An essential part of a home refinance or selling your property is ensuring the property’s appraised value is where you need it to be. Many homeowners believe that aspect of the process is beyond their control, but that’s not entirely true.
In fact, becoming informed on what a real estate appraiser looks for will enable you to be proactive in making improvements for a better assessment. That doesn’t mean doing an entire remodel, but there are budget-friendly, simple steps you can take to get your home ready.
The credentialed, trained professional appraiser will do an unbiased inspection of the property providing all parties involved in the process with an accurate and consistent report pertaining to the value as it was determined upon assessment.
Consider these tips to better understand how the expert ultimately comes to their final determination.
What Resources Does A Real Estate Appraiser Use To Make Their Assessment
A real estate appraiser follows distinct resources when assessing the value of a home, including inspecting the property and reviewing the market for comparable homes that recently closed. The professional is credentialed and trained to be fair, reasonable, and impartial in their assessment.
Homeowners generally dread this aspect of the financing process, believing they have minimal control over what happens with the appraisal, but that isn’t necessarily true.
While you want to avoid doing a whole-house remodel, especially if you’re selling the property, there are cost-effective, simple steps to increase your property’s value.
If you’re unsure what to do, speak with your real estate agent about improving your chances for a higher appraisal value.
Find tips for effectively working with appraisers you don’t get to select at https://chicagoagentmagazine.com/2013/05/06/five-tips-for-working-effectively-with-appraisers-even-when-you-cant-select-them/. Let’s look at some things that the expert will look at when making their determination.
● Property size is a primary consideration
One of the primary considerations when determining the value of a property is its size. In real estate, size is quite a consideration, and that’s true when making the assessment as well. As a rule, the more square footage the home offers, the greater the value will be.
Most buyers are interested in that extra bathroom, maybe a mudroom, or a more oversized kitchen. The appraiser knows where the market stands and what sells.
● The curb appeal is another factor that carries weight
The exterior appearance of the household, the curb appeal is also a significant consideration with the inspection. Still, it’s not the sole factor with the property’s exterior that the appraiser looks at when determining the property value.
The professional looks at the foundation, the roof, and the exterior walls for signs of mold and mildew, along with any leakages. The appraiser also looks at the parcel’s size, including the front and backyard, for a total lawn square footage.
If there are outbuildings, these are included, like garden sheds, garages, and any valuable space.
● The interior condition is critical
Cosmetics are not the only consideration when looking at the property’s interior for value. The appraiser also considers the primary systems for functionality.
These include the electricity, plumbing system, windows, and doors, lighting fixtures, major appliances, and anything that might be included in the property sale.
As a homeowner, if you know something is not functional, this is something you have control over. You won’t want to put in all new wiring in the home, but you can make simple fixes, take out appliances that are not operational and make sure the windows and doors are functional.
● Remodeling and improvements need to be recognized
The appraiser should be made aware of any improvements or updates that have been made to the property, whether you had the central air serviced and updated, light fixtures fixed or changed out, new appliances put in, and will be letting these go with the property, fresh paint or flooring, anything to add to the value.
What Can You Do To Help Improve The Appraiser’s Determination
A home appraisal can be exceptionally intimidating to the homeowner. You can’t be sure what the expert will find. Many people feel the assessment is strictly out of their control. Fortunately, there are a few things you can do that will have an impact.
One way to assess your own property is to walk the grounds as if you were a home buyer and scrutinize what you believe is below average about the interior and exterior. It would help if you considered taking care of anything that looks neglected or has defects and damages before the appraiser takes a look.
It’s vital to do standard maintenance like smoke detectors and carbon monoxide checks to ensure these are functional.
The cosmetics might seem as though they won’t be a priority for the professional, but these will make a difference. The house should be cleaned with all clutter eliminated, making the house as minimal as possible.
Once you have the house in pristine condition, you’ll be able to tell where painting and other decorative touches need to be made, dated faucets, hardware in the kitchen, doorknobs, and on.
These things will have a significant effect. Maybe check with the real estate agent about staging if you will be updating with your new home. Go here for facts about how real estate appraisals work.
Final Thought
One thing to remember, if an appraiser is coming to look at the home, there’s likely a buyer interested in the property. You don’t want to go overboard on making changes or improvements and end up wasting a lot of money. The new homeowner will likely be doing their own updates.
Once you have done your part, share the updates you’ve made, then merely stand back and allow the appraiser to do their assessment. Once finished, you can ask questions to see if there are any major issues.
The priority is ensuring you get the value you need to sell it for your desired price. With these few tips, handling a project or so, if no major issues are found, appraisals are usually relatively straightforward and painless.
