Licensed Appraisers Are Aging Out and Nobody Is Replacing Them

The number of active licensed and certified real estate appraisers in the United States has dropped from approximately 93,000 in 2015 to around 78,000 in 2023, a decline of roughly 16% in eight years. The median age of a licensed appraiser is over 55, and fewer than 5% are under 35. The pipeline of new entrants has slowed to a trickle. This matters because when there are not enough appraisers to handle transaction volume, turn times stretch from days to weeks. In rural and exurban markets, borrowers sometimes wait 30-45 days for an appraisal, which can blow up rate locks, delay closings, and kill deals entirely. Sellers lose buyers, buyers lose favorable interest rates, and real estate agents lose commissions — all because there is literally no one available to walk through the house and sign a form. In hot markets, the bottleneck is even worse, and the pressure to rush leads to lower-quality appraisals that miss defects or misjudge value. The structural reason this persists is that becoming a licensed appraiser requires 1,000-1,500 hours of supervised experience (depending on the state), which takes 1-2 years of working under a mentor for little or no pay. Most working appraisers have no financial incentive to train competitors, so finding a supervisor is extremely difficult. Meanwhile, Appraisal Management Companies (AMCs) have compressed fees so much that the effective hourly rate for many appraisers is below $25 after accounting for drive time, inspection, research, and report writing. Young professionals look at the math — years of unpaid training for a career paying $40-60K — and choose literally anything else.