Nevada Real Estate Appraisal License Course

One may think that with the current housing and mortgage crisis, it might be too late to pursue a career in Real Estate Appraisal. But the opposite is true.  All “old” Nevada real estate appraisers are going to have to comply with the new rules and regs recently enacted, so the playing field is level again. You can enter this exciting, lucrative field at a unique time in history when the entire industry is looking for new, freshly trained Nevada appraiser licensees who have taken the newest curriculum. What that means to you is, lots of opportunities and lots of new doors opening in Nevada.

If you are interested in enrolling in a real estate appraisal course you should know that it will be necessary to meet licensing and/or certification requirements that are different depending on the State, but you can be sure that they will include real estate appraisal education, working as a trainee, and passing one or more license exams.

Some more good news is that no specific college degree is needed to get a real estate appraisal license, but most people working in the field of appraisal have at least a bachelor’s degree. You will need to attend a real estate appraisal school and completed the mandated real estate appraisal education requirements for your state.

Nevada Licensing Requirements

Registered Intern

To become a registered intern, the applicant must meet the following criteria:

• Show proof of completion of the following education (courses must be approved by the Nevada Commission of Appraisers):
• 30 hours of basic appraisal principles;
• 30 hours of basic appraisal procedures;
• 15 hours of National USPAP;
• 3 hours of Nevada Law.
• Submit a completed registration application; and
• Submit required fees
• $100.00 application fee
• $190.00 registration fee
• 2-year valid period
• A registered intern must attend at least 6 hours of meetings of the Commission before he may apply for a license or certificate. The Commission will certify to the attendance of the registered intern
• College-level requirements: None

Licensed Residential Appraiser

Applicants for a residential appraiser license must:

• Show proof of completion of the following education (courses must be approved by the Nevada Commission of Appraisers):
• 30 hours basic appraisal principles;
• 30 hours basic appraisal procedures;
• 15 hours National USPAP;
• 15 hours residential market analysis and analysis of the highest and best use of real estate;
• 15 hours valuation of a site and cost approach for a residential appraiser;
• 30 hours residential sales comparison and income approaches;
• 15 hours of instruction on residential report writing and case studies; and
• 3 hours of Nevada Law.  
• Show proof of at least 2 years and 2,400 hours of experience working as an appraiser or intern; and
• Submit a completed license application; and
• Show proof of passing the Appraisal examination (after education has been completed) or proof of active licensure in another state.
• Submit required fees:
• $100.00 application fee; and
• $240.00 license fee; and
• $50.00 Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council fee
• 2-year valid period.
• College-level requirements: None

Certified Residential Appraiser

Applicants must:

• Show proof of completion of the following courses (courses must be approved by the Nevada Commission of Appraisers):
• 30 hours basic appraisal principles;
• 30 hours basic appraisal procedures;
• 15 hours National USPAP;
• 15 hours market analysis and analysis of the highest and best use of real estate;
• 15 hours residential appraiser valuation of a site and cost approach;
• 30 hours residential sales comparison and income approaches;
• 15 hours residential report writing and case studies;
• 15 hours statistics, modeling and finance;
• 15 hours advanced residential applications and case studies;
• 3 hours Nevada Law; and
• 20 hours of instruction in elective courses relating to appraisals.
• Show proof of at least 2 years of and 2,500 hours experience working as an appraiser or intern, including not less that 500 hours of experience relating to complex property
• Submit a completed license application;
• Show proof of passing the Appraisal examination (after education has been completed) or proof of active licensure in another state; and
• Submit required fees:
• $100.00 application fee; and
• $240.00 license fee; and
• $50.00 Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council fee
• 2-year valid period.
• College-level requirements: An associate degree or higher from an accredited college or university; or at least a total of 21 semester credit hours or its equivalent in the following subjects, with a minimum of 3 semester credit hours or its equivalent in each of the following subjects, from an accredited college or university: English composition; Principles of micro- or macroeconomics; Finance; Algebra, geometry or a higher level of mathematics; Statistics; Introduction to computers, including word processing and spreadsheets; and Business or real estate law.

Certified General Appraiser

Applicants must:

• Show proof of completion of the following education (courses must be approved by the Nevada Commission of Appraisers):
• 30 hours basic appraisal principles;
• 30 hours basic appraisal procedures;
• 15 hours National USPAP;
• 30 hours general market analysis and highest and best use;
• 30 hours general appraiser valuation of a site and cost approach;
• 30 hours general appraiser sales comparison approach;
• 60 hours general appraiser income approach;
• 30 hours general appraiser report writing and case studies;
• 15 hours statistics, modeling and finance;
• 3 hours of Nevada Law; and
• 30 hours of instruction in elective courses relating to appraisals

• Show proof of at least 3 years working as an appraiser or intern and 3,600 hours experience, including not less than 1,500 hours of experience of appraising commercial real estate of experience ;
• Submit a completed license application; and
• Show proof of passing the Appraisal examination or proof of active licensure in another state; and
• Submit required fees:
• $100.00 application fee; 
• $340.00 license fee; and
• $50.00 Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council fee
• 2-year valid period.
• College-level requirements: Bachelor’s degree or higher from an accredited college or university; or 30 semester credit hours or its equivalent in the following subjects, with a minimum of 3 semester credit hours or its equivalent in each of the following subjects, from an accredited college or university: English composition; Principles of microeconomics; Principles of macroeconomics; Finance; Algebra, geometry or a higher level of mathematics; Statistics; Introduction to computers, including word processing and spreadsheets; Business or real estate law; and Two elective courses in accounting, geography, agricultural economics, business management or real estate.        

What does a Real Estate Appraiser Do?
When the value of a property in Nevada needs to be established, the real estate appraiser goes to work. Real estate appraisers estimate the value of property for a many reasons. For example, appraisals are necessary to determine a sales price or to determine the amount of a loan that could be given on a residential or business property. A real estate appraiser may be asked to determine the worth of any type of real estate, from a vacant lot to a city airport, but they often specialize in determining the value of only a certain type of real estate such as residential buildings or commercial properties. The role of the appraiser and the assessor is different. Assessors settle on the value of all properties in an area for property tax purposes where appraisers determine the value of properties one at a time for a multiplicity of purposes, such as to establish what a good sale price would be for a home or to clear up an estate or help in a divorce resolution.

The values of all types of real estate are made using comparable methods, regardless of the kind of property or who the appraiser works for. Real Estate Appraisers work in Nevada communities that they know well so they have a good understanding of any issues that might have an impact on the value of a property. They pay close attention to any unusual features of a property and of the community, such as a certain style of a building or a major roadway next to the property. They also consider other aspects of a property like the quality and condition of the building foundation and roof of a building or any changes that may have been made since the building was originally built. They may take photographs to document a certain area or feature, as well as taking pictures of the outside of the structure. After making a visit to the property, the appraiser can establish the fair value of the property by considering home sales in the area for comparable properties, public records, the location, previous real estate appraisals, and the potential for income. Once they have completed all of their research they will put together a detailed report which presents the value of the property along with the reasons that justify the value they arrived at.

Nevada appraisers work for individual clients and focus on evaluating one piece of real estate at a time. Real estate appraisers frequently specialize by the type of real estate they appraise, such as residential properties, shopping centers, or office buildings. Often, commercial appraisers have the ability to appraise any real property but they choose to appraise property only used for commercial purposes, such as shopping centers or restaurants. Residential property appraisers work on appraising houses or other family residences and only appraise those that accommodate 1 to 5 families. Then there are other appraisers in Nevada who serve in a more general way and can value any type of real property.

Real estate appraisers develop a detailed summary report for each assignment. Putting these reports together has become faster and more efficient as a result of the use of laptop computers which allow appraisers to research data and complete at least portions of the report while on-site. Digital cameras make it simple to document the physical appearance of a property during the appraisal, and the photos can be used in the citations of the report.

Appraisers spend much of their time researching and writing reports. However, with the improvement of computers and other technical advancements, such as wireless internet access, actual time in the office has gone down as so much of the required research can be done more quickly at the actual appraisal site or from home. Obtaining records that used to require a visit to government offices can often be found online. This has positively affected self-employed appraisers, frequently referred to as independent fee appraisers, allowing them to spend much more time on-site doing research and less time in their office.Independent fee appraisers tend to put in a standard forty hour work week and in addition, commonly work evenings and weekends preparing reports. Visits to properties commonly take place during the day, and are based on the client’s schedule. Privately employed appraisers, on the other hand, normally work a 40-hour week. Appraisers normally do their on-site appraisal work alone. Their office may be made up of only themselves or a small support team.

Helpful Links
National Association of Independent Fee Appraisers
National Association of Real Estate Appraisers