Appraisers Would No Longer Need A College Degree Under Proposed Change To Certification Criteria

The lack of a college degree may not prevent someone from becoming a certified appraiser under new criteria proposed by the rulemaker for the country’s 65,000 valuation professionals. 

The potential change, which would most impact commercial appraisers, was revealed in an exposure draft released Wednesday by The Appraisal Foundation. The nonprofit, which sets standards and qualifications for the industry across the country, described its update as the “most extensive reconsideration” of appraiser qualification criteria since they were originally adopted in 1989.

“Eliminating degree requirements maintains public-trust protections while reducing unnecessary barriers to entry,” the draft says. 

The document, which was obtained by Bisnow, was briefly available online Wednesday morning before the group removed it. It was released publicly after 6:30 p.m. ET.

A spokesperson for TAF said earlier in the day that the organization is “still in the process of formally releasing the document” and declined to comment further.

“This draft reflects over two years of input from across the appraisal profession,” TAF said in the email releasing the exposure draft. 

Currently, licensed residential appraisers — those who are authorized to do basic tasks, such as examining single-family homes valued at less than $1M — don't need college experience. More complex residential work requires a certified residential appraiser, who must have at least 30 semester hours of specific college courses or, in some states, have practiced as a licensed residential appraiser for a minimum of five years.

To be a certified general appraiser, which allows professionals to appraise all commercial property, a bachelor’s degree in any field is required.

A full college degree mandate for both of the top certifications was adopted in 2004 and implemented starting in 2008. The prerequisite was eased for certified residential appraisers in 2018, reducing the requirement from a full degree to credit hours.

“The intent of the changes is to raise the minimum requirements to become a real estate appraiser, thereby improving professionalism and ensuring public trust in the appraisal profession,” John Brenan, then-director of research and technical issues for TAF, told industry publication WorkingRE in 2008.

In addition to eliminating the college degree requirement, the exposure draft said TAF would strengthen exams and other qualifying education requirements. Higher certifications also require additional appraisal-specific education courses and logging a set number of hours of experience.

“This will ensure that analytical and critical-thinking competencies traditionally associated with degree pathways are still validated through more targeted appraisal-specific learning and instruction,” the document said.

In the draft, TAF said it was guided by an analysis conducted by a consulting firm, which “confirmed that degree attainment did not correlate with better performance in appraisal practice.”

TAF is a nonprofit organization that has been authorized by Congress to set the baseline rules for the appraisal industry. States can choose to impose additional requirements on appraisers, including by mandating a college degree.

The proposals, which were created by the organization’s eight-person Appraiser Qualifications Board, aren't final and will undergo a monthslong public comment period before being reevaluated by TAF.

The number of active appraisers has dwindled over the past decade. In 2016, there were more than 92,000 appraisers in the U.S. That has since dropped to 65,000 as of this year, according to an analysis by MtgeFi.

Of those, 21,000 are certified general appraisers, down from 30,000 nearly 10 years ago.

The decline has been attributed to a lack of recruiting into the profession and onerous certification requirements, along with new technologies and the easing of lending policies, which allow borrowers to skip the traditional, in-person appraisal. 

Experts previously told Bisnow that the reduction in workforce is also part of a natural evolution in the profession. In-house valuation and portfolio management departments have emerged as key players in the process, collaborating with outside appraisers for commercial properties.

A lack of diversity has also plagued the profession. Around 68% of appraisers are men and less than 10% are Black, Hispanic or Latino, according to a 2024 demographic survey by TAF.

“Stakeholders have, for many years, expressed concern that degree requirements created barriers unrelated to competency and disproportionately affected individuals without traditional academic backgrounds,” the exposure document said. 

Last year, TAF reached an agreement with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to resolve an investigation into alleged discriminatory barriers that keep people of color out of the industry. In the settlement, the foundation denied that its qualifications to become an appraiser created a disparity that would qualify as a violation of the Fair Housing Act.

However, the HUD agreement targeted mentorship requirements, which are separate from college experience. Among the terms, TAF agreed to make its educational programs more accessible, including through scholarships, and expand its outreach at Historically Black Colleges and Universities.