What is an appraisal
View our tutorial video. View a sample appraisal
For most Americans, their personal home purchase may just be one of the largest, single investments you and many other people ever make. Whether it's a primary residence, a second and/or vacation home, or an investment property, the purchase of a property can be a complex financial transaction that typically requires multiple parties to make it all happen.
Most of the people involved are very familiar to most purchasers. The real estate broker can be the most common face of the transaction. The bank, credit union, or mortgage company typically provides the financial capital necessary to fund the transaction. The title company ensures that all aspects of the transaction are completed and that a clear title passes from the seller to the buyer.
So who makes sure the value of the property is in line with the amount being paid? There are too many people exposed in the real estate process to let such a transaction proceed without ensuring that the value of the property is commensurate with the amount being paid.
This is where the real estate appraisal comes in. An appraisal is an unbiased estimate of what a knowing buyer might expect to pay - or a knowing seller receive - for a parcel of real estate, where both the buyer and seller are well informed parties and the property has been typically marketed for an adequate amount of time. To be a well informed party, many people turn to a certified, professional real estate appraiser to provide them with the most accurate estimate of the true market value of their real property.
The Appraisal Inspection So what goes into a real estate appraisal? It all starts with the appraisal inspection. An appraiser's duty is to inspect the property being appraised to ascertain the true status of that property. He or she must actually see features, such as the number of bedrooms, bathrooms, the location, and so on, to ensure that they really exist and are in the condition a reasonable buyer would expect them to be. The inspection often includes a sketch of the property, ensuring the proper square footage and conveying the layout of the property. Most importantly, the appraiser looks for any obvious features - or defects - that would affect the value of the house.
Once the site has been inspected, an appraiser uses two or three approaches to determining the value of real property: a cost approach, a sales comparison and, in the case of a potential income producing property, an income approach.
Cost Approach The cost approach is the easiest to understand. The appraiser utilizes information on local building costs, labor rates and other factors to determine how much it would cost to construct a property similar to the one being appraised. This value often sets the upper limit on what a property would sell for. Why would you pay more for an existing property if you could spend less and build a brand new home instead? While there may be mitigating factors, such as location and amenities, these are usually not reflected in the cost approach.
Sales Comparison Approach Instead, appraisers rely on the sales comparison approach to value these types of items. Appraisers get to know the neighborhoods in which they work. They understand the value of certain features to the residents of that area. They know the traffic patterns, the school zones, the busy throughways; and they use this information to determine which attributes of a property will make a difference in the value. Then, the appraiser researches recent sales in the vicinity and finds properties which are ''comparable'' to the subject being appraised. The sales prices of these properties are used as a basis to begin the sales comparison approach.
Using knowledge of the value of certain items such as square footage, extra bathrooms, hardwood floors, fireplaces or view lots (just to name a few), the appraiser adjusts the comparable properties to more accurately portray the subject property. For example, if the comparable property has a fireplace and the subject does not, the appraiser may deduct the value of a fireplace from the sales price of the comparable home. If the subject property has an extra half-bathroom and the comparable does not, the appraiser might add a certain amount to the comparable property.
Income Approach In the case of income producing properties - commercial properties or even rental houses for example - the appraiser may use a third approach to valuing the property. In this case, the amount of net income the property produces is used to arrive at the current estimated market value of those revenues over the foreseeable future. This is calculated by rates from the subject's current market.
Reconciliation Combining information from all approaches, the appraiser is then ready to stipulate an estimated market value for the subject property. It is important to note that while this amount is probably the best indication of what a property is worth, it may not be the final sales price. There are always mitigating factors such as seller motivation, urgency or ''bidding wars'' that may adjust the final price up or down. But the appraised value is often used as a guideline for lenders who don't want to loan a buyer more money than the property is actually worth. The bottom line is: an appraiser will help you get the most accurate property value, so you can make the most informed real estate decisions.
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