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

How to Become a Certified Residential Real Estate Appraiser in PA

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

1. 1. Obtain Your Trainee Appraiser License

   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 Pennsylvania, you’ll need to complete 75 hours total of Pennsylvania 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 PA CREA. You must complete all qualifying education prior to submitting your trainee application.

   Before applying for your license, take a moment to read through the Board’s detailed application requirements and pay special attention to the background and character qualifications.

   Once you’ve met all of the above requirements, you will need to apply with the state for your Licensed Appraiser Trainee license, which requires a $75 fee.

2. 2. Complete Appraiser Education

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

   • Residential Market Analysis and Highest and Best Use - 15 Hours
   • Residential Appraiser Site Valuation and Cost Approach - 15 Hours
   • Residential Sales Comparison and Income Approaches - 30 Hours
   • Residential Report Writing and Case Studies - 15 Hours
   • Statistics, Modeling and Finance - 15 Hours
   • Advanced Residential Applications and Case Studies - 15 Hours
   • Appraisal Subject Matter Electives - 20 Hours

   (These 125 education hours are in addition to those you completed as a Trainee.)

3. 3. Conduct Your Appraisal Work Experience

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

   1. Under the supervision of a certified appraiser; and
   2. Over a period of at least twelve months.

   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 Pennsylvania found in the Appraisal Subcommittee’s National Registry of Appraisers.

   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. Submit Your Application for Your Pennsylvania Certified Residential Real Estate Appraiser License

   Now that you've completed your education and logged your experience, 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.

   To fill out your application, you first need to create an account on the Pennsylvania Licensing System (PALS) portal. You can submit your application either online or in the mail, but don’t do both. It may slow down your processing time.

   When you first apply for your license, you’ll need to pay a $320-445 fee for application, certification, and national registry.

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

   In Pennsylvania, your education and experience must be approved by the board prior to receiving permission to take the national examination. After the PA CREA receives your application and determines it’s complete, you’ll be directed to take the National Uniform Licensing & Certification Exam.

   In Pennsylvania, the test is administered by PSI. There is a $145 fee to take the exam, and 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.

Pennsylvania Real Estate Appraiser Continuing Education Requirements

Pennsylvania has a few rules regarding Continuing Education (CE) requirements.

Along with the 28 hours of education, you must complete the 7-hour National USPAP update course every 24 months from the time you were licensed. In Pennsylvania, you are also required to take a 2-hour Pennsylvania Law/Act Course.

Here is a list of steps to walk you through the renewal process, to ensure you hit all your requirements when you apply for license renewal.

Renewing a license costs $305 for Certified Residential and General license types and does not include the National Registry Fee ($80). The fees vary for other licenses.