Home Appraisal 101

Your home may be your favorite place to be, but it’s also possibly the largest, single investment you will ever make.  To help you determine the market value of your home, you will need an appraisal done to determine its unbiased professional opinion of value.

When your real estate appraiser visits your home, they’ll be interested in its major systems, like the roof, foundation, electrical system and HVAC unit. It can be helpful to clean and repair any necessary features before having your appraiser come for a visit. 

To expedite the appraisal process, it's beneficial to have these documents ready for the appraiser:

• A plot, plan or survey of the house and land (if readily available)
• Title policy that describes encroachments or easements
• List of any major home improvements or upgrades, the date of their installation and their cost (for example, the addition of central air conditioning or roof repairs) and permit confirmation (if available)
• Information on "Homeowners Associations" or condominium fees
• List of any personal property that will be sold with the home
• Please make sure that all areas of the home are accessible, especially to the attic and crawl space. *Note In an FHA appraisal an inspection of the garage, attic and crawl space is required.

It all starts with the inspection which often includes a sketch of the property to ensure proper square footage and convey the layout of the property. In the appraisal report, appraisers generally include information such as:

• Square footage of home and property
• Number of rooms and listing of room types, such as kitchen and bathrooms
• Year of construction
• Presence of environmental hazards
• Confirmation of appropriate ventilation methods
• Overall condition of the:
  • Exterior and interior of the house
  • Roof and the foundation
  • Driveway and walkways
  • Plumbing and electrical systems and fixtures
  • Landscape
  • Home features (i.e. swimming pool, wrap-around porch, etc…)

These are the major points on your appraisal report, but they also help narrow down comparables in you market area. This helps reflect what similar homes have sold for in your real estate market area. 

Once the site has been inspected, we will use two or three approaches to determine the value of real property. A cost approach, a sales comparison and, in the case of a rental property, an income approach.