It’s a Family Affair: Tandalla Jackson becomes an Appraiser

By Tabitha Ervin
FWIS Editorial Director

Tandalla Jackson has recently passed her test to become one of the first African American female appraisers in the city of Fort Wayne. She and her husband are owners of several businesses under what I called the “Jackson Enterprise”. They both come from humble beginnings and are blessed to be able to successfully manage their businesses, raise their children, be servant leaders and give back as the “firsts” in their family to own businesses, own their home and graduate from college. Tandalla did not originally plan to be an entrepreneur and we laughed about that together with her saying, "our kids know where we come from and see how hard we work”.

Included under their business umbrella are the following businesses initially started by her husband Jermaine and then Tandalla fully joined the business ventures once he started their second business:

Her husband Jermaine first established Jackson Insurance Agency (2012), then Remediation and Restorative Services in 2016 after Jermaine got his construction license. It was at this point he asked Tandalla to join him as he was getting really busy and needed her help, she was working within FWCS at the time. She started a Tax prep business in 2016 after working with her cousin's business initially in 2015. And now Key Property Management which they started in 2022. Within the property management business, they support 25 properties for which they accept vouchers and section 8.

When Tandalla was in her real estate classes, she remembers her middle-aged white instructor saying there weren’t many appraisers even his age, let alone female or African American and that stuck with her. She then made it her goal to become an appraiser and break into that business as an African American female! She applied for a scholarship to the Chicago Appraisal Institute under the Appraiser Diversity Initiative (Urban League, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac) which is designed to reach diverse, talented candidates and educate them about the appraisal profession; provide resources for interested candidates to help them get on a path to success; and offer guidance from appraisers employed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (https://www.appraisalinstitute.org) and got it and began her 6 month journey. Once finished with her classes, she took the test and missed it by three points then took it a week later and passed on March 29, 2023! She is now looking for a supervisor/mentor so that she can complete her 2500 appraiser trainer hours which can take anywhere from 6-18 months before she can do appraisals on her own.

An appraiser’s job is to determine the current value of a property for the potential buyer. Most of the work to determine the value of a real estate appraisal is done during an on-site inspection, where the appraiser will:

• Conduct a room-by-room walk-through to appraise the condition of the interior

• Walk the length of the real estate property for an appraisal of the condition of the exterior

• Appraise the value of any amenities, such as a swimming pool, finished basement, or built-in bar

• Note any health or safety code violations for the appraisal report

• Record the layout of the property, inspect the square footage, and determine whether or not it’s a single-family dwelling

• If you’re buying commercial real estate, a property appraiser may conduct a business valuation to determine market value in much the same way.

Off site, the appraiser may also evaluate the current real estate market, considering comparable properties in the neighborhood, to help evaluate the home’s value or fair market value of the property.

A home appraiser will report on the value of similar properties in your area, so you can determine whether your upcoming real estate transaction is a smart one. (realtor.com)

With the Jackson family businesses, they have operated mostly word of mouth but you can reach them online, via phone or email the following ways:

Phone: 26-418-1594
Email: tjackson@coldwellhomes.com
Websites: www.jacksoninsuranceagency.biz
www.jacksonremediation.com