your report.

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Another course offering could be to discuss the "why" of various appraisal standards and user expectations. Too often appraisers view these expectations as being completely arbitrary and punitive in nature when in fact there's almost always a valid reason the expectation or requirement came up in the first place. These guys need to stop looking at these expectations as being punitive and start looking at them as an opportunity for them to meet the "meaningful and not misleading" benchmark we assert for our work.

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The significance of a more detailed neighborhood description could be a good thing, too; so that readers could see how well the subject does or doesn't fit into the immediate neighborhood.

 

[hastalavista]

I've developed a number of CE classes which I teach (adjustments, H&BU, Cost Approach, Market Analysis, etc.); most of them have to do with incorporating the practical application of methodology into daily assignments. These types of classes typically have good reception.

But a class I would like to develop (in my free time... LOL!!!) is one that sizes-up the appraisal component (what we do) within the larger residential-lending process. My experience is that, in general, we appraisers are pretty good about knowing what we do and how to do it (everyone can learn new tricks or remember things forgotten in a CE course on the how-to-do in regard to appraisal development and reporting). But, I think there is room to grow in our knowledge-bank in regards to the lending process; how it really works and what things are critical to its process.
Having a higher level of knowledge of the lending dynamic would help us see how our appraisals fit into this larger process. It would also help us understand why some things, which we may think are ridiculous or unnecessary, are being requested by our clients. And I would stress this: Knowing why some things are being requested my not change our minds as to their merit (they may remain ridiculous in our view); but not knowing why they are being requested leaves us in a knowledge-vacuum. That's never a good thing. I also believe that with having a better understanding of how the big picture functions, we can use that knowledge to help us focus, as a profession, on areas within that big picture which impact what we do.
What's the relationship between credit score, LTV, and collateral value risk? What are the decision-drivers for two appraisals vs. one appraisal vs. a drive-by vs. something else? How does a non-owner occupant loan differ from an owner-occupant loan (it would seem the collateral value of the non-owner occupant loan would be more important because if one is going to default, one will default on the investment or second home vs. the primary residence)? What are the critical TILA issues (not just appraisal-related) that lenders are confronted with in their lending process? These are just some examples.

I'm not sure how much traction such a class would have with the boots-on-the-ground appraiser. It might not be seen as something that is beneficial in their everyday practice. I do know that it has been extremely beneficial in my every day practice. Whether that translates to others, I'm not sure.

 

[Sid Holderly]

More actual examples and local problems rather than theory.

 

[Terrel L. Shields]

your micro (your comps) existing as a subset of the macro (all properties)

And, "Markets" vary with subject. Housing is not part of building-intensive agricultural market, rather the sphere of influences may relate more to proximity to processing plants, or food supply. Timber relates to local markets from lumber processors and mill rates.

More actual examples and local problems rather than theory

Can agree, but this requires a given subject be tweaked literally for every class, which means little compensation for the teacher, and a narrow audience.

 

[Howard Klahr]

and local

And how much will you pay for that course?

 

[Gobears81]

I'd like to see more classes devoted towards valuation of health care and senior living facilities, as well as LIHTC/ subsidized housing valuation