North Dakota secures one-year waiver on appraisals, with option for second year, from appraisal subcommittee

A one-year waiver from appraiser credentialing requirements – with an option for continuing the waiver a second year – was approved for North Dakota earlier this week, in a nod to the state’s continuing shortage of qualified individuals to conduct appraisals in the state.

The Appraisal Subcommittee of the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC) voted, 5-2 in a meeting Tuesday, to recommend to the exam council the plan for the waivers. The North Dakota Department of Financial Institutions had sought a five-year waiver (the bid was also supported by Gov. Doug Burgum (R)).

Under the terms of the waiver (and particularly the second year), both the state department of financial institutions and the North Dakota Appraiser Board must work to address issues that led to the long turnaround times for an appraisal, according to reports.

The waiver affects credentialing requirements for appraisers conducting appraisals of federally related transactions under $500,000 for 1-to-4 family residential real estate transactions and under $1 million for agricultural and commercial real estate transactions throughout the state. The state pointed to local concerns over long wait times for appraisals, caused by a lack of appraisers in the state in making the request.

The full FFIEC must sign off on the waiver at its next meeting before a final order can be issued.