About this Director, Valuation & Investigation Services role at Aprio
Aprio is seeking a Director to lead and grow the Real Estate Valuation Services practice within the Valuation & Investigation Services group. In this role, you will set practice strategy, originate and expand client relationships, sign complex appraisal assignments, and develop a high-performing team of valuation professionals.
You will collaborate across Aprio's Tax, Audit/Assurance, Wealth Management, and Aprio Legal service lines to bring real estate valuation into broader client engagements.
This is a high-impact leadership opportunity at the intersection of professional services, real estate, and financial advisory — with the autonomy to build a market-leading practice and the firm support to do it.
What You'll Gain/ Impact
- Opportunity to build and shape Aprio's Real Estate Valuation Services practice at a nationally recognized, high-growth firm
- Platform to originate and close work through built-in referral relationships across Tax, Audit/Assurance, Wealth Management, and Aprio Legal
- Exposure to complex, high-value assignments spanning commercial real estate, financial reporting, litigation support, and tax advisory
- Ability to mentor and develop the next generation of real estate valuation professionals — from Associate to Senior Manager
- Visibility as a market-facing leader through speaking engagements, publications, and professional organization involvement
Key Responsibilities
Practice Leadership and Growth
- Set practice strategy, service offerings, annual budget, and growth targets in partnership with Valuation & Investigation Services leadership
- Originate and expand client relationships with lenders, real estate funds, private equity sponsors, family offices, developers, attorneys, and Aprio's Real Estate industry team
- Partner with Tax, Audit/Assurance, and Wealth Management teams on cost segregation, estate and gift planning, purchase price allocations, and transaction-related valuation work
- Build market presence through speaking engagements, publications, and professional organization involvement
- Manage practice financials, including pricing, utilization, realization, and collections
- Serve as signing appraiser on complex assignments and final reviewer of the practice's work product
- Own the quality control program, including USPAP compliance, report review, workfile retention, and template standards
- Lead engagement acceptance, conflict checks, and independence reviews with Risk Management and Audit/Assurance teams, including AICPA independence rules for valuation services provided to attest clients
- Maintain appraiser credentials across states, including reciprocal credentials and temporary practice permits
- Track and apply changes to USPAP, AQB criteria, Interagency Appraisal and Evaluation Guidelines, and related accounting and tax guidance
- Lead assignments across office, industrial, retail, multifamily, hospitality, self-storage, seniors housing, land, and special-purpose property types
- Oversee valuations for lending, financial reporting (ASC 805, ASC 820, ASC 842, and ASC 360), estate, gift, and charitable contribution purposes, and fund and portfolio reporting
- Provide testimony and consulting support in litigation, arbitration, eminent domain, property tax appeals, bankruptcy, and marital dissolution matters
- Recruit, develop, and retain team members from Associate through Senior Manager
- Serve as supervisory appraiser and guide team members on the path to Certified General licensure and the MAI designation
- Set performance goals, deliver ongoing coaching, and lead formal performance reviews
Quality, Risk, and Compliance
Engagement Delivery
People Leadership
Candidate Qualifications
Experience
- At least 15 years of commercial real estate valuation experience, including at least five years leading a team or practice
- Proven record of originating client work and building long-term client relationships, with an established professional network
- Broad signing appraiser experience across commercial property types and intended uses
- Preferred: Prior testimony experience in depositions, trial, or arbitration
- Preferred: Experience with real estate valuation for financial reporting and tax purposes
- Preferred: Background in an accounting firm, national valuation firm, or professional services environment
- Active Certified General Real Property Appraiser license, in good standing, with the ability to obtain reciprocal credentials or temporary practice permits in additional states as engagements require
- MAI designation (Member of the Appraisal Institute)
- Meets AQB and applicable state requirements to supervise trainee appraisers
- Clean disciplinary history with no action affecting eligibility to practice
- Counselor of Real Estate (CRE), Certified Commercial Investment Member (CCIM), AI-GRS (General Review Specialist), or ASA designation
- Experience with the Uniform Appraisal Standards for Federal Land Acquisitions (Yellow Book)
- CPA, CFA, or ABV credential for financial reporting and tax overlap
- Bachelor's degree required; real estate, finance, economics, or accounting preferred
- Master's degree (MBA or M.S. in Real Estate) preferred
Licensing and Credentials — Required
Licensing and Credentials — Preferred
Education
Additional Skills
- Executive presence with clear, plain-language communication with clients, counsel, and courts
- Strong commercial judgment on scoping, pricing, and engagement risk
- Advanced knowledge of income capitalization, discounted cash flow (DCF), and market analysis
- Working knowledge of Argus Enterprise, CoStar, MSCI Real Capital Analytics, or comparable platforms