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Review Theory—General is the fundamental review course that all reviewers of assignments involving income-producing and other nonresidential properties should have in their educational background. It is a required course for individuals pursuing the Appraisal Institute General Review Designation (AI-GRS, Appraisal Institute General Review Specialist).

At the core of this course is the review process. Participants explore the seven steps outlined in this process as they apply to nonresidential properties. To be a reviewer, an appraiser must learn how to develop opinions of completeness, accuracy, adequacy, relevance, and reasonableness relative to the work under review. These opinions must be refined through tests of reasonableness to develop reconciled opinions of appropriateness and credibility.The material provides a refresher on key valuation skills often required of reviewers, such as measuring financial feasibility in highest and best use analysis and various applications of the income capitalization approach. In addition, the course covers reporting reviews for income-producing property and the use of commercial review report forms, narrative reports, and oral review reports. Participants will gain practice in writing a scope of work statement for three types of assignments. They will also develop a template for a narrative review report on a property type of their choice (office, retail, apartment, etc.). By taking this course, participants will gain invaluable confidence in the fundamentals of review.

Please note: Designated Members and Candidates for Designation will receive the discounted AI Price for Advanced Education courses: Review Theory-General and Review Case Studies-General. All others will receive the Full Price.

Upon completion of the course, participants should be able to:
• Define review
• Distinguish between appraisal and review
• Evaluate the necessary knowledge and skills required to complete reviews
• Distinguish between trivial and material errors
• Identify types of review assignments and the process employed in the reviewer’s scope of work
• Recognize regulatory compliance issues for review appraisers
• Identify the steps necessary to effectively communicate the review

The Review Theory—General course is required for individuals pursuing the Appraisal Institute General Review Designation (AI-GRS – Appraisal Institute General Review Specialist). For more information regarding the requirements for the review designation, please click here.

If you are currently designated, click here for more information on the alternative path.

If you are currently a candidate for designation, or wish to become a candidate, click here for the specific designation requirements.

The 40-hour Advanced Concepts & Case Studies course implements a blended learning approach, which includes a pre-class, two-hour online session combined with 35 hours of traditional classroom education and wraps up with a three-hour exam on the sixth morning.

Please note Designated Members and Candidates for Designation will receive the discounted AI Price for Advanced Education courses: Advanced Income Capitalization, Advanced Market Analysis and Highest and Best Use, Advanced Concepts and Case Studies, and Quantitative Analysis. All others will receive the Full Price.

For more information on how to become a Candidate for Designation, click here.

Please review the FAQs for important information regarding registration and cancellation deadlines; mandatory diagnostic test; online session; course equivalencies.Click here.

Upon completion of the course, participants should be able to: • Develop and reconcile cost, income, and sales comparison approaches for a leased fee interest rent, including consistent treatment of property rights
• Recognize the typical relationships between yield rates on leased fee and fee simple estates, considering their varying risk
• Review proper procedures for developing a market-supported discounted cash flow analysis, and apply them to practical examples
• Develop and reconcile cost, income, and sales comparison approaches for a proposed property as is, upon completion, and upon stabilization
• Demonstrate a working knowledge of various methods of calculating a rent-up adjustment and a property rights adjustment
• Identify the demographic and economic data used to estimate an absorption period for a development project
• Develop and reconcile cost, income, and sales comparison approaches for a property in a market not at equilibrium
• Conduct inferred and fundamental demand analysis based on data provided in case studies
• Develop and reconcile cost, income, and sales comparison approaches for a subdivision

This course addresses topics that were not included in the previous version, such as the Guide Notes to Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice. Numerous Q&As address real-life, up-to-date matters that appraisers encounter in various assignments, including mortgage lending, litigation, property tax appeal, and many more.

The course contains relevant and much-needed information for professional appraisers.

The content emphasizes:
• Business practices issues, such as how to respond to seemingly unreasonable requests, how to address client pressure, and how to approach a complex assignment
• Which standards apply to Appraisal Institute Designated Members, Candidates for Designation, Practicing Affiliates, and Affiliates, and when they apply
• The key principles of the Standards of Valuation Practice
• How to identify and avoid behavior that violates the Standards of Valuation Practice
• The correct way to use the Appraisal Institute’s designations, emblems, and logo
• Understanding the Appraisal Institute’s enforcement process

NOTE: The AQB approved this course for 4 hours of CE. This is due to some content being specific to the Appraisal Institute. Check with your state for approved credit hours.