What are some difficult questions on the Cert Residential Exam?

[Elliott]

I haven't taken an appraisal licensing test for 25-years and I have a Trainee who is going to be taking the Certified Residential Exam in a couple of weeks and it is her last hurdle to being an appraiser.

What were some of the questions which were the most difficult for you? Don't expect answers, but what questions or areas were particularly more difficult, or that you have a problem with.

Thank you in advance for the help.

 

[JTip]

Although it was a dozen years since I sat for the test, I remember those days well.

The test (CR) and certification is a broad stroke of permissions and qualifications. As a CR, you can appraise any single family or 2-4 unit with no cap on value (in most states I'm assuming). That is a big book of knowledge.

Look at your (and your trainee) daily business model. What assignments you complete on a regular basis, your daily grind. These are the assignments that will get those questions right on the test. The hardest part about the test are the things you do NOT do. For me it was multi family, I did two in my 4.5 year trainee log. It was not part of our business model, but still very important on the national test. Sure classes gleaned over the processes and info faded after years of non use, only to arrive on my computer screen as a test question.

Study things that are unfamiliar or rarely used. USPAP is not mastered after on 15 hour class or a 7 hour refresher. You need to know USPAP's why and how pretty darn good. Daily lingo and definitions; know surplus/excess, know measurements of land (even the ones you don't use) because they WILL be on the test.

Each CORRECT question is one step closer to a passing grade.

 

[The Warrior Monk]

The tests nowadays are not like the test from 25 years ago. I took my CR test way back in 1993, and my CG in 2013. The old test were very easy; the new test are like final exams for advanced AI courses.

Basically, nowadays, one needs fairly expansive knowledge of appraisal, at the level of what is expected in the AI courses. There is also an emphasis on application. They'll give a question with a ton of information, of which some isn't necessary to answer the problem. The test taker will have to understand which data is and is not relevant.

It's hard to pinpoint specific examples. I always tell people that if they took AI courses, they will have the level of knowledge and application to pass these tests. If not, there are likely to be significant gaps.

 

[frobro]

I took the Steve Williamson practice questions over and over, studied the functions of a dollar, and did some refresher geometry. One example was they gave the dimensions of a yard and a sprinkler that can rotate a specific amount of degrees and asked to find the area that is wet after the sprinkler ran. Tons of USPAP. I tell everyone that i started with compucram, which gave me a VERY basic understanding, then moved on to steve williamson exam prep which were more like the questions the test will ask. I just did the practice test over and over. It was rough but i passed on the first attempt 2 years ago.

 

[Basically Rectangular]

The questions with a large amount of information can break you down mentally further into the exam.
I think really knowing the cost approach helps, I remember several drawn out questions where I had to write everything out and decide what information was needed or not. Are replacement reserves operating expenses?
Tons of prep, I used three prep courses, one book and two online.

 

[Sadie]

I haven't taken an appraisal licensing test for 25-years and I have a Trainee who is going to be taking the Certified Residential Exam in a couple of weeks and it is her last hurdle to being an appraiser.

What were some of the questions which were the most difficult for you? Don't expect answers, but what questions or areas were particularly more difficult, or that you have a problem with.

Thank you in advance for the help.

My assistant just passed the exam. She took the McKissock course and studied intensively for a few months. Her biggest problems were the ones that dealt with stuff we residential appraisers don't deal with every day. Also all the math the appraisal programs do for you, you need to know without the auto-calculation. Congrats on just getting the workfiles approved.