How is Business and your anticipation for the future?

[JLuther]

Here’s your post cleaned up, tightened, and still very “you” — direct, real, and likely to get strong responses:





Subject Line:


What Does Your Appraisal Business Look Like Right Now?





Post:


Residential appraiser here with 20+ years of experience, trying to navigate what feels like a rapidly changing landscape.


Curious how everyone else is doing right now.


What are you seeing in terms of:

• Monthly volume
• Average fees
• Turn times
• % AMC work vs private work

Are you actually getting your bills paid?


Personally, I’m feeling the shift. Volume has consistently declined, and despite adapting—using AI for market trend illustrations, regression analysis, etc.—the work just isn’t there like it used to be.


For context, income has trended like this:

• ~$160K
• ~$130K
• ~$90K
• This past year: roughly $75K–$80K

Meanwhile, expenses are around $8,000/month, and I’m currently running about a $1,500/month shortfall.


I also recently interviewed with Class Valuation for a staff role. The structure discussed was about $265 per appraisal, with expectations of 20+ per month (ideally closer to 30).


At 6 appraisals per week, that’s roughly $82K/year.


Maybe that works for some, but if you’re actually taking the time to produce credible, well-supported reports, that pace feels aggressive.


At the same time, it seems like these staff appraisal companies are growing quickly, likely positioning themselves around things like UAD 3.6 and expanded data/reporting expectations.


So I’m asking honestly:


Are you guys staying busy right now?
Are you shifting more toward private work?
Do you think this direction is sustainable?


Trying to get a real sense of where the industry is heading from people actually in it.

 

[J Grant]

Here’s your post cleaned up, tightened, and still very “you” — direct, real, and likely to get strong responses:





Subject Line:


What Does Your Appraisal Business Look Like Right Now?





Post:


Residential appraiser here with 20+ years of experience, trying to navigate what feels like a rapidly changing landscape.


Curious how everyone else is doing right now.


What are you seeing in terms of:

• Monthly volume
• Average fees
• Turn times
• % AMC work vs private work

Are you actually getting your bills paid?


Personally, I’m feeling the shift. Volume has consistently declined, and despite adapting—using AI for market trend illustrations, regression analysis, etc.—the work just isn’t there like it used to be.


For context, income has trended like this:

• ~$160K
• ~$130K
• ~$90K
• This past year: roughly $75K–$80K

Meanwhile, expenses are around $8,000/month, and I’m currently running about a $1,500/month shortfall.


I also recently interviewed with Class Valuation for a staff role. The structure discussed was about $265 per appraisal, with expectations of 20+ per month (ideally closer to 30).


At 6 appraisals per week, that’s roughly $82K/year.


Maybe that works for some, but if you’re actually taking the time to produce credible, well-supported reports, that pace feels aggressive.


At the same time, it seems like these staff appraisal companies are growing quickly, likely positioning themselves around things like UAD 3.6 and expanded data/reporting expectations.


So I’m asking honestly:


Are you guys staying busy right now?
Are you shifting more toward private work?
Do you think this direction is sustainable?


Trying to get a real sense of where the industry is heading from people actually in it.

Expenses 8 k a month - unless you have a partner or spouse with a good job, it seems like a high monthly nut for a res license considering the agenda from the GSE's; to resduce the role of appraisrs in lending valuations - the trend you see is real .

I am near retirement and hoped to work a few more years- e mostly non-AMC work, but IDK if the lenders who order direct will be able to resist the profiteers trying to get it all to the AMC side. 80% not being enough market share for them.

AMC staff jobs sound miserable. And the more appraisers go on staff, the more they empower that model. I dont; know enough about your other options of how many working years you have left - so many fields are under threat, yet many are still thriving - medical and other fields in high demand. As far as appraisals - it seems to offer a better side income now than full-time, but who knows - things can change in cycles -AI might hit a wall in what it can do, and skilled humans become in high demand . Best of luck, whatever you decide.

For res lending -I'd recommend specialized classes, getting an SRA to qualify for more litigation or high value orders, or upgrading to a commercial license if possible.

 

[HVNY]

I need my phone to stop ringing honestly. It's tax assessment grievance season!

 

[chad hampton]

Find another job and turn appraising into a gig job. Easy to make 60-80k/yr part time in this. You can do it on the weekends.

80k isn't a professional salary unless you’re 23. And a staff job at the worst AMC in the country has to be a miserable existence.

Good luck, but you'll be in the same boat in 6 months if you work for class. And you will have lost all your real clients.

I’d look for another steady job with benefits, etc. There’s so much easy **** out there for 50 to 100 grand that allows you to work from home anyway. Find two jobs that pay 75 and now you’re at 150k.

Unfortunately, that’s the position appraisers are in these days.

 

[JTip]

In my market and surrounding markets, being a standalone residential appraiser is a rarity.

We all have the big general offices doing big jobs in regional areas doing nothing but appraisals, but a residential appraiser was one 'hat' that you would wear while selling real estate, insurance, tax prep or some other professional service in the realm of real estate was the typical office. Riding the ebb and flows of the market, supplemented by other office work, there is no feast or famine. I know a solo res guy that drives over 50k+ miles a year and does nothing else. That is crazy to me.

OP says 6 a week for 80k a year? I would burn out in a couple years at that pace in debt eating beans and rice.

I do/did see the draw of the independent appraiser though. Pick your own hours, shorts and flip flops, no inspections till noon as not to disturb the morning front nine. It is a glorious dream.

Here is an $80k job with good, peace of mind benefits that you may qualify for:

SENIOR APPRAISER - 55000987

SENIOR APPRAISER - 55000987

jobs.myflorida.com

Once you get settled, do a couple fee jobs wearing flip flops on the weekend and 100k is an easy reach.

You have a golden ticket (CR), there is no reason you should be struggling.

 

[J Grant]

Cut those 8k monthly expenses to 4k!

That is a more realistic budget for a res license appraiser. It is no longer a field that most can make a professional income in with just a res license. The big enchilada for it was mortgage lending- the GSE policies over the last decade, accelerating in the last 5 years, have sent more profit to third parties and AMCs while starving out the appraisers who built the database they control. Their plan seems to be to keep just enough appraisers around to make sure the whole thing does not collapse into AI slop.

 

[Alsie35]

Here’s your post cleaned up, tightened, and still very “you” — direct, real, and likely to get strong responses:





Subject Line:


What Does Your Appraisal Business Look Like Right Now?





Post:


Residential appraiser here with 20+ years of experience, trying to navigate what feels like a rapidly changing landscape.


Curious how everyone else is doing right now.


What are you seeing in terms of:

• Monthly volume
• Average fees
• Turn times
• % AMC work vs private work

Are you actually getting your bills paid?


Personally, I’m feeling the shift. Volume has consistently declined, and despite adapting—using AI for market trend illustrations, regression analysis, etc.—the work just isn’t there like it used to be.


For context, income has trended like this:

• ~$160K
• ~$130K
• ~$90K
• This past year: roughly $75K–$80K

Meanwhile, expenses are around $8,000/month, and I’m currently running about a $1,500/month shortfall.


I also recently interviewed with Class Valuation for a staff role. The structure discussed was about $265 per appraisal, with expectations of 20+ per month (ideally closer to 30).


At 6 appraisals per week, that’s roughly $82K/year.


Maybe that works for some, but if you’re actually taking the time to produce credible, well-supported reports, that pace feels aggressive.


At the same time, it seems like these staff appraisal companies are growing quickly, likely positioning themselves around things like UAD 3.6 and expanded data/reporting expectations.


So I’m asking honestly:


Are you guys staying busy right now?
Are you shifting more toward private work?
Do you think this direction is sustainable?


Trying to get a real sense of where the industry is heading from people actually in it.

Class is SCUM. I was making that much as a Junior staff appraser at World Savings Bank.

IN 2003.

 

[Zoe]

You can't do it with AMCs breaking the law and commingling fees and going after fastest and cheapest. If you like lender work, you need a good lender that engages direct and you get full fee. The thing is if some of the lawsuits going on win and you have staff job with an AMC and they have to disclose their fee on truth in lending disclosure separate from appraisal fee, I don't think it would help you in your staff position.

However, you would probably have no problem quitting. I imagine their turnover is great.

 

[chad hampton]

I think appraiser who have been self-employed for a long time have no clue What salaries are these days. Just know the folks that are trying to put you out of business are all at least 200 - 400 K a year range, full benefits, pension, five weeks vacation.

And I get jGrant’s point about reducing expenses, but I don’t think it’s possible to live on 4K a month, unless you’re a single person who bought their home 15 years ago.

Hell, 4K is a rounding error on my expenses

 

[Essexfenwick]

If you want to be viable you need a high density metro area and an SRA or graduate level real estate related degree for the residential sector going forward and you need legal, hard money, direct lender work along with high fee AMC jobs they need you for. It requires a commitment which is risky.