The Appraisal: How to Prepare and What to Expect
Weather you are buying your first house, investing in a vacation property, or refinancing your home sweet home, an appraisal will always be part of the process. Your Favorite Real Estate Team is the best real estate business at the Lake of the Ozarks, and we are very familiar with the home buying process. Today we are going to walk you through the details of an appraisal so you know how to prepare and what to expect. Read on to learn more!
The real estate appraisal is a service that is ordered by the mortgage lender during the real estate transaction process. An appraisal’s purpose is to determine how much a home is worth. Appraisers go over the house and property in detail and then create a comprehensive report about the home and what its value is.
Appraisers need to be unbiased when they make their assessment of a home, so they are hired by the mortgage lender, rather than the buyer or seller of the home. The cost of the appraisal goes to the buyer. Or, in the case of a refinance, the home owner. When the time for an appraisal comes, the lender will send a request to the buyer to make payment, then the appraiser will be chosen and put in contact with the buyer to make an appointment to come out to the house.
Preparing for an appraisal can make a big difference in how the appraisal goes on appointment day. While you may not have time for major renovations, there are a lot of things you can do to help improve the condition of your home and give a better impression to the appraiser when they arrive.
While this may seem like a given, it can be easy to get used to the way your home looks without considering what it may look like to an outsider. The more clutter you have in your home, the more difficult it will be for the appraiser to view the important aspects of the home and give an unbiased opinion. You may be in love with the knick-knacks you’ve collected over your years of travel, but without the sentimental background, your appraiser may simply see an overcrowded space that looks smaller than it is. Think of the décor and design as if you are staging the home for sale, even if you are only refinancing. Help give the appraiser an idea of the home’s potential!
Look around the house and check for any paint chips, wall dings, nail holes, and broken fixtures. Make a list as you go so you don’t forget anything, then get the necessary supplies and get to work! Touch-up paint that has been scuffed and chipped over time. Fill in gouges and hole with putty and repaint the area to match the rest of the wall. Replace broken outlet and light switch covers, and fix anything else around the house that looks like it is in disrepair.
You only get one impression with an appraisal, so make sure it counts! Stand in front of the house and look at it with a fresh perspective. What would someone see first? Are the windows marked up with smudges and cobwebs? Does the screen door not shut completely? Are weeds taking over? Make a few small cosmetic changes to make sure everything looks as good as possible when the appraiser arrives. If you have a lakefront home, then you also may want to stand on the dock and look toward your house from that perspective. Some appraisers may just look at your dock and yard from the house’s deck, while others may walk around the whole property and inspect it with a fine-toothed comb. In case you have the latter, make sure your house looks great from every angle. Stow away the water toys, put out the cushions for your outdoor furniture, and be sure to sweep the deck and mow the grass.
There are a few crucial steps that make up the appraisal process: the inspection, the comparable properties, and the final report. The inspection is the portion of the appraisal where a professional appraiser comes out to your home and inspects the house from top to bottom. The appraiser will then find comparable properties in the area to help calculate an accurate value for your home. It’s best to use “comps” in the same neighborhood, or nearby areas so that the cost of housing is the same. (The cost of a two-bedroom home in rural Missouri is quite different from a two-bedroom home in New York City.) The final report is the last stage of the appraisal when all of the details of your home are reported: the property and market analysis, the home’s size and condition, serious structural issues that surfaced, recent home renovations, photographs and sketches of the property, and anything else that is relevant to the property value.
Your Favorite Real Estate Team has your back throughout the home buying and selling process. When it’s time for your home appraisal, take the steps in today’s blog to get ready for your appointment. Be sure to follow-through and confirm that you have received a fair evaluation. Your Favorite Real Estate Team is the best in the business, and we will be there with you every step of the way as you look for your new home at the Lake of the Ozarks.
What is an Appraisal?
The real estate appraisal is a service that is ordered by the mortgage lender during the real estate transaction process. An appraisal’s purpose is to determine how much a home is worth. Appraisers go over the house and property in detail and then create a comprehensive report about the home and what its value is.
Who is Responsible?
Appraisers need to be unbiased when they make their assessment of a home, so they are hired by the mortgage lender, rather than the buyer or seller of the home. The cost of the appraisal goes to the buyer. Or, in the case of a refinance, the home owner. When the time for an appraisal comes, the lender will send a request to the buyer to make payment, then the appraiser will be chosen and put in contact with the buyer to make an appointment to come out to the house.
How to Prepare?
Preparing for an appraisal can make a big difference in how the appraisal goes on appointment day. While you may not have time for major renovations, there are a lot of things you can do to help improve the condition of your home and give a better impression to the appraiser when they arrive.
Clear Away Clutter
While this may seem like a given, it can be easy to get used to the way your home looks without considering what it may look like to an outsider. The more clutter you have in your home, the more difficult it will be for the appraiser to view the important aspects of the home and give an unbiased opinion. You may be in love with the knick-knacks you’ve collected over your years of travel, but without the sentimental background, your appraiser may simply see an overcrowded space that looks smaller than it is. Think of the décor and design as if you are staging the home for sale, even if you are only refinancing. Help give the appraiser an idea of the home’s potential!
Minor Fixes
Look around the house and check for any paint chips, wall dings, nail holes, and broken fixtures. Make a list as you go so you don’t forget anything, then get the necessary supplies and get to work! Touch-up paint that has been scuffed and chipped over time. Fill in gouges and hole with putty and repaint the area to match the rest of the wall. Replace broken outlet and light switch covers, and fix anything else around the house that looks like it is in disrepair.
Curb Appeal
You only get one impression with an appraisal, so make sure it counts! Stand in front of the house and look at it with a fresh perspective. What would someone see first? Are the windows marked up with smudges and cobwebs? Does the screen door not shut completely? Are weeds taking over? Make a few small cosmetic changes to make sure everything looks as good as possible when the appraiser arrives. If you have a lakefront home, then you also may want to stand on the dock and look toward your house from that perspective. Some appraisers may just look at your dock and yard from the house’s deck, while others may walk around the whole property and inspect it with a fine-toothed comb. In case you have the latter, make sure your house looks great from every angle. Stow away the water toys, put out the cushions for your outdoor furniture, and be sure to sweep the deck and mow the grass.
What to Expect?
There are a few crucial steps that make up the appraisal process: the inspection, the comparable properties, and the final report. The inspection is the portion of the appraisal where a professional appraiser comes out to your home and inspects the house from top to bottom. The appraiser will then find comparable properties in the area to help calculate an accurate value for your home. It’s best to use “comps” in the same neighborhood, or nearby areas so that the cost of housing is the same. (The cost of a two-bedroom home in rural Missouri is quite different from a two-bedroom home in New York City.) The final report is the last stage of the appraisal when all of the details of your home are reported: the property and market analysis, the home’s size and condition, serious structural issues that surfaced, recent home renovations, photographs and sketches of the property, and anything else that is relevant to the property value.
Get Ready for Your Appraisal
Your Favorite Real Estate Team has your back throughout the home buying and selling process. When it’s time for your home appraisal, take the steps in today’s blog to get ready for your appointment. Be sure to follow-through and confirm that you have received a fair evaluation. Your Favorite Real Estate Team is the best in the business, and we will be there with you every step of the way as you look for your new home at the Lake of the Ozarks.
CONTACT ED SCHMIDT FOR ALL YOUR LAKE OF THE OZARK REAL ESTATE NEEDS
Ed Schmidt, REALTOR
752 Bagnell Dam Blvd. Suite A
Lake Ozarks, Mo 65049
Phone: 573-240-9052
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