Interprovincial Professional Property Assessors of Canada (IPPAC)

The Interprovincial Professional Property Assessors of Canada Mission

The Presidents of British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, and Ontario support the formation of a virtual umbrella organization that will support leadership, communication, career and education opportunities, and provide support to its' members across Canada who in turn will provide professional, high quality assessment services.

This historic agreement was initially signed on June 11, 2001 at the Institute of Municipal Assessors' of Ontario Conference with representative organizations from Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Ontario.

On October 24, 2001, at the 42nd Annual Conference of the Saskatchewan Assessors' Association, Judi Whyte, President of the Real Estate Institute of British Columbia signed the agreement as the representative organization for British Columbia.

The virtual umbrella organization will culminate over thirty years of discussion in regards to shared member services for little or no cost to its' combined membership of 3000.

This agreement includes a program that sets a high standard for National Assessor Qualifications thereby providing wider recognition of the profession of assessment in Canada. Educational standards are a prerequisite for involvement in the interprovincial body.

Interprovincial Professional Property Assessors of Canada
c/o Alberta Assessors' Association
#101, 10215 - 176th Street
Edmonton, AB T5S 1M1
Phone: (780) 483-4222
Fax: (780) 487-7505

 For more information, please contact the above.

Background:

Presidents and designates of Assessment jurisdictions across Canada have met from time to time for more than thirty years and discussed at length items of interest that were required to address various members' needs.

• A higher level of attention has been given to education issues by various organizations in more recent history.
• All attempts to pull the issues together to address the needs of the members have been met with limited success.
• On September 7, 2000 after several years of negotiation, an agreement was signed by Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, and Ontario that set out a base level of education common to all four participating provinces.
• This agreement included a draft process for application and issuing of an Interprovincial Qualifications Certificate.
• Although the Presidents have not met historically at each conference to discuss common issues, this new agreement created a need to have an umbrella organization to administer this new member initiative.
• In the past, offers to form a national, interprovincial accrediting organization have received mixed reviews, and to this date have not gained true national member momentums.
• In May 2001, a concept was presented to the four national presidents that would provide a virtual umbrella organization for the members.
• The virtual umbrella organization met the test of providing a unified organization that would represent the member's needs at no cost, or minimal cost depending on the member's expectations.

On June 1, 2001 a letter requesting information on IPPAC was received from the Real Estate Institute of British Columbia requesting membership and participation in the Presidents' talks regarding Interprovincial Qualifications and the Interprovincial organization.

As a result, in consultation with the Alberta Past President, feedback was provided to assist in bringing forward to the June 11, 2001 Interprovincial President's Meeting, a document that would be an Agreement in Principle to form an official Interprovincial non-profit organization to satisfy the needs of Interprovincial Professional Assessors in all participating provinces.

On June 11, 2001 the four participating provinces: Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, and Ontario signed an agreement to form an Interprovincial virtual umbrella organization to meet the needs of approximately 2500 members across Canada.

A historic signing on October 24, 2001 of a representative organization from British Columbia, and the attendance of a representative organization from the Atlantic Provinces continues to add to the representation of over 3000 members across Canada.

What will this Agreement provide to me in my home province?

• Wider public recognition of Assessor qualifications.
• Shared cost of education program development through improved access, decreased costs, and increased availability of educational and professional development opportunities.
• Stronger voice to advocate and lobby for Assessment Valuation Policies.
• Employers' willingness to recognize qualifications important to Valuation and Assessment Administration.
• Ongoing communication and participation between the jurisdictions in which Associations represent Assessors.
• Recognition that the standards, performance, and goals of a member's professional Assessors' Association in their province meet a set of high national standards.
• Recognition of professional qualifications across provincial borders.

What are the benefits to the provincial organizations?

• Members affiliated with a Canadian national organization.
• Structure that provides a venue to discuss and share objectives and initiatives at a Provincial President's Meeting during each provincial convention.
• Cooperation across all participating organizations.
• Globalization of the members and assessment issues.
• The IPPAC strategic plan outlines a long-term plan for all provincial organizations to address the needs of our members locally and nationally if required.
• The profile Professionalism and Integrity of the local organization is raised through the cooperation with other provincial organizations.
• Strengthen alliances and cooperation with other Property Valuation Organizations.
• Share member information through a quarterly national newsletter.

Future . . .

• Produce a national membership card.
• Founding of the organization through registration of IPPAC bylaws.
• Update Strategic Plan to reflect the member requirements.
• Survey members through conference packages and newsletters.
• Quarterly newsletter.