FAQ

An appraisal report is an estimation that concludes with an opinion of value. There are three “common approaches to value” which assists the appraiser in concluding this opinion or estimate. The Cost Approach is one of the methods that real estate appraisers use to find the value of a property; it involves finding what improvements would cost less physical depreciation, adding the land value. Easily the most common approach in finding the likely sales price of a house is the Sales Comparison Approach which concerns making a comparison to similar properties nearby. The Sales Comparison Approach is commonly the most accurate and best indicator of value for a house. The third approach is the Income Approach, which is of most importance in appraising income-producing properties – it involves estimating what an investor would pay based on the capital produced by the property.

An appraiser generates a professional, unbiased opinion of market value, often in the context of a real estate sale. Appraisers present their expert analysis in appraisal reports.

There are a lot of reasons to get an appraisal from Rodgers Appraisal, with the most common reason being real estate and mortgage transactions. Some other reasons for ordering an appraisal report include:

• If you are applying for a loan.
• To lower your tax burden.
• To show a homeowner has 30% equity and remove PMI.
• To fight high property taxes.
• To settle an estate.
• To give you an edge when purchasing real estate.
• To determine the most probable property value when listing your home.
• To ensure parties are provided just compensation in eminent domain cases.
• Because a government agency such as the IRS requires it.
• It’s possible you could have to deal with being in a lawsuit – an appraisal will help.

Appraisers do not do perform residential property inspections and are not home inspectors. A third-party home inspector will investigate the structure of the home from top to bottom.

Commonly, a home inspection report will explain the amenities and the requirements of the home: air conditioning (weather permitting), electrical functions, the condition of the heating system, the plumbing; then the structural integrity of the home, such as the attic, accessible insulation, walls, floors, ceilings, windows, then the foundation, basement, and visible structures.

Simply put, it’s apples and oranges. What the CMA relies upon are superficial trends. Appraisals use comparable sales, which are verifiable resources. Area and construction costs are also a priority in an appraisal. A CMA delivers a “ball park figure.” Being a documented and carefully investigated opinion of value, appraisals are defensible and stand up in legal situations.

But the largest differentiator is who’s behind the report. A CMA is written by a real estate agent who may or may not have a true grasp of the market or valuation concepts. The appraisal is created by a licensed, certified professional who makes a living out of valuing properties. Likewise, the agent has a vested interest in the property’s selling price, whereas the appraiser is bound by a code of ethics to collect only a flat sum for assignments, regardless of their outcome.

Every report must reflect a supported value opinion and should identify the following:

• Who engaged the appraiser and other intended users.
• The intended use of the appraisal.
• The appraisal’s purpose.
• Precisely what “value” attribute is being reported and what that value means.
• The effective date of the appraiser’s opinions and conclusions.
• Characteristics of the property that have a bearing on the value, including location, physical description, legal attributes, economic attributes, the real property interest in question, and non-real estate items included in the valuation, such as personal property, permanent equipment installations, and even intangible considerations.
• All known easements, restrictions, encumbrances, leases, reservations, covenants, contracts, declarations, special assessments, ordinances, and the like.
• Division of interest, such as fractional interest, physical segment, and partial holding.
• The scope of work considered to complete the appraisal.

In the documentation of an appraisal, each appraiser must ensure the following:

• That the information analysis utilized in the appraisal was suitable.
• That substantial errors of omission or commission were not committed individually or collectively.
• That appraisal services were provided in a careful and cognizant manner.
• The final appraisal report was understandable, credible, and defensible.

To become a state-licensed appraiser, we must meet extensive education and experience requirements that give us the background to formulate an unbiased opinion. In addition, appraisers must obey a strict industry code of ethics and comply with national standards of practice for real estate appraisal. The rules for working up an appraisal and communicating its results are guaranteed by enforcement of the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP).

Licensing and certification are achieved through coursework, tests, and experience working under a supervisory appraiser. Once licensed, he or she is required to take continuing education courses so that the license doesn’t expire. To see the specific requirements for any state, click here.

Mortgage lenders are an appraiser’s most likely client, needing their services to ensure real estate involved in a mortgage transaction is adequate collateral for a loan. Appraisers also provide opinions in litigation cases, tax matters, and investment decisions.

One of the main things an appraiser does is assimilate data. Data can be classified as either Specific or General. Specific data is collected from the home itself; Location, condition, amenities, size, and other specifics are documented by the appraiser during an inspection.

General data is collected from a variety of sources. Local Multiple Listing Services (MLS) provide data on recently sold homes that could be used as comparables. Tax records and other public documents reveal actual sales prices in a market. Flood zone data is retrieved from FEMA data outlets, such as a la mode’s InterFlood service.

And most importantly, the appraiser assimilates general data from his or her past experience in doing assignments for other houses in the same market.

Any time the value of your home or other real property is being used to make a significant financial decision, an appraisal helps. If you’re selling your home, an appraisal assists you in setting the most appropriate price. If you’re buying, it makes sure you don’t overpay. If you’re engaged in an estate settlement or divorce, it ensures that property is divided fairly. A home is often the single largest financial asset anybody owns. Without knowing its real value, wise financial decisions are impossible.

PMI is the common abbreviation for Private Mortgage Insurance. PMI protects the lender in case a borrower doesn’t pay on loan and the market price of the property is lower than the loan balance. Once you reach the point where your home’s equity plus the amount you’ve paid is at least 20% of your loan balance, you can have your PMI dropped.

Has your home value been appreciated since you first purchased it? Call Rodgers Appraisal today at (435) 770-6745 to see if you can cancel your Private Mortgage Insurance premium.

The first step in most appraisals is property inspection. During this process, the appraiser will come to your home and measure it, determine the layout of the rooms inside, confirm all aspects of the home’s general condition, and take several photos of your house for inclusion in the report. Is there anything you can do to help? Yes, there is! First, be sure we have easy access to the exterior of the house (gates aren’t locked, etc.). Trim any bushes and relocate any items that would get in our way while we measure the structure. Indoors, make sure we can easily access appliances like furnaces and water heaters.

To help expedite our work as well as ensure a more accurate report, attempt, if possible, to have the following items:

• Written property agreements, such as a maintenance easement for a shared driveway.
• Title policy that lists encroachments or easements.
• Home inspection reports or other recent reports for termites, EIFS (synthetic stucco) wall systems, your septic system, and well.
• A list of any major home improvements and enhancements, the date of their installation, their cost (for example, the addition of central air conditioning or roof repairs), and permit confirmation (if available).
• A list of “suggested” improvements if the property is to be appraised “as complete.”

In real estate appraising, Market Value is commonly defined as:
“The most probable price (in terms of money) which a property should bring in a competitive and open market under all conditions requisite to a fair sale, the buyer and seller each acting prudently and knowledgeably, and assuming the price is not affected by undue stimulus. Implicit in this definition is the consummation of a sale as of a specified date and the passing of title from seller to buyer under conditions whereby: the buyer and seller are typically motivated; both parties are well informed or well advised, and acting in what they consider their best interests; a reasonable time is allowed for exposure in the open market; payment is made in terms of cash in United States dollars or in terms of financial arrangements comparable thereto; and the price represents the normal consideration for the property sold unaffected by special or creative financing or sales concessions granted by anyone associated with the sale.”

For mortgage transactions, the lender requests the appraisal, either directly or through a third party. Even though it’s the buyer that eventually pays for the report, the lender is the intended user. The buyer is certainly entitled to a copy of the report – it’s usually included with all the other closing documents – but is not allowed to use the report for any other purpose without permission from the lender.

This rule doesn’t apply when a homeowner hires an appraiser directly. In these situations, the appraiser may state the purpose of the appraisal; for PMI removal or estate planning, or tax challenges, for example. If not noted otherwise, the homeowner can do whatever they want with the appraisal.

The answer to this is different depending upon the location of the home. For example, adding a central air conditioner into a home in the South may add significant value, while putting one in a home near the Pacific Northwest might not have much impact.

No matter where you go, however, renovating a kitchen is almost always a safe move. According to one national survey, kitchen remodels returned an average of 88% of the investment. In other words, a $10,000 kitchen remodeling project would add approximately $8,800 to the value of the home. Bathrooms were second, yielding 85%. Adding bedrooms and baths can also help the value of your home (when done well) as long as your home doesn’t then become atypical for your neighborhood in terms of size.