Preparing for Your Home Appraisal

The home appraisal process is a necessary step in the selling or refinancing of your home. Many homes today aren’t worth as much as they were several years ago, they may have gone up in value or down, depending on economic circumstances. Thats why it is imperative and crucial for homeowners to be realistic when it comes to having their home appraised.

If you are currently in the process of getting your home ready to be put on the market or interested in refinancing your property, here are some easy tips to keep in mind as you go forward with your home appraisal.

1. Be flexible when scheduling the appointment.
2. The appraiser will need approximately 30 minutes to one hour to complete the inspection phase of the appraisal process, which includes: exterior photos of the front and rear of the home and a photo of the street in front of the property; measurements of the exterior of the home, garage and any outbuildings; a walk-through inspection of all rooms and levels of the interior of the home including the basement.
3. The first thing appraisers looks for is comparables, so be prepared and have a list of recent sales of similar properties in the immediate neighborhood.
4. Get organized. Put together a checklist that will help you get ready for your appraisal and get the results you're looking for.
5. Have a copy of your home’s blueprint to help verify measurements and lot size.
6. Provide a list of improvements made to the property since the purchase. Improvements that should be noted include adding a pool, patio, updating your kitchen or bathroom and any room additions, etc.
7. Allow your appraiser access to the entire property, including access to any crawl space or attic areas.
8. Keep in mind that a clean home makes a good impression. Be sure to trim the lawn, clean the pool and garage, repair cracked windows or torn screens, check for leaky faucets and secure gutters and down spouts before your appraisal.
9. Point out any amenities that may not be obvious to the appraiser: sprinkler systems, patios, pools, security systems, built in vacuum, etc.
10. Provide a copy of last year's tax assessment information.
11. Know what year the house was built and when improvements were made