How to Become a Real Estate Appraiser in Alaska: Your 5-Step Guide

How to Become a Residential Real Estate Appraiser in Alaska

Now let's take a more in-depth look at the steps recommended to really start your appraisal career as a residential real estate appraiser.

1. 1. Obtain Your Alaska Registered Trainee Appraiser Certification

   NOTE: Your state may accept PAREA or Practicum as an alternative to Trainee license with Trainee/Supervisory model.

   Qualifying Education. Before you can become a certified residential appraiser in Alaska, you’ll need to complete 75 hours total of Alaska Appraiser Qualifying Education (QE), broken up as follows:

   • 30 hours of appraisal principles
   • 30 hours of appraisal procedures
   • The 15-hour National Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP) course, or an equivalent course

   You’ll also need to complete a 4-hour Appraiser Trainee/Supervisory Appraiser Course. Before signing up for this course, you need to find a supervisory appraiser who will act as your mentor through completion of your experience hours (Step 3).

   All Qualifying Education must be approved by either the Appraiser Qualifications Board (AQB) or the Alaska Board of Certified Real Estate Appraisers. You must complete all qualifying education prior to submitting your trainee application.

   Before applying for your certification, you can take a look through the application itself to ensure you have everything you need ready to go.

   Once you’ve met all of the above requirements, you will need to apply with the state by mail for your Registered Trainee Appraiser certification, which requires a $150 application fee plus a $150 Registration fee. Expect a few weeks of processing time, even if you deliver your application in person.

2. 2. Complete Your Appraiser Education

   After getting your Alaska Registered Trainee Appraiser certification, it’s time for the next step toward becoming a residential appraiser in Alaska: 200 total hours of Appraisal Foundation-approved appraiser education. (Please Note: You’ve already satisfied 75 of these hours through your Registered Trainee certification – nice work!)

3. 3. Conduct Your Appraisal Work Experience

   Once you’ve finished your education, you must conduct and log (p. 9) at least 1,500 hours of actual appraisal experience. Those 1,500 hours must be completed:

   • Under the supervision of a certified appraiser; and
   • Over a period of at least six months.

   This means that you must take no less than six months to complete your 1,500 hours of appraisal experience. To put things in perspective, if a trainee works 40 hours per week, they will complete their training in a little over nine months. If, however, they put in any fewer than 40 hours per week, it would take longer. You must complete this experience under the guidance of a supervisor.

   There are many ways to find and enter into a working relationship with a supervisory appraiser. A great way to begin your search is to use the list of active certified appraisers in Alaska found in the Appraisal Subcommittee’s National Registry of Appraisers.

   If the application is accepted, you’ll be sent an Approval Letter from the Board along with instructions on how to take the National Uniform Licensing and Certification Examination — the final step before you can apply for your certification.

4. 4. Submit Your Application for an Alaska Residential Real Estate Appraiser Certification

   Now that you've completed your education and logged your experience, it’s time to apply for your certification. Generally, candidates can expect the entire application process to take four to six weeks. Factors that affect the processing time are the completeness of the application when filed and the number and nature of any character issues or questions with respect to fitness for certification. You will need to apply by mail or deliver your application to the Real Estate Appraisers Program in Anchorage in person.

   When you first apply for your certification, you’ll need to pay a $350 initial certification fee along with the $150 application fee and the $80 National Registry Fee.

5. 5. Pass the National Uniform Licensing & Certification Examination

   After the Alaska Board of Certified Real Estate Appraisers receives your application and determines it’s complete, you’ll be directed to take the National Uniform Licensing & Certification Exam.

   In Alaska, the test is administered by PearsonVUE. You will be required by a PearsonVUE representative to submit a copy of your board approval letter prior to administration of your examination. The Appraisal Foundation publishes tips on the exam structure that can help you prepare. Here’s an overview:

   • The exam is four hours long. The Licensed Residential Examination can take up to four hours to complete.
   • There are 125 questions on the test. The National Uniform Licensing and Certification exam is composed of 125 total questions. Fifteen of these questions are considered practice, and answering those questions wrong does not negatively affect your score.
   • A score of 75 points is passing. Scores for the National Uniform Licensing and Certification exam range between 0 and 110 points. Each question carries an equal weight of 1 point. In order to pass, you must earn a minimum of 75 points.
   • You can take the test more than once. The Appraisal Foundation allows you to take the test up to three times.

Appraiser Certification Types in Alaska

It’s important to understand how Alaska classifies real estate appraisers across four separate categories, each with their own qualifications for certification*:

• Registered Trainee Appraiser
• Residential Real Estate Appraiser
• General Real Estate Appraiser

After receiving your Registered Trainee certification, you can “upgrade” to any of the subsequent certification levels. Today, we’ll be focusing on how to get to your Residential Real Estate Appraiser certification. But first, here’s a quick overview of the eligibility requirements for each level.

Registered Trainee Appraiser

Alaska, like most states, requires a pilot program for potential appraisers to begin their path toward becoming fully certified. Known as a registered trainee appraiser, this first level of certification is recommended before you can become fully certified and start appraising real estate on your own.

Here's a quick overview of everything you’ll need to become a registered trainee appraiser:

Residential Real Estate Appraiser

Residential real estate appraisers may provide appraisal services in transactions with:

• 1-4 unit residential properties without regard to value or complexity
• Commercial properties (transaction value < $250,000)

General Real Estate Appraiser

General real estate appraisers are the highest level of appraiser professionals. They can provide appraisal services in transactions with all types of residential or commercial real property without regard to value or complexity.