Most mortgage transactions, whether for purchase or refinance, will require an appraisal to be completed. However, there are scenarios where an appraisal can be waived, or a modified type of appraisal might be used. On this page you will find information about appraisals and the mortgage transaction process.
Answers to the most common questions for mortgage transaction appraisals
Most purchase and refinance transactions will require an appraisal. This is because the lender wants to know that they are not lending on a property at a value that is more than the property is actually worth.
However, there are a number of loan programs that allow appraisal waivers or modified types of appraisals, so be sure to talk to your lender to find out whether or not you will actually need an appraisal.
Unfortunately, you cannot.
All appraisals done for the purpose of mortgage transactions have to be done through the lenders approved appraisal panel.
The good news is that we are all the appraisal panels used by most larger lenders, so there is a chance that we will be assigned to your appraisal.
The inspection is just the beginning of the appraisal process, so we will not be able to tell you the value of the property when we complete the inspection.
Generally, we will complete the analysis and upload the report to your lender within 2 to 3 business days after the inspection. However, every lender has a different process after they receive the appraisal, so make sure to check with your lender to know how soon you should expect to receive a copy of the report.
The appraisal inspection, unlike the property inspection completed by a home inspector, is mostly focused on the size and condition of the home, and the amenities that are present.
The goal of the inspection is to gather as much data as possible about the home so that it can be accurately compared to the comparable properties laster in our sales comparison analysis.
The inspection is relatively short for most properties, generally taking around 30 minutes. Most of our work happens back at the office after we have collected all the data we need.
During the inspection the appriser will likely do the following things:
- Measure the property (or verify measurements that we have
- Take photos of the interior and exterior of the structure
- Conduct a basic test of the plumbing and electrical (FHA & VA)
- Inspect the attic and/or crawl space (if present, and only on FHA and VA)
If you have received an appraisal where you are unhappy with the value, we would encourage you to speak with your lender (and real estate agent if you are working with one.)
A reconsideration of value request can be submitted to the lender to attempt to get the value altered.
To get the best results from an ROV you will want to provide the lender with comparable properties that you feel should have been considered, as well as the reasons you feel they are better comps than those already used in the report.
If the lender feels that you have provided good data they can forward that request along to the appraiser, but the process has to go through them and not directly from yourself (or your agent) to the appraiser.
