In last month’s blog post, I discussed some pitfalls to be aware of, one of them being the appraisal process. In order to ensure success to the best of your ability, I recommend the following when appraising your home:
- Prior to your appraisal, prepare a list of upgrades completed since your ownership including the year completed and the cost of the upgrade. Appraisers rely on this information to properly evaluate the condition of the home. Never leave them to guess these details! Provide this list to your real estate agent in advance of the appraisal so that the information can be brought to the appraiser directly.
- Ask your agent to attend the appraisal. Many real estate agents will not attend the appraisal. This is a death warrant, in my opinion. As a standard of practice, I make it a point to meet every appraiser on homes where I represent the seller with a detailed list of comparable properties to present and discuss with them. Keep in mind that appraisers are not in every home that comes on the market, only those they appraise. How are they to properly contrast each property without first hand knowledge? This is where my list of detailed information comes in, explaining why a home did or did not sell at a certain price (layout, road noise, condition, lacking permits, etc.)…and this is where my value comes in as your agent, advocating for your value and doing everything in my power to educate the appraiser. As a result, I rarely experience low appraisals.
- Be sure to have installed smoke detectors in each bedroom and in the living area, and one carbon monoxide detector on each level of the home, as well as having the water heater double strapped. Your agent should check to be sure this is done prior to any appraisal, but I often find it has not bee done. If an appraiser finds that these required items are not in place, they will often require a second visit – at the buyer’s expense (usually about $150 more) – to verify they are installed prior to close of escrow. This is easily overcome by ensuring this is in place at the onset of listing your property for sale.
- Make sure the home is “show ready.” Appraisers will say often that they don’t care about the tidiness of the property. I believe that a tidy, well-put together and polished home always delivers a more positive impression than a messy, disheveled one. Impressions count, even for appraisers. Plus the buyers will see the pictures the appraiser takes, and you don’t want to have them questioning the home at that point.
- For FHA or VA buyers, make sure there is no peeling paint anywhere on the property (if the home is older than 1978, which is often the case in Kensington, Talmadge, and surrounding areas), no broken window panes, no apparent structural damage, that there is a functioning heat source other than the fireplace. There are a number of other punchlist items for these types of loans, but these are the basics. Your agent should be able to educate you on what to look out for when you get an offer that contains VA or FHA financing. These are great financing programs available to many, but it is important to know what to anticipate and how it may affect your sale.
I hope this information is helpful! If you should like to discuss selling or buying a home, and how to navigate through the process, I would be happy to consult with you!