To offer an appraisal course as defined by this Part, an appraisal school must first obtain approval from the department by submitting an application to the department.
Appraisal courses may be presented by any college or university accredited by the Education Department of the State of New York or by a regional accrediting agency accepted by the NYS Commissioner of Education; public and private vocational schools; real estate boards, and real estate appraisal professional societies and organizations. An appraisal school may not be owned, affiliated with or controlled directly or indirectly by a real estate broker, salesperson, appraiser or an employee of an appraiser.
Applications seeking approval from the department to conduct an appraisal course shall be made at least 60 days before the proposed course is to be conducted and in a form prescribed by the department which shall include the following:
Appraisal trade organizations and appraisal schools offering appraisal courses outside the State of New York may apply to the department for approval to offer the appraisal courses for credit within the State of New York. Applications for recognition must demonstrate that the course is substantially equivalent to an appraisal course as outlined in this Part and must contain a course outline and final examination. Recognized courses may be advertised as having received Department of State approval. Said advertisements must, however, state that the recognized course has been approved as a prelicensing/certification course.
The following fees shall be payable on submission of the application or applications and are nonrefundable. The annual registration period shall run from October 1st to the subsequent September 30th.
There shall be no change in any approved appraisal course without prior written notice to and approval by the department.
Appraisal courses shall be conducted in such premises and in such facilities as shall be necessary to properly present the course. Factors considered by the department in evaluating the appropriateness of a proposed facility are adequate seating, access to restrooms and other facilities, the functionality of heating and other utilities, access for persons with disabilities and that the proposed course is being offered in a public, commercial facility. No appraisal course shall be conducted in the office of a real estate broker or real estate appraiser. Appraisal courses shall be open to all members of the public regardless of the membership of the prospective licensee in any real estate board or real estate appraisal related professional society or organization.
To meet the minimum statutory requirement, attendance of an appraisal course shall be computed on the basis of an hour equaling not less than 50 minutes. Appraisal schools must provide prospective licensees with a break in instruction of 10 minutes for every hour of instruction. The placement of the break shall be left to the discretion of the appraisal school but shall be for a minimum of 10 minutes per hour of instruction.
All final examinations shall be written and presented within a reasonable time after the completion of the course work. No final examination may be administered unless it has been approved by the department. A prospective licensee must obtain a minimum grade of 70 percent on the final examination for each appraisal course taken in order for a certificate of completion to be issued. Prospective licensees who fail to achieve a mark of at least 70 percent on a final examination may, at the discretion of the appraisal school, be allowed to take another final examination. Appraisal schools shall be required to periodically change the final examinations administered to prospective licensees.
Appraisal schools shall provide prospective licensees who have successfully completed an appraisal course with a department approved certificate of successful completion. Prospective licensees receiving said certificates must have attended the required aggregate number of hours of the appraisal course and received a passing grade on the final examination. The certificate shall include the name of the appraisal school, name of the appraisal course that has been completed, the assigned code number of the appraisal school and a statement that the named student has satisfactorily completed a course of study in real estate appraisal subjects approved in accordance with the provisions of chapter 696 of the Laws of 1990 and that his or her attendance was satisfactory and in conformity with the law and that such course was completed on a stated date. The certificate must be signed by the education coordinator, or his or her designee, must be dated and must have affixed thereto the official raised embossed seal of the appraisal school.
Appraisal schools must obtain and keep on file, proof of student completion of appraisal courses, records of attendance and records of instructors for a minimum of five years from the date the appraisal course was completed. Appraisal schools must also retain examination papers for all prospective licensees attending an appraisal course at said school for a period of five years after the completion of the appraisal course. Said records shall be made available for inspection, upon request, by a duly authorized representative of the department.
Appraisal schools must provide the department with evidence of satisfactory policies relating to appraisal course cancellation and tuition refunds. Such policies must be provided in writing to prospective students prior to an appraisal school's acceptance of any fees from the prospective student.
Appraisal schools may not make or publish any false or misleading statement regarding employment opportunities which may be available as a result of the successful completion of an appraisal course or acquisition of a real estate appraiser license/certification. No recruitment activities for employment are to be allowed by the education coordinators whatsoever.
Appraisal schools are prohibited from any placement activities which may result in the offering of employment to students of said school.
Appraisal schools shall permit duly authorized designees of the department to audit any appraisal course offered, to verify attendance and to inspect the records of attendance of the appraisal course at any time during its presentation or thereafter.
N.Y. Comp. Codes R. & Regs. Tit. 19 § 1103.3