You may have heard commentary recently about the Texas Appraiser Licensing & Certification Board (TALCB)’s Standards and Enforcement Services (“SES”) Division, which may have raised some questions. First, we hosted a Facebook Live Event with our Director of Enforcement where we answered your questions:
The agency has committed to implement a variety of measures to improve our customer service. This is a quick review of what we have done so far and what additional steps remain to be implemented to enhance our responsiveness.
The mission and performance of the Texas Real Estate Commission and Texas Appraiser Licensing & Certification Board are under review by the Legislature as required under the Texas Sunset Act. The Act provides that the Sunset Commission, composed of legislators and public members, periodically evaluate a state agency to determine if the agency is still needed and to explore ways to ensure that the agency's funds are well spent. Based on the recommendations of the Sunset Commission, the Texas Legislature ultimately decides whether an agency continues to operate into the future.
Happy New Year! It’s January and 2018 promises to be filled with important activity. First, our federal oversight agency, the Appraisal Subcommittee will visit us in early February to complete their biennial audit. Their last two visits have resulted in a clean audit with no findings and we expect the same this year as well.
October has just concluded and November is here. This is always an exciting time with the World Series (How about those Astros!?), Halloween and Dia de Los Muertos, and the beginning of deer hunting season in Texas. October 31 also closes our State Employee Charitable Campaign month, with new highs reached each year for generosity by our team members.
TALCB is pleased to announce the results of the 2017 Appraiser and AMC Fee Survey. TALCB engaged the Hobby School of Public Affairs at the University of Houston and the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University to conduct a survey to learn more about the practices of appraisers and appraisal management companies (AMCs) that operate in the state of Texas. A total of 1,038 appraisers and 59 appraisal management companies doing business in the state of Texas participated in the survey.
You may have heard about or read an article published in the Spring 2017 edition of Appraisal Buzz magazine entitled “When You Get Notice of a State Complaint”. This article discusses the complaint process in general and what to consider if you receive a complaint about your appraisal practice. Near the beginning of the article, reference is made to residential appraisers in Texas having “roughly one in six” odds of a complaint being filed against them with the Texas Appraiser Licensing and Certification Board during “one particularly busy year”.
In February 2017, the Appraisal Standards Board (ASB) of the Appraisal Foundation adopted revisions to the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP) for the 2018-19 edition. This process began with the issuance of a Discussion Draft in January 2016 and was followed by three exposure drafts of proposed revisions to USPAP. The changes adopted by the ASB at its meeting on February 3, 2017, will be incorporated in the 2018-19 edition of USPAP and associated guidance materials. These changes will become effective on January 01, 2018.
Applicants must submit fingerprints to apply for or renew a license.