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Real Estate or Real Property appraisers perform appraisals of land and any permanent structures or improvements attached to it, such as buildings, trees and other fixtures, including office buildings, houses, apartments, undeveloped land, retail stores, industrial properties, and golf courses.

ASA-accredited Real Estate appraisers render USPAP-compliant appraisals for acquisition and disposition of property, mortgages and financing, insurance, estate taxes, eminent domain (condemnation), zoning, urban renewal and redevelopment, valuation tax planning, easements and rights of way, property evaluation, and other purposes. The appraisals may include valuation of air rights, surface or subsurface rights, and leased fee interests.

Most Real Estate appraisers are accredited in one (or more) of four primary specialties.

  • Ad Valorem/Mass Appraisal Real Estate appraisers or Assessors are charged with the discovery, listing, and valuation of all taxable property in a jurisdiction. There are two sub-specialties: Residential and General.
  • Going Concern Real Estate appraisers value complex commercial real estate with a business component, such as car washes, fueling station/c-store, and lodging properties on a regular basis. They know when to allocate/segregate the value components as required by lending institutions.
  • Real Property Real Estate appraisers specialize in appraisals of all property typescommercial (office and retail buildings, shopping centers, malls), institutional (hospitals, schools, courthouses), industrial(manufacturing plants, warehouses), special purpose (churches, radio/TV stations, cemeteries, golf and country clubs), and residential (apartment houses, single-family homes, townhouses, cooperatives, condominiums) properties.
  • Residential Real Estate appraisers specialize in the valuation of one- to four-unit residential properties.

 
Unlike appraisers in other disciplines, Real Estate appraisers must also be state-licensed. Most states recognize three licenses (in order of required training and experience): real estate appraiser, residential real estate appraiser, and general real estate appraiser. Some real estate appraisers may also be licensed as real estate brokers.

Real Estate appraisers are among the most interdisciplinary, frequently working together with Business Valuation, Machinery & Technical, and Personal Property appraisers to complete the evaluation of businesses, factories, estates, etc.

In addition to the four primary specialties, Real Estate appraisers may be qualified in Rural Property or in Timber and Timberland.