Your Home Appraisal Guide

What should you say to the appraiser?

What research should you do before the appraiser comes out?

What paperwork should you prepare and give to the appraiser?

What should you ask or not ask the appraiser?

How do you ensure you get the most fair and favorable appraisal of your home?

This a guide to the home appraisal process. It outlines what you need to know to prepare for your home appraisal. What steps to ensure you get the best and most fair appraisal of your property and how to read an analyze the appraisal report.

How can you estimate the value of your home using the same method the appraiser will use?

I have created a free Home Value Estimator that you can use to estimate the value of your home. This is free when you purchase the guide, however if you would just like the free estimator by itself then CLICK HERE.

This is a comprehensive guide designed to equip the homeowner or real estate agent with the tools and knowledge necessary to ensure they get a fair appraisal of their property.

Table of Contents

Intro

The Purpose of This Guide

Some Mortgage Guidelines

Step One – The Inspection

What will the appraiser do?

What should we say and provide to the appraiser?

Step Two – The Appraiser Completes the Appraisal Report

How do we read the report?

How do we make sure we received a fair valuation?

How to estimate the value of your property?

How can we respond to an appraisal we feel is unfair?

FAQ

Who is this guide for?

This guide was written for homeowners and real estate agents in mind. In these instances, the value of the appraisal is important as to whether a loan will go through or not. Therefore the most fair appraisal is needed.

Is Zillow or other online website values accurate?

These online sites that value your home can be accurate in general terms. If your neighborhood consists of homes of the same age, quality and condition then these estimates can be very accurate. However if there is a range of quality, condition, level of updating or unique property features then these models are less accurate. That is why an accurate appraisal should use a direct comparison of homes based on specific features.

Will this guide get me a higher value on my appraisal?

There are no secrets to get your home appraised for more than it’s true market value. This guide is meant to provide you with information on the appraisal process as well as the documents and communication you should have with the appraiser. By doing this we are letting the appraiser know that we are knowledgeable and looking for a fair and accurate appraisal. This can definitely work in your favor.

Samples from the Guide

“Step One – The Inspection

After going through the initial loan application and pre-approval process with your mortgage broker to see if you qualify, you decide to move forward with the loan. One of the first steps will be for your mortgage company to order an appraisal. Soon after, you will be contacted by a local appraiser ready to come to your property for the inspection.

Most of the time, when you purchased the home, the appraisal would have been completed before you closed escrow, so you never had a chance to meet the appraiser nor even get a copy of the appraisal. (Always get and keep a copy of the appraisal from your mortgage broker, but you probably have to ask.)

This time, the appraiser will contact you to schedule a time to come to your property. Keep in mind most appraisers are independent contractors. They are not employed by your lender or mortgage company but rather are contracted on a per assignment basis. They typically do not have much if any information on your loan details, how much you will borrow, or even the name of your contact at the mortgage company.

In any case, you have now scheduled a time to meet the appraiser at your property. What should you expect? Well, the appraisal process is broken down into two steps.

What will the appraiser do?

Step one is the inspection in which you will meet the appraiser at the property.  The whole inspection process can take from 30-60 minutes for an average house but potentially longer if it is a large unique property.

The appraiser arrives and while every appraiser has a different protocol or order, they generally complete the same tasks.

The appraiser will verify the square footage of the house by measuring the structure from the outside. The garage, any sheds or outbuildings will be measured as well but will be separate from the house's square footage, which is referred to as Gross Living Area (GLA). Patios and garages will also be separate from the GLA. The number of bedrooms and bathrooms will be counted as they are the primary factors that may influence value. Most other rooms are encompassed with the square footage, meaning House A might have a media room and House B does not,  but it has an office. If those two houses are the same size, it generally doesn’t matter the make-up of other rooms. On the other hand, bedrooms and bathrooms play more of a role in the functionality and appeal of a house.”

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“An important thing to know with regards to mortgage appraisals is an appraiser can only discuss the details and specifics of an appraisal report’s conclusions with the exact client who commissioned them to do the assignment. That means that even though the appraisal is for your loan, for your property, and you are most likely paying for it, that appraiser cannot discuss the conclusions, results or specifics of that report with anyone but their client, which is the lender.

 Avoid asking the appraiser what they think the house is worth. They have typically not done the step two research portion yet. They ethically cannot discuss it with you, which puts them in an awkward position. But don't worry, by doing the steps above, we have planted the seeds we needed to. We earned some favor by making their inspection go smoothly. We must now wait for the lender to receive the report.“

This appraisal guide is meant for educational purposes only and should not be relied upon to make any financial decisions or replace an actual appraisal by a licensed appraiser.

Following the guidance and recommendations of this ebook does not guarantee a higher valuation.