Ask most people what they think of when they hear career in real estate', you're likely to get Realtor' or Agent' as a response. I have had a career in real estate for the past nine years and have not once listed or sold a house, commercial building, or my soul. I'm a real estate appraiser, and ultimately, my job is to report on market activity and conditions and determine what it means to a specific property.

Just as sales jobs are not for everyone, working as a real estate appraiser requires some fairly specific personality traits and characteristics and a very strong understanding of what an appraiser is not. An appraiser must be able to work independently with little to no supervision. An appraiser must remain unbiased in performing the appraisal assignments and can not perform an appraisal on a property in which the appraiser has a vested interest. An appraiser working for a firm is often given work from the pool that comes in from the chief appraiser or senior appraisers who established the relationships with the clients placing the orders. Staff appraisers typically work on a fee-split and that percentage often corresponds with how long the appraiser has been in the profession and how many clients the appraiser has brought to the firm himself. Independent fee appraisers, or those who work for themselves, rely solely on their established reputations, ability to market to mortgage and lending companies, and work generated by acceptance onto lender maintained approved appraiser panels'. The independent fee appraiser is paid the full fee, but has the added expense and responsibility of paying for data sources, Errors and Omissions (E&O) insurance, taxes, equipment and that of any employees or trainees.

An appraiser's job is not to prove' your home is worth what you believe it to be. For an appraiser to set out on that mission would be to commit fraud. Keep in mind that many if not most real estate appraisals are for federally insured transactions. To accept an appraisal assignment with the goal of proving' you right or proving a predetermined value would mean the appraiser was not developing an unbiased opinion of value, but instead was committing fraud against the government. To most of us, that would be considered a bad career move.

Real estate appraisal is an excellent career for one who enjoys making ones own schedule; is consistently able to meet deadlines; is research and task oriented and has some writing aptitude. While the field is often difficult to break into, after nine years within this, my chosen profession, I believe the effort it takes to become a certified real estate appraiser is well worth the effort, especially if you have an interest in real estate, but don't see sales in your future.

Learn more about this author, Kristol Jones.
Click here to send author comments or questions.

---

Add your voice

Know something about Making a successful career in real estate?
We want to hear your view. Write now!