In a comment letter to the Appraisal Qualifications Board last week, the ABA offered its support for a proposal by AQB to change the qualification criteria for real property appraisers--a proposal that came after intense advocacy by ABA and bankers seeking solutions to the rural appraiser shortage. ABA noted that “the current proposal presents workable solutions that will keep the industry viable with improved residential licensing criteria, while maintaining high certification standards as the industry demands.” 

ABA fully supported AQB’s plans to reduce the college-level education degree requirements for licensed residential and certified residential appraisers, create an alternative track for licensed residential appraisers to become certified without obtaining a bachelor’s degree and reduce the number of field hours needed to obtain certification. These proposed changes would be an important step toward encouraging new entrants into the profession and addressing the appraisal issues currently facing the industry, especially in rural areas, ABA said. 

The association also recommended that the AQB modify the proposal to allow appraisal review work to count toward the training experience hours needed for certification (but recommended that they amount to no more than 25 percent of the required hours). Offering credit for appraisal review work would incentivize more banks to bring appraisers into the profession as employees, ABA added. Read ABA's comment letter. For more information, contact ABA's Sharon Whitaker.