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

North Carolina Real Estate Appraiser License Requirements

Becoming an appraiser can be a lucrative and rewarding choice for your career – but how do you get started? Your appraisal education begins with 75 hours of North Carolina Appraiser Qualifying Education coursework, the building blocks of your appraisal knowledge. The best way to complete those hours successfully? By getting your trainee license, the official recommendation of The Appraisal Foundation. Though your state may not require this license level, earning it will help you stand out to future employers, and prepare you for the jobs that require it!

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Quick Overview

Below is a list of the steps recommended to become a Licensed Residential Appraiser in North Carolina.

  1. Obtain Your North Carolina Registered Trainee License
  2. Complete Your Appraiser Education
  3. Conduct Appraisal Work Experience
  4. Pass the National Uniform Licensing & Certification Examination
  5. Pass the National Uniform Licensing & Certification Examination
  6. Submit Your Application for North Carolina Licensed Residential Appraiser

We’ll go into more detail about these steps below.

Appraiser Eligibility Requirements

It’s important to understand how the state classifies real estate appraisers across four separate categories, each with their own qualifications for licensure:

  • Hold high school diploma or certificate of equivalency
  • Proof of U.S. Citizenship, U.S. National Status, or Alien Status
  • Be at least 18 years of age
  • Pass a criminal background check through CastleBranch.com
  • Be deemed free of any character issues by the Board

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

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

  1. 1. Obtain Your North Carolina Registered Trainee Appraiser License

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

    Before you can become a licensed residential appraiser in North Carolina, the best way to start is to get your North Carolina Registered Trainee license. In order to obtain your trainee license, you need to complete 79 hours of North Carolina Appraiser qualifying education in no longer than five years, broken up as follows:

    • 30 hours of appraisal principles
    • 30 hours of appraisal procedures
    • 15 hours to uniform standards of Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP)

    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 via the Appraiser Qualifications Board (AQB) of The Appraisal Foundation, and by the North Carolina Appraisal Board. You must complete all qualifying education prior to the date of submission of a trainee application.

    Upon completion, you will need to apply with the state.

  2. 2. Complete Your Appraiser Education

    After getting your North Carolina Registered Trainee license, it’s time for the next step toward becoming a Licensed North Carolina Real Estate Appraiser: 150 Hours of Appraisal Foundation-Approved real estate appraiser education (75 of which you’ve already completed through your Registered Trainee license). North Carolina follows course requirements set by the Appraisal Foundation.

  3. 3. Conduct Appraisal Work Experience

    Once you’ve finished your education, you must conduct at least 1,000 hours of actual appraisal experience. Additionally, those 1,000 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 1,000 hours of appraisal experience. To put things in perspective, if a trainee works 40 hours per workweek, they will complete their training in a little over six months. If, however, they put in any fewer than 40 hours per week, it would take longer. Here’s a helpful table to give you an overview of the timeframes you’d be looking at:

    Number of Hours Per Week Length of Time to Complete 1000 Hours
    40 Hours 6 Months
    30 Hours 8 Months
    20 Hours 13 Months
    10 Hours 2 Years

    *This must all be completed under the supervision of a Certified Appraiser—either Residential or General

    If the application is accepted, you’ll be sent instructions on how to take the National Uniform Licensing and Certification Examination—the final step before you can apply for your license.

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

    After completing your courses and logging your appraisal experience, you are now eligible to take the National Uniform Licensing & Certification Exam. You’ll need a sponsoring entity in order to take the exam; the education provider where you completed your coursework should be able to give this to you.

    • The exam is four to six hours long. Both the Licensed Residential Examination and the Certified Residential Examination take four hours to complete, and the Certified General Examination takes 6 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.

    You get three attempts to pass the exam; after that, you must take 15 additional hours of appraiser qualifying education before trying again. After you pass the exam, you have two years from the date you took the exam to apply for a license.

  5. 5. Submit Your Application for a North Carolina Residential Real Estate Appraiser License

    Now that you’ve passed your exam, it’s time to apply for your license! 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 licensure.

    There is a $200 licensing fee for each license level. Once your application has been filed and processed, your fee will not be refunded unless the Appraisal Board, in its discretion, determines that you did not affirmatively demonstrate minimum requirements on the face of the application.

    In most cases, fees to renew a license are the same as the original license cost in North Carolina, and include the National Registry Fee (usually $60) each time you renew.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the Average Real Estate Appraiser Salary in North Carolina?

According to Indeed, the average Real Estate Appraiser salary in North Carolina is $57,323. Of course, this rate varies depending on your city (e.g., Charlotte averages $59,987, while Newton averages $48,525). A great incentive to working towards a higher license is the ability to make more money. The Certified General license is the highest appraiser license in North Carolina, and those with this certification make an average salary of $103,000 per year.

How Much Does It Cost to Get a Real Estate Appraiser License in North Carolina?

Between course tuition and exam and application fees, you can expect to spend at least $4,000 for your Residential Appraiser licensure. The cost will vary slightly depending on the education provider and number of attempts at the exam, but here’s a breakdown of the approximate cost:

Average Course Tuition Application Fees Exam Fees Total
$1,800 (Licensed Residential) $200 per license 1005 $2,100

One additional cost to consider occurs during the Registered Trainee experience period. You’ll be conducting over 1,000 hours of in-field appraisals in order to obtain your first license, which means travel expenses may start to accumulate. This should be considered when calculating the total approximate cost of obtaining your appraiser license.

How Long Does It Take to Get a North Carolina Residential Appraiser License?

Between the 1,000 hours of mandatory appraisal trainee experience and over 150 total hours of Appraisal Education, you’re looking at anywhere between eight and 18 months to get your North Carolina Residential Appraiser License. This table should give you a general idea of the number of hours you’re looking at for this process.

Registered Trainee Education Requirements Licensed Residential Appraisal Education Requirements Required Appraisal Experience Full-Time Pace: (40 hrs/week) Part-Time Pace: (20-hrs/week)
79 Hours 75 Hours 1,000 Hours (in at least 6 months) 8.5 Months 16-18 Months

If I Have an Out-of-State Appraiser License, Can I Appraise Real Estate in North Carolina?

Yes! North Carolina has an open-door policy for appraisers who are licensed or certified appraisers in another state. That means you’ll be granted a North Carolina license or certification without needing to take qualifying courses, show your experience log or take an examination to become licensed or certified, as long as your former state’s requirements meet the real property appraiser qualification criteria as established by the Appraisal Foundation.
Note: this does not apply to Registered Trainees.

If you’re not active on the Appraisal Subcommittee's National Registry, you must also include a letter of good standing from the appraiser licensing board of your former state, which was issued under seal within 30 days of the date you applied for your license in that state.

If you are not a resident of North Carolina, you must also complete the Consent to Service of Process and Pleadings form and the Affidavit of Residency form.

In addition, you must either:

  • send a copy of your most recent criminal background check performed for the state appraisal board where you are licensed or certified, OR
  • obtain a criminal background check from CastleBranch.com

The background check must be dated within 60 days of application. This is to make sure that you have had a background check from your credentialing state, and to make sure the background check is as comprehensive as the one North Carolina appraisers must get. If your background check is not as comprehensive as the one the NC Appraisal Board requires, you will have to resubmit a background check that meets the Board's requirements.

Mail all these items to the Appraisal Board office for processing. Once processing is complete, you will be issued a North Carolina license or certification which will be mailed to you.

NC Appraiser Continuing Education Requirements

North Carolina has a few rules (21 NCAC 57A .0204) for continuing education. Here are the highlights:

Each trainee, licensee, and certificate holder are required to complete 28 hours of continuing education before June 1 of every odd-numbered year. If, however, your license was granted in an odd numbered year, you don’t have to get your continuing education until the next odd-numbered year. You cannot take more than the required amount of continued education and carry it over into the next education cycle.

Along with the 28 hours of education, you must complete the seven-hour National USPAP update course between October 1 of an odd-numbered year and (at the latest) June 1 of an even numbered year, as required by the Appraiser Qualifications Board of the Appraisal Foundation.

NC has a two-year continuing education cycle that begins and ends on the odd years. The current cycle began June 1, 2021 and will go through May 31, 2023 and so forth.

Appraiser License Type Additional Details

Registered Trainee Appraiser

North Carolina, like most states, requires a pilot program for potential appraisers to begin their path toward becoming fully licensed. Known as a Registered Trainee, this first level of licensure is recommended before you can start appraising real estate on your own. You must work under the direct supervision of a certified appraiser (residential OR general).

In order to qualify as a Registered Trainee in North Carolina, you must:

Qualifying Education Hours Required Required Experience Hours Working Under a Certified Appraiser College Degree Requirement Exam Requirement Background Check
75 hours of qualifying appraisal education & 4 hours of a Trainee/Supervisor Appraiser course None required, though you will need to associate with a Supervisory Appraiser before receiving your trainee license. (You’ll work under your Supervisory Appraiser to earn experience hours after receiving your trainee license.) Not required Not required Not required

Licensed Residential Appraiser

The next level up is a licensed residential appraiser. At this level, you can provide appraisal services in:

  • Non-complex one-to-four-unit residential properties with a transaction value of less than $1,000,000
  • Complex one-to-four-unit residential properties having a transaction value of less than $400,000
Qualifying Education Hours Required Required Experience Hours Working Under a Certified Appraiser College Degree Requirement Exam Requirement Background Check
150 hours total (only 75 hours are required to upgrade after receiving your Registered Trainee license) 1,000 hours in no less than six months Not required Must pass exam National Uniform Licensing Examination for Licensed Residential Appraisers Required

Certified Residential Appraiser

Certified residential appraisers may provide appraisal services on 1-4 residential units without regard to value or complexity.

Qualifying Education Hours Required Required Experience Hours Working Under a Certified Appraiser College Degree Requirement Exam Requirement Background Check
200 hours total (only 125 hours are required to upgrade after receiving your Registered Trainee license) 1,500 hours in no less than 12 months

Must complete one of these options:

  • Bachelor’s degree
  • Associate degree with a focused field of study
  • Successful completion of 30 college semester credit hours detailed by the Appraisal Foundation
  • To satisfy education requirements in another way, see the Appraisal Foundation criteria (pg. 20)
 Must pass National Uniform Licensing Examination for Certified Residential Appraisers Required

Licensed General Appraiser

Certified general appraisers are the highest level of appraiser professionals. They can provide appraisal services on all types of real property.

Qualifying Education Hours Required Required Experience Hours Working Under a Certified Appraiser College Degree Requirement Exam Requirement Background Check
300 hours total (only 225 hours are required to upgrade after receiving your Registered Trainee license) 3,000 hours in no less than 18 months Must have bachelor's degree or higher in any field and from any accredited college or university Must pass exam National Uniform Licensing Examination for for Certified General Appraisers Required

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