Appraisal myths & facts

Legally, an appraiser has to be state certified to write substantiated real estate appraisals for federally-backed sales. Also by law, you are entitled to request a copy of the completed appraisal report from your lending agency. Contact our professional staff if you have any questions about the appraisal process.

Myth: The value that is assessed by the appraiser will be equivalent to the market value.

Fact: This is not often the case; most states do support the idea that the assessed value is the same as market value, but not always. There are times when interior remodeling has occurred and the assessor is has not investigated the improvement or other houses in the area have not been reassessed for a good length of time, it may vary wildly.

Myth: The value of a property will vary depending upon if the appraisal is provided for the buyer or the seller.

Fact: The value of the home does not affect the salary of the appraiser; due to this, the appraiser has no pressured interest in the worth of the property. Obviously, he will conduct task with impartiality and independence regardless for whom the appraisal is created.

Myth: The replacement cost of the home will be is on par with the market value.

Fact: Without any pressure from any outside parties to purchase or sell, market value is what a willing buyer would pay a willing seller for a specific property. The dollar amount demanded to reconstruct a house is what constitutes the replacement cost.

Myth: Specific methods, like the price per square foot of the property, are the methods appraisers use to determine the price of a house.

Fact: An appraisal is an assertion of data concluded from the house's size, location, proximity to undesirable facilities, the condition of the property and the cost of recent comparable sales. You can count on B. E. Schenck & Associates, LLC's staff to be professional in assessing this information.

Myth: When the economy is on the rise and the cost of homes are reported to be increasing by a certain percentage, the other houses in the area can be expected to rise based on that same percentage.

Fact: Any value at which an appraiser arrives concerning a certain home is always personalized, based on certain factors pulled from the data of comparable homes and other considerations within the property itself. This is true in good economic times as well as poor.

Myth: Just seeing what the property looks like on the outside gives a good idea of its worth.

Fact: To determine an accurate value beyond all doubt, an appraiser must inspect the house on a variety of factors based on area, condition, improvements, amenities, and current market trends. An outside-only inspection definitely can't provide all of the data required.

Myth: Since you're the one providing the money for the appraisal when applying for your loan to buy or refinance your home, you own the provided appraisal report.

Fact: The document is, in fact, legally owned by the lending agency - unless the lender "relinquishes its interest" in the appraisal. However, home buyers must be given a copy of the appraisal upon written request, due to the Equal Credit Opportunity Act.

Myth: Consumers need not be concerned with what is in their document so long as it meets the needs of their lending company.

Fact: It is almost imperative for consumers to go through a copy of their appraisal so that they can verify the accuracy of the document, in case there is a need to question its accuracy. Remember, this is probably the most expensive and important investment a consumer will ever make. There is an incredible amount of information contained in an appraisal that will probably be useful to the consumer in the future, such as the legal and physical description of the property, square footage measurements, list of comparable properties in the neighborhood, neighborhood description and a narrative of current real-estate activity and/or market trends in the proximity.