Vyacheslav Revetsky
These changes, as well as the importance of this activity for the financial and banking sector and the requirements of commercial banks to valuation reports were discussed at the round table meeting organized by the National Society of Professional Valuers of RM (SNEP RM).
Last week, the draft amendments were discussed in the specialized commission of the Parliament and were sent for further consideration with the condition of finalization. SNEP RM notes that many of the amendments raise questions, are not clearly and reasoned enough.
Earlier, the authors of the amendments took note of and abandoned the idea of creating a database of all assessment reports, and left this requirement only for reports related to public property. But the list of completed reports for each quarter will still have to be submitted by appraisers in the form of a summary.
New certification rules for real estate appraisers are being introduced. Every five years they are required to take training courses, of course paid, and then already in the Agency of Geodesy, Cartography and Cadastre to take an exam to receive a “certificate of competence”. Today, appraisers in the certification commission pass only a written and oral exam. It’s not yet clear how much the training courses will cost and it’s not clear who will be doing the training. In one place of the amendments it is written that this will be done by an accredited institution (Technical University, etc.), in another – that there should be accredited programs.
“But these are different things,” says Vyacheslav Revetsky, chairman of SNEP RM. – According to the law, accreditation should be conducted by the National Accreditation Center (MOLDAC). But the procedure there is long, complicated and quite expensive. And if only educational programs are to be accredited, the Ministry of Education is responsible for this.
Besides, it is not clear, he notes, what number of hours the courses include. If we take an analogy with auditors, then, as in many countries, the certificate is issued for life. But every year the auditor must undergo advanced training, let’s say 40 hours. This includes participation in conferences, symposiums, seminars, courses in order to accumulate these 40 hours in total. That is, improvement in the profession is an annual process. And we are offered training once every five years.
There have been changes to the composition of the Real Estate Appraiser Certification Commission that SNEP RM cannot agree with either. Previously there were 7 members in the commission, according to the new rules there are only 5 members. Of these, two are from the Agency of Geodesy, Cartography and Cadastre, two from the academic community and one from a public organization or the private sector. “But why ‘or’, because if public organizations represent the interests of the majority of the profession, a private firm may have its own narrow interest,” Revecky wondered. – Nothing is said about how they will choose, by what criteria, from which public organizations or private firms.”
The legislation wants to introduce a separate certification of the appraiser of movable property. But again it is not specified who will train and certify them. The Chamber of Commerce and Industry of RM offered to undertake this mission, as it has been engaged in this activity for a long time and has the appropriate level of experts. But it was rejected because of a conflict of interest.
The National Society of Professional Appraisers of RM (SNEP RM) was created in 2022. Currently, it has 57 members, both certified and non-certified appraisers from Chisinau and other regions of the Republic.
