Connecticut addresses residential appraiser shortage by allowing Practical Applications of Real Estate Appraisal

Effective May 29, 2025 the state of Connecticut has implemented updates to the Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies, informally known as the Appraisal Regulations, which would permit appraisal applicants to qualify to sit for the Appraisal Licensing Exam. Over the course of several months, beginning in November of 2024, the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection worked to update the appraisal regulations to modify the certified residential appraiser requirement that an applicant can only work an apprenticeship, meeting certain requirements in order to sit for the licensing exam. Instead, the regulations now allow for an applicant to complete the Practical Applications of Real Estate Appraisal (PAREA) program approved by the Appraiser Qualifications Board and complete three appraisals. Essentially the Regulations are now allowing an applicant to choose from between two options to demonstrate experience that is required before sitting for the licensing exam. 

What is the Change?
Under the former requirements, an appraiser licensing applicant, known as a provisional appraiser, was required to partner with an appraiser who has been a certified residential or certified general appraiser licensed for at least three years, known as a supervisory appraiser. The provisional appraiser must complete 1,500 hours of appraisal experience while overseen by the supervisory appraiser occurring over no less than 12 months. This has proven challenging for many to find an available supervisory appraiser to work with. Now, with the addition of the PAREA option, a provisional appraiser may choose to complete the 1,500 hours of experience, or they may complete the PAREA program along with one documented Connecticut complex residential property appraisal and two additional documented appraisals of Connecticut residential properties. Complex Residential Property is defined in the Connecticut Regulations of State Agencies as residential Connecticut property “where the property itself, the form of ownership, or the market conditions are atypical.”⁽¹⁾ This is not a new definition in the regulations, but it is a new requirement if the provisional appraiser chooses to complete the PAREA program. These changes do not affect the coursework that is required, those requirements remain unchanged.

What is PAREA?
According to the Appraisal Foundation at their website, PAREA provides a licensing applicant with “simulated training to replicate real-world appraisal experience, including developing Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP)-compliant reports.”⁽²⁾ Technology allows an applicant to gain appraisal experience in areas that may not be immediately available where they are training; what may have been a once in a while occurrence such as a complex residential property, or a unique commercial appraisal, now can be simulated virtually allowing for a licensing applicant to study and practice performing these types of appraisals. To have to wait for the moment a particular type of appraisal occurs could take much longer than learning about and simulating it using technology.

What is the Effect of this New Regulation Addition?
Adding the PAREA program as an option, which utilizes virtual self-paced studying, a licensing applicant can complete the required steps on their own time in potentially as little as one year. This could shorten the timeline for the process of a licensing applicant becoming eligible to sit for the licensing exam. PAREA also eliminates the need to partner with a Connecticut licensed appraiser, which in the past has at times proved challenging to find someone available, which can further extend the time it takes for an applicant to complete all pre-licensing requirements.

Overall, this change will help those seeking to obtain their Connecticut appraser’s license proceed in a way that allows for more flexibility, while also ensuring appraisal principles and practices are well learned and applied. Connecticut needs more appraisers, and this looks to be a step in the right direction towards adding more highly qualified professionals.

Kristen Haseney, J.D., is assistant extension professor at Center for Real Estate and Urban Economic Studies at UConn School of Business, Storrs, Conn.

1. R.C.S.A. Sec. 20-504-(8) eRegulations - Browse Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies

2. PAREA – The Appraisal Foundation - https://appraisalfoundation.org/pages/PAREA®?hkey=e9266611-2c43-4113-8a66-98f3dfb3237b&iSession=-1#:~:text=PAREA®%20is%20designed%20to%20offer%20practical%20experience%20in,wide%20range%20of%20online%20and%20virtual%20reality%20technologies