Gary,
I may be reading your original post wrong, and if that's the case I apologize. It looks to me like your intentions are to set up a business where you are the primary appraiser and are basically operating without supervision. Let's skip the legalities and the ethical implications of your proposal for a moment and cut right to the practical implications. If your goal is to obtain a permanent license or state certification at some point down the line, you're going to need some help. The reason I say this is because nobody is born to appraise. There is no innate quality that automatically qualifies an individual to tackle appraisal situations wherein they have no prior experience. Competent appraisal practice is all about education and experience. 100% learned skills.
The appraisal courses you have completed thus far for your license requirements are completely insufficient to prepare you for all the ins and outs of solo appraisal practice. They only represent some basic theory and a few applications. I dare say that it will be at least a few years before you are able to consistently relate the principles that were covered in the course (note that I did not say that you 'learned' them) to the majority of the situations and variations you are going to run into.
I have been appraising for 17 years now, I have had my Certified General license for over 11 years, I have taught USPAP and other appraisal courses and have developed some course for ACE accreditation (which allows them to be used nationwide for distance education courses). I even have been certified by The Appraisal Foundation to teach the USPAP courses. I split office space with a 35-year appraisal vetrano, who has seen more properties and taken more appraisal related education than possibly any member currently sitting on The Appraisal Foundation's ASB or AQB. In some ways, I still have a mentor.
Despite what some people might (or might not) consider a pretty broad base of knowledge and experience, I decline appraisal assignments for properties located in my market area on a regular basis because I do not consider myself competent to appraise them, even with the sage advice of my partner. Okay, it doesn't happen every week and sometimes a month will go by, but the fact remains that despite all the types of properties and situations that I am comfortable with, there are still some situations that I avoid because they fall outside of my knowledge and experience. When I can, I refer these assignments to appraisers whom I believe do have the necessary knowledge and experience to do the job properly.
Now you might (or might not) be interested in hearing why I avoid these assignments. Simple. They don't pay. I don't mean there isn't a fee or that the fee involved is insufficient compensation for a competent appraisal. No, the reason is that in order for me to come up to speed on these things, enough so that the end result is reasonable (we're not even talking about perfection), I'll have to spend so much time in developing the necessary knowledge and experience to comply with competency requirements that the fee will turn out to be a loser for me. I'll always make more money by sticking to those assignments wherein I have some competency. It's all about the money, right? And this is my main point.
Assuming an appraiser is interested in doing the right thing, and I hope this is a reasonable assumption to make for everyone on this forum, the following will hold true: Anytime a professional appraiser is working beyond their competency they are going to lose money, at least in the near term. This will be true whether the deficiency is technical or geographic in nature. Yeah, I know appraisers who will say "have data, will travel", but when push comes to shove, and occasionally it does, they will be unable to demonstrate competency and their exposure to claims of malpractice and malfeasance increase dramatically. Dramatically.
So what does this mean to a relatve newcomer, such as yourself? Simple. You'll make more money in the long run if you find a mentor. At this point, everything is a new situation for you. Because you lack experience, there is no assignment you can do right now that you can say that you're qualified for by virtue of your education and experience. Everything you do will take longer and be more risky for you. When you go to submit a log of experience for advanced licensure, you'll be at increased risk for turning in work samples that won't qualify as applicable experience because of deficiencies that you were unaware of. You will be turning in work that has problems, not because you're somehow stupid or anything, but because we all make mistakes and because you won't have anyone there to catch and correct yours before it goes out.
The only thing that an appraiser has to sell is their expertise and their reputation, perhaps demonstrable by their license and their professional references. At the moment, you have neither expertise nor professional track record. If you want to build a good reputation, your best bet (truly) is to align yourself with the best appraiser/mentor you can find. Struggle with the split fee and reduced income in the beginning so that the foundation you build will be based on competent appraisal practice, not desperation. Participate with your peers as much as you can so that you'll gain the maximum exposure to the maximum number of scenarios, thereby increasing your education and experience and shortening your learning curve. It takes a little longer to get to the 'big bucks' this way, but it will absolutely pay off in the long run.
I'm not trying to be cruel here, I just don't want to see another lamb go out face the slaughter in ignorance. If you go it alone, you're primary source of work will be clients who are unable to achieve their goals using proven appraisers. I hate to say it, but basically the bottom feeders we constantly complain about on this forum. You may get a couple accounts up front, but you'll constantly be faced with the struggle to maintain your integrity while you try to hold onto these clients. If you knuckle under to one of these guys and do something that runs counter to your better judgement, it will be like putting a 'WELCOME' mat on your back; you'll get walked on like you can't believe. You can expect to have numerous 'one-night stands' and unpaid invoices while these people try to suck everything they can from you; only to be tossed aside the first time you don't hit a number or decline to not disclose a deficiency. I am not exaggerating here. Meanwhile, your reputation as an eager-to-please rookie will will spread. Once established, it will be hard to overcome such a reputation because no reputable appraiser or reputable client will want to take you on, reagrdless of any change of heart you may have.
I would like to think that everyone on this forum is here to advance themself and become the best they can be in our chosen profession; and this goes for you, too. But there's a reason you are getting responses from myself and other veterans in this thread advising you against this course of action. You ignore such advice at your own peril. While I wish you well in your endeavors, I'm hoping you decide to take the road more commonly traveled. At least it's paved.
George Hatch
