A Six-Determine Profession for Mothers That Lets You Set Your Personal Schedule
In June 2021, 57.5 percent of women aged 20 and over were employed – the lowest percentage since the 1980s. In addition, the average salary of women in the past year was 19 percent lower than that of their male colleagues. What if we told mothers looking to return to work that there was a profitable, flexible career option that would perfectly suit their needs? Some mothers have already discovered it.
A New York Times article earlier this year highlighted the accomplishments of two Maryland residents, Robin Arnone and Traci Warner. They became home appraisers to supplement their pre-pandemic incomes, and Robin now makes $ 250,000 a year while Traci makes more money and enjoys the lifestyle improvements her career has made possible. Best of all, you create your own schedules.
Working mothers can gain similar control over their daily life and financial fortunes. As Arnone and Warner found, women can pick up on a strong but underestimated demand in the appraisal trade because the residential real estate market needs a new generation of appraisers. This specialty is not currently suitable for people over 60, and 55 percent of them are about to retire.
In addition, the number of new appraisers has declined over the past half decade, and data shows that if not addressed, it is an impending problem for the housing market. The Appraisal Institute’s latest 2019 report found there were about 78,000 real estate appraisers in the US, but they were leaving the company at an annual rate of 2.6 percent, while job postings are expected to grow 3 percent each year through 2029 .
What is guess?
For mothers new to the profession, an appraiser evaluates the foundation, exterior walls, roof, gutters, and more of a building, and also inspects the interior floors, walls, and paneling. One of the main tasks, among other tasks, is to examine property values in the area to assess the value of the house, apartment or building.
Flexibility is the future
With advances in technology, working mothers have better control over their schedules as reviewers than most careers. Desktop and mobile apps now allow reviewers to check their work calendars around the clock, specify times and places where they are available, and “block” times when they are not available. Consumers or lenders are able to schedule appointments based on the appraiser’s availability, thereby avoiding phone games that often hinder a appraiser’s workflow. These new digital tools can make life easier, not just to make a good living, but also to make the piano concert or picking up a child from daycare easier.
Since appraisers are independent contractors, they are paid by the time the job is completed, not by the hour. Their ability to conduct assessments virtually increases the number of jobs they can accept and complete, which helps mothers who receive assessments earn more. This technology also saves you hours of travel time (as well as fuel costs).
Six-figure salaries
The effort to get into the field can be more than worth it. While cases like Robin and Traci prove a quarter of a million dollars in years are possible, real estate appraisers who were just starting out earned an average salary of $ 60,000 in 2020, while their seasoned counterparts made $ 100,000 or more .
In addition, this profession is educationally inclusive. High school graduates can become home appraisers for properties less than $ 1 million and four units or less. A federal bachelor’s degree is required for larger properties in excess of $ 1 million. Aspiring reviewers must also study in courses that last a few months, and obtaining licensed credentials takes six to twelve months, depending on the state and its regulations.
A new wave of talent
While women make up only 21 percent of the reviewers, they make up 67 percent of the brokers. The lack of female reviewers has resulted in a lack of mentors for young women to turn to to get started. Still, working mothers can pave the way for future mentoring. New technologies are helping to make all of this possible.
New digital tools give appraisers more control over their earnings as they can spend more time completing assignments in an industry where their expertise is increasingly in demand. Ultimately, this leads to more customers being billed more frequently; It also enables reviewers to better balance work and private life, which is crucial for working mothers.
It’s worth noting that the Brookings Institute found that women have better digital skills than men. Hence, women – who are naturally tech-savvy and tend to be detail-oriented – can be the benefactors of this market demand and represent the new wave of appraisers that real estate needs. They can build equitable careers with a DIY attitude and cutting edge technology and get paid salaries they deserve.
Robin and Traci’s examples should inspire other working mothers to consider evaluating. It is time for this profession to help women like you reach new heights of professional independence.
Kristy Folino is Managing Director, Valuations at ServiceLink.
