(**) Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links, meaning our company, JCHQ Publishing will get a commission if you decide to make a purchase through the links, but at no additional cost to you.
To become a real estate appraiser in Florida, an applicant must complete creditable hours of qualifying education as specified in the Required Core Curriculum. Obtain appraisal work hours, pass the real estate appraiser license examination, and register with the Florida Real Estate Appraisal Board.
This is the entity which issues the license and regulates the appraiser community.
There are three classifications of appraisers in Florida,
- Registered Trainee Appraiser
- Certified Residential Appraiser
- Certified General Appraiser
Unlike some other states, Florida does not have the “Licensed Appraiser” option. However, it could have the most strict requirements for certification.
The purpose I’m writing this guide is to help you better understand the career of being a real estate appraiser in Florida. Here, you will find the steps to obtain each level of Florida appraiser license, the pre-licensing courses, exam requirements, income figures, and other FAQs about this profession.
But before we start, I want to give a brief disclaimer. This post is not intended as legal advice or state/federal real estate appraisal training. It is for general information only. Always follow your State Laws and best practices.
The first step to your appraisal career is to complete the pre-licensing courses from a trusted education provider. McKissock received an incredible rating from its students, and their online lessons are taught by instructors who have actual experience in the appraisal industry. You may click here to find out more about their courses. (**)
(Infographic) Summary to obtain Real Estate Appraiser License in Florida
Table of Contents
- (Infographic) Summary to obtain Real Estate Appraiser License in Florida
- How to to Become a Registered Trainee Appraiser in Florida?
- How to Become a Certified Residential Appraiser in Florida?
- How to Become a Certified General Appraiser in Florida?
- Courses requirement for appraisers in Florida
- How to register with the Florida Real Estate Appraisal Board?
- What is the format of the Florida Real Estate Appraiser Exams?
- FAQ on the Florida Real Estate Appraiser Career
- Career tips for Aspiring Real Estate Appraisers in Florida
- More incredible resources to learn about the Florida real estate appraisal career!
How to to Become a Registered Trainee Appraiser in Florida?
To become a Trainee Appraiser in Florida, an applicant must complete the 100-hour appraisal education, and a 3-hour of Florida Laws and Rules course. Accumulate work experience hours under the supervision of a Certified Appraiser, and register with the Florida Real Estate Appraisal Board.
This is the first step into the appraisal industry. You’ll be working under the direct supervision of a certified appraiser. This is where you can gain some real-life experience of what is like to be an appraiser.
Some typical duties could involve doing property research and working on reports. The most valuable is finding a good mentor who can teach you through the entire appraisal process and willing to spend the time in answering your questions.
Step 1: Meet the eligibility requirement
- You must be at least 18 years of age
- Have a valid Social Security Number. If you don’t have an SSN, you could visit this website to obtain one.
- Hold a high school diploma
- No prior related experience is needed
Step 2: Complete the pre-licensing education
You’ll need to complete 100 hours of real estate appraisal related education from an approved course provider and a 3 hours of Florida Laws and Rules course. We will include more about the required courses later in this post.
To give you an idea about the pre-registration courses, you would learn about:
- Real property concepts and characteristics;
- Legal consideration;
- Influences on real estate values;
- Types of value;
- Economic principles;
- Overview of real estate markets and analysis;
- Ethics and how they apply in appraisal theory and practice;
- Overview of approaches to value;
- Valuation procedures;
- Property description;
- Residential applications;
- Coverage of the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice;
- Coverage of Florida rules and regulations that pertain to the practice of appraisal
As of Dec 1st, 2014, the pre-registration courses must also include at least 3 hours of materials which cover the roles and rules of trainee appraisers and supervisor. Note that the 100 hours of courses must be completed within 5 years.
Step 3: Register with the Florida Real Estate Appraisal Board
If the Appraisal Board in your state has the online submission available, I strongly encourage you to use that option. This is the quickest and most convenient way. Also, less paper consumption and mailing are good for the environment.
I’ll include more details about the submission steps later in the post.
Step 4: Work under the supervision of a certified appraiser
In Florida, you could work under supervisory of two mentors. One will be designated as the Primary Supervisor, and the other one will be Secondary Supervisor.
On the other hand, a supervisory appraiser cannot supervise more than 3 trainee appraisers at any given time. This ensures trainee appraisers can get the help and attention they need.
The Certified Appraisers who wish to add Trainee Appraisers to their license would need to complete a 3 hours Supervisor and Trainee Course.
Some people said it could be challenging to find a mentor. But at the time, I’m writing this post, I do see there are job openings for Appraiser Trainee from different companies and even from the government. Here are 10 practical tips to find a supervisory appraiser.
You and your supervisor(s) will have to complete the “Supervisor Designation/ Termination Form #DBPR FREAB 14”. Here’s the link to download the form.
Once it is completed, you could mail the form to the “Department of Business and Professional Regulation. Once again, their mailing address is on the front page of the application.
How to Become a Certified Residential Appraiser in Florida?
So you’ve been working as an Appraiser Trainee for quite some time, now it’s the time to consider advancing your career in becoming a Certified Residential Appraiser.
To become a Certified Residential Appraiser in Florida, an applicant must complete the 200-hour appraisal education, obtain a minimum of 2500 work hours, pass the Certified Residential Appraiser license examination, and register with the Florida Real Estate Appraisal Board. Candidate must also hold a Bachelor’s Degree.
As a Certified Residential Appraiser, you are no longer required to work under supervision from another Certified Appraiser. You can issue appraisal reports for 1 to 4 residential units regardless of the transaction value or complexity.
Your role is to provide a professional and unbiased opinion about the value of the property. In many instances, the appraisal reports are prepared for:
- Home buying and selling transaction
- Mortgage lending or refinancing
- Tax assessment
- Negotiation of lease
Step 1: Meet the eligibility requirement
- At least 18 years old
- Have a valid Social Security Number
- Hold a valid high school diploma or its equivalent
- Hold a Bachelors degree or higher from an accredited college or university
Step 2: Fulfill the working experience requirement
Remember how I said earlier to log all your working hours when working as an Appraiser Trainee. Now, it’s time these numbers would become useful.
- You must have obtained a minimum of 2500 hours of working experience to register as a Certified Residential Appraiser.
- There must be at least 150 reports, and they need to be obtained over a 24 month, or longer time period.
By the way, not only all experience needs to be USPAP compliant, but they also need to be obtained after January 30, 1989.
Step 3: Fulfill the appraisal courses requirement
Complete 200 hours of approved academic courses in topics related to real estate appraisal.
Since you should have taken some of the courses before you registered as an Appraiser Trainee. Some past courses could be approved by the board to fulfill the requirement on an hour-to-hour basis.
Step 4: Pass the Certified Residential Appraiser exam
Now it’s the time to write the exam! Doing multiple sets of practice questions is an excellent way to prepare for the exam and also boost your confidence.
Step 5: Submit an application to the Florida Real Estate Appraisal Board
After you have completed the education and working experience requirement, you should submit the application to the the Real Estate Appraiser Board along with other required documents.
Most State Boards allow you to apply through their website. Some would even charge a lower registration fee by doing online. You should definitely check out this option.
Here’s a Snippet of What Jamie Owen Thinks About Being a Real Estate Appraiser!
“The more you learn, the more you will enjoy being an appraiser.”
“I think that humility and honesty are the most important attributes. Humility is important because if we think we know it all, we are going to be in trouble. Being appraiser requires not being thin-skinned and defensive. Others have their opinions and we have ours. Both may be supportable in one way or another.
Being humble helps us to respect the views of others and not be offended if others have a different view. Humility also helps with business relationships, as well as accepting guidance and reminders when we need them, from peers and others.”
– Jamie Owen, Certified Residential Real Estate Appraiser at Aspen Appraisal Services
Here’s an exclusive interview with Jamie. He shared with us his journey and valuable experience in the appraisal industry. You’ll also learn what it is like to be a real estate appraiser nowadays.
How to Become a Certified General Appraiser in Florida?
Being a Certified General Appraiser is the highest license level you could get in this industry. It opens up a massive opportunity as you will be authorized to appraise for all types of real property, while there is no limitation on the transaction value or complexity.
To become a Certified General Appraiser in Florida, an applicant must complete the 300-hour appraisal education, obtain a minimum of 3000 work hours, pass the Certified General Appraiser license examination, and register with the Florida Real Estate Appraisal Board. Candidate must also hold a Bachelor’s Degree.
Many Certified General Appraisers tend to concentrate their practice in appraising for commercial properties. But the range of real properties you could work on is very wide, for example, golf courses, hotels, wind generating plants, marina, oil refiners, federal or land acquisition.
At the initial stage of being a Certified General Appraiser, you might try appraising for more variety of properties. But as you continue building your practice, you might want to focus on evaluating a specific type of property.
This specialized knowledge and experience could make you stand out for the competition. To give you an example of the kind of work involves, here’s a job description in Florida I saw online:
We are looking for experienced independent state-licensed Commercial Appraisers in markets around the country who have an established practice in their market and access to regional data sources. Due to our company’s national presence, our national investment and bank clients ask us to bid on projects in primary markets all around the country. We want to assign those jobs to appraisers already working in those markets; appraisers who can utilize their regional expertise to write our reports.
As you could see, investors depend on your appraisal in making their investment decision. It is your responsibility to perform detailed research and provide them with an unbiased appraised value.
The margin of error should be minimized as much as possible. This is why the amount of work experience and studying required to become a Certified General Appraiser is the greatest among the three levels of licensing.
Let’s go through the steps to get the CG appraiser license.
Step 1: Meet the eligibility requirement
- You are required to be at least 18 years of age
- Have a Social Security Number
- Hold a Bachelor’s degree or higher from an accredited university or college
Step 2: Complete the CG working experience requirement
- Obtain at least 3000 hours of appraising experience of which a minimum of:
- 1500 hours in non-residential appraisal work
- 23 Summary or Self-Contained reports in a narrative format or 12 nonresidential Summery or Self-Contained reports,
- 135 non-narrative supportable and documented appraisal reports
- They must be obtained in no fewer than 30 months;
- USPAP compliant and acquired after January 30, 1989.
Step 3: Complete the CG appraisal education requirement
You need to finish at least 300 hours in approved courses related to real estate appraisal.
Step 4: Successfully pass two exams
Most test centers would require you to bring at least two valid IDs to verify your identity. Don’t forget to bring them along. Else you won’t be able to write the exam.
Step 5: Register at the Florida Real Estate Appraisal Board
Once you have fulfilled the education and working experience requirement, it’s time to submit the license application. The Licensing Board in some states may require you to apply within a specific period after you complete the pre-licensing education.
Therefore, don’t wait till it expires!
Actual Feedback from a Commercial Real Estate Appraiser
“Be willing to work extremely hard in the beginning as it will work out well in the long term.”
“I appraise a variety of commercial properties. Although, I do more investment types than any thing else (office, shopping center, multi-family), I do a little bit of everything, excluding marinas, hotels/golf courses, single-family residential.
I started working for a commercial appraiser in college. I have never done any residential work.
There are several challenges in the field, but overall, it has been wonderful for me. I really enjoy the flexibility the career offers… Every day is a new property and a new challenge and that helps break up the monotony.
Jeffrey Harris, MAI. Commercial Real Estate Appraiser and Consultant at Harris Property Advisors
Want to know whether being a commercial real estate appraiser is a good career? Check out this complete career guide. In there, you’ll find the type of work involved as a CRE appraiser, the income potential, and the training you need to become one. You’ll find the full sharing from Jeffrey Harris as well!
Courses requirement for appraisers in Florida
| Registered Appraiser (Credit Hours) | Certified Residential Appraiser (Credit Hours) | Certified General Appraiser (Credit Hours) |
|
|---|---|---|---|
| National USPAP Course or Equivalent | 15 | 15 | 15 |
| Basic Appraisal Principles | 30 | 30 | 30 |
| Basic Appraisal Procedures | 30 | 30 | 30 |
| Residential Market Analysis and Highest & Best Use | 15 | ||
| Residential Appraisal Site Valuation and Cost Approach | 15 | ||
| Residential Sales Comparison and Income Approaches | 30 | ||
| Residential Report Writing and Case Studies | 15 | ||
| Statistics, Modeling and Finance | 15 | 15 | |
| Advanced Residential Applications and Case Studies | 15 | ||
| Appraisal Subject Matter Electives | 20 | 30 | |
| General Appraiser Market Analysis and Highest & Best Use | 30 | ||
| General Appraiser Site Valuation and Cost Approach | 30 | ||
| General Appraiser Sales Comparison Approach | 30 | ||
| General Appraiser Report Writing and Case Studies | 30 | ||
| General Appraiser Income Approach | 60 | ||
| Total | 75 hours | 200 hours | 300 hours |
For the Appraisal Subject Matter Electives courses,
- they must includes 6 hours of the Florida Laws and Rules
- for Certified Appraisers, they also need to include the 3 hours of the roles and responsibilities of Supervisors and Trainees set forth in Rule 61J1-10.002, Florida Administrative Code).
Study tip: Whenever possible, I prefer to take online courses. You can study at your own pace at the convenient of your home, library, or wherever there is internet access. Here’s an article review of an online school that I like.
How to register with the Florida Real Estate Appraisal Board?
To register as a real estate appraiser in Florida, you must provide the following to the Florida Real Estate Appraisal Board:
- Submit an application form
- Cheque or money order of payable to the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation
- Electronic fingerprints (If you are unsure how to get one, here are some details. Note that the Real Estate Appraiser ORI number is FL922050Z.)
- Supporting legal documents
- Proof that you have fulfilled the education and working experience requirement
After you have prepared all the necessary documentation, simply mail them to the Department of Business and Professional Regulation. The mailing address could be found on the front page of the form. Alternatively, you could also apply using their online services.
If you need any help on the registration, you could contact the DBPR’s Customer Contact Center at 850.487.1395 or through their contact form.
What is the format of the Florida Real Estate Appraiser Exams?
The National Certified General Exam
Pearson-vue will administer the appraiser exam, where you can take it on a computer at their examination center.
- Licensed Residential Appraiser Exam is a 4 hours exam,
- Certified Residential Appraiser Exam is a 4 hours exam;
- Certified General Appraiser Exam is a 6 hours exam
The licensed and certified exams consist of 125 questions. Only 110 questions will be scored, the other 15 are pretest questions. The required passing score is 75. You will immediately know your score once you finish writing the test.
To increase your chance in passing the exam on the first time, make sure to check out our 10 tips on how to pass the real estate appraiser exam!
The Florida Supplemental Exam for Appraisers
The Florida Supplemental Exam is a two hours, computer-based exam. It has 40 multiple choice questions which cover the Florida real estate rules and laws. The required passing mark is over 75%. There is an exam fee of $13.50.
FAQ on the Florida Real Estate Appraiser Career
How much does it cost to become a real estate appraiser in Florida?
It costs between $1,624 to $2,064 to become a real estate appraiser in Florida, Here’s the breakdown:
- Pre-licensing education: $1260 to $1,700
- Application fee: $351
- Exam fee: $13.50
In addition to the above, there will be other expenses such as continuing education courses, E&O insurance, and business supplies such as a laptop, cell phone, and measuring device.
Some companies may pay or reimburse you if you work as their employee. But if you are running your own practice, these are the cost you need to account for yourself.
How long does it take to become a real estate appraiser in Florida?
It takes 24 to 30 months to become a real estate appraiser in Florida. That is the minimum period to complete the work experience so the duration would hugely depend on which appraiser license you are pursuing, the time it takes you to complete the work experience, pre-licensing courses and pass the appraiser exam.
It takes 2,500 hours of work experience to become a Certified Residential Appraiser in Florida, and 3,000 hours to become a Certified General Appraiser.
Do you need a degree to be an appraiser in Florida?
You need a Bachelor’s Degree to be a Certified General Appraiser or Certified Residential Appraiser in Florida.
How much do real estate appraisers make in Florida?
According to the U.S Bureau of Labor Statistic, property appraisers and assessors in Florida make an average yearly income of $57,910. The income range typically ranges between $45,780 and $76,940. Top earning Florida appraisers make over $112,930.
The salary range among appraisers in Florida is quite huge. It really comes down to the your license, the type of properties you are specialized in appraising and your experience.
The average cost of a home appraisal is $300 – $380 in Florida. However, the cost may vary depending on the complexity of the property, the time and skills it takes to complete the assignment. Commercial property appraisals could cost between $2,000 to $10,000.
Here’s a complete income guide on real estate appraisers in Florida. In there, I will uncover the income updates, the percentage of appraisers that are making a good living, and whether being a commercial or residential appraisers has any effect on the income. So be sure to check it out!
Is there a demand for real estate appraisers in Florida?
According to the figures (as of June 2022) displayed on the Appraisal Subcommittee website, there are a total of 6073 appraisers in Florida. The breakdown is as follow:
- # of Certified General Appraisers 2210
- # of Certified Residential Appraisers 3851
- # of Licensed Residential Appraisers 12
Florida has a population of 20.98 million people. There are enormous volumes of real estate transactions and refinancing every year. As long as people need to obtain an unbiased opinion of properties’ value, there would be a demand for real estate appraisers in Florida.
Is there any continuing education requirement?
Regardless of whether you are a Registered Trainee Appraiser, a Certified Residential Appraiser or a Certified General Appraiser, in order to have your license maintaining in good standing, you are required to take 30 hours of continuing education in every 24 months. There will be 10 hours of mandatory topics, which are:
- (7 hours) National Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP) update course or its equivalent
- (3 hours) Review and update of Florida Real Estate Appraisal Law and Board Rules
Here’s a post with more info to renew the appraiser license and continuing education requirement.
Career tips for Aspiring Real Estate Appraisers in Florida
Complete the appraisal courses ASAP
You could read as much about the appraisal career as you want, but your journey would not begin unless you start taking action.
Taking the real estate appraiser classes would be your first step. Not only you could gain valuable knowledge and practical skills, but you will also have a better understanding of what it is like to be an appraiser.
Besides, most states would require you to complete all the trainee education before your working experience could count toward the licensing requirement.
If you are reading up to this point, I bet you must be interested in the real estate appraisal profession. But why waste your time in searching for an appraisal school? Many students had a great experience taking appraisal courses from McKissock. You may click here to check it out yourself. (**)
Maintain good log of appraisal work hours
While working as a Trainee Appraiser, you and your supervisor will need to keep logs of your work. Each of you will maintain a separate record, while the supervisor must sign every page of the log.
It would record the appraisal of the specific property you are involved in working. It clearly details the hours you spent on inspecting the site, neighborhood, doing the different analysis, etc.
This is important when you are advancing your career in becoming a certified appraiser in the future. (Which I will also cover later in the post).
Here’s the link to download the authorized log form. (Note there are two tabs in the spreadsheet file. The first one is just the instruction, while the second is the actual log form.)
Network with other real estate professionals in Florida
Connecting with other appraisers in Florida is a good way to gain a better understanding about the appraisal industry. You could do so by joining industry affiliations, online forums or even LinkedIn groups. For instance,
- South Florida Chapter of the Appraisal Institute
- Florida Gulf Coast Chapter of Appraisal Institute
- Northeast Florida Chapter of the Appraisal Institute
Begin with a friendly conversation. Let them know that you are starting your career as an appraiser, ask them if they have any tips or advice for newbies to the industry.
In addition, you should network with other professionals in the real estate field. Mortgage agents, lenders, loan signing agent and realtors can all provide you with valuable insight, which could be very helpful to your career building in the long haul.
Consider the commercial real estate niche
Just like many other states, the business to appraise for residential properties could be quite competitive. Well, as you could imagine, there is a considerable overlap of targeted customers for the first three levels of licensing.
To differentiate your skills and broaden your scope of practice, you could consider pursuing the Commercial General Appraiser designation as your long-term goal.
Here’s an article you might be interested: “Is Commercial Real Estate Appraisal a Good Career?” In there, a CRE appraiser shared his view on what he thinks about this profession.
More incredible resources to learn about the Florida real estate appraisal career!
This article is part of the “Florida Real Estate Appraiser Career Series.” If you want to know more about being a real estate appraiser in Florida, the following articles would be helpful to you:
- How Much do Real Estate Appraisers Make in Florida? (trainee| residential| commercial)
- Is Being a Real Estate Appraiser a Good Career? (Feedback from Industry Professionals)
- A Complete Review of a Real Estate Appraisal School that Over 400,000 Students Love
- Florida Real Estate Appraiser License Renewal Requirement
(**) Affiliate Disclosure: Please note that some of the links above are affiliate links, and at no additional cost to you. Our company, JCHQ Publishing will earn a commission if you decide to make a purchase after clicking on the link. Please understand that we include them based on our experience or the research on these companies or products, and we recommend them because they are helpful and useful, not because of the small commissions we make if you decide to buy something through the links. Please do not spend any money on these products unless you feel you need them or that they will help you achieve your goals.
Disclaimer: The information in this post is for general information only, and not intend to provide any advice. They are subjected to change any notice, and not guaranteed to be error-free. For full and exact details, please contact the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation.
Reference:
- Florida Real Estate Appraisal Board (source)
- Appraisal Subcommittee- Active Appraiser Credentials Summary Report (source)
- The Appraisal Foundation- National Uniform Licensing and Certification Examinations (source)
- National Appraiser Examination Candidate Handbook (source)
- U.S Labor of Bureau Statistics
- sokanu – How much does a Real Estate Appraiser make in Florida? (source)
- salary.com- Salary for Appraiser (Commercial Real Estate) in Florida (source)
- salary.com- Salary for Appraiser (Residential Real Estate) in Florida (source)
- HomeAdvisor – How Much Does A Home Appraisal Cost? (source)
