Do you need a supervisory appraiser to become an appraiser in WI?

Question

I just moved from out of state and want to start training to become a licensed appraiser. Most information and videos I’m finding online say you do need to find a supervisory appraiser to train under, but are very vague and not state specific. However, the requirements for Wisconsin don’t specify anything about needing a supervisory appraiser to train under. I tried calling and emailing the appraisal board, and even messaged a few local appraisers. Nobody is responding. Can anyone help me out?

Peter Falk · Answer

Yes, in WI you need to train under a supervisor.  I was lucky to be able to train with my neighbor.  I know there is talk of creating a virtual mentor program (I think essentially where you do a case study online) but nothing is finalized there yet.  There are various license levels you can read about.  I also have a real estate broker license and was shocked to see how much more challenging it was to get an appraisal license.  One good item though is that you do not need to do appraisals for a client to get experience, so can do them for your house, friends property, etc.

Carolyn Yates · Answer

So, you have to have a combination of experience and education to become a licensed or certified appraiser.  The requirements do vary some by state, but in general it would be very tough to get any experience without a supervisory appraiser.  You have to abide by the USPAP standards and part of that is a competency requirement.  I would say it would be difficult to meet the competency requirement without working with another appraiser initially.  Where would you get clients or who would ask you to appraiser without any experience?  Its one of those fields where you do need experience under a trained professional.  I have been in the field since college and glad to answer any questions.  I majored in real estate in college and interned under an appraiser.  I continued working under other appraisers until I had the experience hours needed to sit for my certification.  Good luck!