About Our Founder...

Mr. James H. Pritchett served as a submariner with the Navy in the Pacific during WWII, returning home to obtain degrees from Georgia Tech and Emory. In 1954, Mr. Pritchett founded our predecessor company, "Pritchett & Company."

Mr. Pritchett was considered to be an exceptional educator and mentor, having employed or mentored many of today's MAI-designated appraisers in the United States, as well as teaching hundreds of valuation-related courses for the Appraisal Institute and its predecessor, The American Institute of Real Estate Appraisers, Emory University Law School and other organizations. In total, he taught 67 different courses in real estate, with an emphasis in the area of litigation.

Mr. Pritchett served as President of the American Institute of Real Estate Appraisers (predating the current Appraisal Institute) in 1967 and on its Board of Directors from 1981 to 1983.

Mr. Pritchett is also acknowledged by his peers and clients as having been one of the finest providers of expert witness services in the region. In 1978, he completely revised the litigation course for the AIREA.

In January 2002, Mr. Pritchett passed after an extended illness. Shortly thereafter, through the hard work of Joe Ball and generous donors, the Appraisal Institute established the annual James H. Pritchett Award "In recognition of an outstanding contribution to the appraisal profession in the area of education and professional development."