Nebraska Real Property Appraiser Board: 2008 AQB Criteria

Nebraska 2008 criteria for credentialing

After thorough public exposure, the AQB adopted significant revisions to the credentialing Criteria on February 20, 2004 for implementation January 1, 2008. The requirements for the four levels of credential recognized by the AQB are listed below. Nebraska issues a Registered credential in addition to the four levels of credential recognized by the AQB. Registered appraisers are not required to gain experience prior to being issued a credential. Adoption of LB186 on February 14, 2007 and became effective September 1, 2007, establishes guidelines to phase out the application status for the Registered credential by January 1, 2012.

The following are descriptions and requirements for each Nebraska credential:

Trainee Real Property Appraiser

The scope of practice for the Trainee Real Property Appraiser Classification is the appraisal of those properties which the supervising certified appraiser is permitted by his/her current credential and that the supervising appraiser is qualified and competent to appraise. All appraiser Trainees must comply with the Competency Rule of USPAP.

An applicant for the Trainee Real Property Appraiser credential must successfully complete 75 classroom hours of appraisal pre-requisite education as specified in the Core Curriculum. “Successfully complete” a course is defined as attending the course and passing the examination. The qualifying education requirements are as follows:

Q001         Basic Appraisal Principles           30 hours
Q002         Basic Appraisal Procedures         30 hours
Q003         National USPAP                         15 hours

No experience is required for the Appraiser Trainee.

The Appraiser Trainee is subject to the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP).

The Appraiser Trainee shall work under the direct supervision of a real property appraiser in good standing who holds a credential as a certified real property appraiser issued by the Nebraska Real Property Appraiser Board. The supervising certified real property appraiser shall not be subject to any disciplinary action within the last two years that affects the supervisor’s legal eligibility to engage in the supervision of an appraiser trainee.

The supervising appraiser shall be responsible for the training, guidance and direct supervision of the Appraiser Trainee by: accepting responsibility for the appraisal report by signing and certifying the report is in compliance with the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP); reviewing and signing the Appraiser Trainee appraisal report(s); and personally inspecting each appraised property with the Appraiser Trainee until the supervising certified appraiser determines the Appraiser Trainee is competent, in accordance with the Competency Rule of the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP).

The Appraiser Trainee is permitted to have more than one supervising appraiser, but a supervising appraiser may not supervise more than three (3) trainees.

An appraisal log shall be maintained by the Appraiser Trainee and the supervising certified appraiser containing the type of property, date of report, client name and address, address of appraised property, description of work performed by the trainee, number of actual work hours by the trainee on the assignment and the signature and state certification number of the supervising appraiser. Separate appraisal logs shall be maintained for each supervising appraiser.

The Appraiser Trainee shall be entitled to obtain copies of appraisal reports he or she prepared. The supervising appraiser shall keep copies of appraisal reports for a period of at least five (5) years or at least two years after final disposition of any judicial proceedings in which testimony was given, whichever period expires last.

An Appraiser Trainee shall immediately file a completed Supervisor/Trainee form with the Nebraska Real Property Appraiser Board. You cannot begin training with a supervisor without first submitting the completed form to the Board. Verification of the log must indicate a supervisor registration has been filed with the Appraiser Board. Experience cannot be credited without the registration of a supervisor.

Registered Real Property Appraiser

The scope of practice for the Registered Real Property Appraiser credential applies to the appraisal of non-complex properties having one, two, three or four residential units having a transaction value of less than $250,000 and the transaction is a non-lending transaction. Holders of the Registered credential are not permitted to perform appraisals for federally related transactions exceeding the threshold. If Registered appraisers are completing appraisal assignments for a lending institution, the Rules and Regulations of the Office Comptroller of Currency (OCC) are being violated.

An applicant for the Registered Real Property Appraiser credential must successfully complete 90 classroom hours of appraisal education as specified in the Core Curriculum. “Successfully complete” a course is defined as attending the course and passing the examination. The qualifying education requirements are as follows:

Q001         Basic Appraisal Principles                                              30 hours
Q002         Basic Appraisal Procedures                                            30 hours
Q003         National USPAP                                                            15 hours
L/CR007    Residential Report Writing and Case Studies                    15 hours

Beginning January 1, 2008, an applicant for the Registered Real Property Appraiser credential will receive no more than three successive annual renewals. Furthermore, the Nebraska Real Property Appraiser Board will not approve any initial applications for credentialing as a Registered Real Property Appraiser after December 31, 2011.

The verification for experience credit necessary to upgrade to another credential shall be on forms prescribed by the Board. Although experience log forms maybe created for use, the content shall include: the type of property; date of report; address of appraised property; brief description of work performed; the number of hours worked for each report; and the signature of a supervisor.

The Registered Real Property Appraiser is subject the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP) and must perform assignments in accordance with the Competency Rule of the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP).

Licensed Real Property Appraiser

The scope of practice for the Licensed Real Property Appraiser credential applies to the appraisal of non-complex one to four residential units having a transaction value less than $1,000,000 and complex one to four residential units having a transaction value less than $250,000. Complex one to four family residential property appraisal means one in which the property to be appraised, the form of ownership or the market conditions are atypical.
For non-federally related transaction appraisals, transaction value shall mean market value. The classification includes the appraisal of vacant or unimproved land that is utilized for one to four family purposes or for which the highest and best use is for one to four family purposes. The Licensed classification does not include the appraisal of subdivisions for which a development analysis/appraisal is necessary.
All Licensed Real Property Appraisers must comply with the Competency Rule of USPAP.
An applicant for the Licensed Real Property Appraiser credential must successfully complete 150 hours of appraisal education as specified in the Core Curriculum. “Successfully complete” a course is defined as attending the course and passing the examination. The qualifying education requirements are as follows:

Complete 150 classroom hours of appraisal education as specified in the Core Curriculum, including the 15-hour National USPAP Course.

Obtain 2,000 hours of appraisal experience in no fewer than 12 months.

Successfully pass the AQB approved License Real Property Appraiser exam. There are no alternative to successful completion of the examination.

Certified Residential Real Property Appraiser

The Certified Residential Real Property Appraiser credential applies to the appraisal of one to four residential units without regard to value or complexity. This includes the appraisal of vacant or unimproved land that is utilized for one to four family purposes or for which the highest and best use is for one to four family purposes. The classification does not include the appraisal of subdivisions for which a development analysis/appraisal is necessary.
All Certified Residential Real Property appraisers must comply with the Competency Rule of the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP).
An applicant for the Certified Residential Real Property Appraiser credential must:

Hold an Associate degree, or higher, from an accredited college, junior college, community college, or university. In lieu of the Associate degree, an applicant may have 21 semester credit hours or its equivalent in the following collegiate subject matter courses: English Composition, Principles of Economics (Micro or Macro), Finance, Algebra, Geometry or higher mathematics, Statistics, Introduction to Computers – Word processing / spreadsheets and Business or Real Estate Law.

Complete 200 classroom hours of appraisal education as specified in the Core Curriculum, including the 15-hour National USPAP Course. “Successfully complete” a course is defined as attending the course and passing the examination. The qualifying education requirements are as follows:

Q001         Basic Appraisal Principles                                                          30 hours
Q002         Basic Appraisal Procedures                                                        30 hours
Q003         National USPAP                                                                        15 hours
L/CR004    Residential Market Analysis and Highest & Best Use                    15 hours
L/CR005    Residential Site Valuation and Cost Approach                               15 hours
L/CR006    Residential Sales Comparison and Income Approaches                30 hours
L/CR007    Residential Report Writing and Case Studies                               15 hours
L/CR008    Advanced Residential Applications and Case Studies                    15 hours
CR/CG009 Statistics, Modeling and Finance                                                 15 hours
QA2000    Certified Residential Electives/Pre-requisite                                    20 hours

Obtain 2,500 hours of appraisal experience in no fewer than 24 months is required, of which one thousand five hundred (1,500) hours must be residential appraisal experience. While the hours may be cumulative, the required number of months must accrue before an individual can be certified.

Successfully pass an AQB approved Certified Residential Real Property Appraiser exam. There are no alternative to successful completion of the examination.

Certified General Real Property Appraiser

The Certified General Real Property Appraiser credential qualifies the appraiser to appraise all types of property. The Certified General Appraiser must comply with the Competency Rule of USPAP.
An applicant for the Certified General Real Property Appraisal credential must:

Hold a Bachelors degree from an accredited college or university. In lieu of the Bachelors degree, an applicant for the Certified General credential shall successfully pass 30 semester credit hours or its equivalent in the following collegiate level subject matter courses: English Composition; Micro Economics; Macro Economics; Finance; Algebra; Geometry or higher mathematics; Statistics; Introduction to Computers – Word processing / spreadsheets; Business or Real Estate Law; and two elective courses in accounting, geography, agricultural economics, business management, or real estate.

Complete 300 classroom hours of appraisal education as specified in the Core Curriculum, including the 15-hour National USPAP Course. “Successfully complete” a course is defined as attending the course and passing the examination. The qualifying education requirements are as follows:

Q001           Basic Appraisal Principles                                                            30 hours
Q002           Basic Appraisal Procedures                                                          30 hours
Q003            National USPAP                                                                         15 hours
CG004          General Appraiser Market Analysis and Highest & Best Use           30 hours
CG005          General Appraiser Site Valuation and Cost Approach                     15 hours
CG006          General Appraiser Sales Comparison Approach                             30 hours
CG007          General Appraiser Report Writing & Case Studies                          30 hours
CG008          General Appraiser Income Approach                                              60 hours
CR/CG009    Statistics, Modeling and Finance                                                   30 hours
QA3000        Certified General Electives/Pre-requisite                                         30 hours

Obtain 3,000 hours of appraisal experience in no fewer than 30 months is required, of which, one thousand five hundred (1,500) hours must be in non-residential appraisal experience. While the hours may be cumulative, the required number of months must accrue before an individual can be certified.

Successfully pass an AQB approved Certified General Real Property Appraiser exam. There are no alternative to successful completion of the examination.

Mandatory CREDENTIALING of Real Property Appraisers in Nebraska

It is mandatory that anyone who appraises property in the State of Nebraska must be credentialed by the Nebraska Real Property Appraiser Board. Any valuation of real property for private or public purposes is deemed to be an appraisal of that property and, excluding those individuals who are exempt pursuant to the Nebraska Real Estate Appraiser Act, any individual rendering such services shall conform to the Nebraska Real Estate Appraiser Act.

APPRAISAL EXPERIENCE

Appraisal of property located in Nebraska must be made in conformance with the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice. Copies of all reports must be kept for a period of five years and must be available for review by the Nebraska Real Property Appraiser Board. In order to meet the real property appraisal experience requirements, the appraiser must have contributed significantly to the appraisal and the value conclusion of the report. A significant contribution to the value conclusion directly involves exercise of judgment in developing or reporting the analyses, opinion, or conclusion concerning real estate or real property set forth in the appraisal.

Credit for appraisal experience will only be granted for work that complies with the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice and the Nebraska Real Estate Appraiser Act. No appraisal experience credit will be granted unless the appraiser has been acknowledged within the appraisal report, as required by the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice.

The Real Property Appraiser Board adopted a policy at the December 20, 2007 meeting in reference to the hypothetical case studies. The policy reads as follows: “To qualify as experience credit, case studies or practicum courses must be completed in a Board approved classroom setting with a Board approved instructor.”

Individuals wishing to become professional real property appraisers can contact our office at 402-471-9015 or website @ www.appraiser.ne.gov for an application package.

The Nebraska Real Property Appraiser Board does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, religion, age or disability in employment or the provision of services.

CORE CURRICULUM EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS

The Nebraska Real Property Appraiser Board adopted a policy at the January 17, 2008 meeting in regard to the core curriculum or qualifying education courses. The policy reads as follows: “All qualifying education core curriculum courses provided on or after January 1, 2008 to those applying for credentials under the 2008 AQB criteria must be in modular format and have CAP approval from the AQB and courses attended and passed prior to January 1, 2008 and submitted by a credential applicant after January 1, 2008 that is not AQB/CAP approved to meet the 2008 criteria must include a topic matrix and will be considered on a case by case basis by the Board.” Please take the adopted policy in consideration when attending core curriculum or qualifying education classes in another state.