Common myths about appraising

Legally, a real estate appraiser has to be state certified to write legitimate real estate appraisals for federally-related purchase. You are also entitled by law to demand a copy of the finished appraisal report from your lending agency. Contact our professional staff if you have any questions about the appraisal procedure.

Myth: Market value will be similar to the assessed value of the property.

Fact: While most states back the suggestion that assessed value equates estimated market value, this commonly is not the case. Examples include when interior reconstruction has happened and the assessor does not know about the improvements, or when properties in the vicinity have not been reassessed for an extended period.

Myth: Depending on if the appraisal is ordered for the buyer or the seller, the cost of the property will vary.

Fact: The appraiser has no personal interest in the outcome of the appraisal and should complete services with independence, objectivity and impartiality - no matter for whom the appraisal is conducted.

Myth: The replacement cost of the home is always is on par with the market value.

Fact: Without any pressure from any external parties to buy or sell, market value is what a willing buyer would pay an interested seller for a specific house. The dollar amount demanded to rebuild a house is what forms the replacement cost.

Myth: Specific methods, such as the price per square foot, are what appraisers use to ascertain the cost of a home.

Fact: An appraisal is a collection of information concluded from the property's size, location, proximity to undesirable facilities, the condition of the home and the price of recent comparable sales. You can count on Tight & Right Real Estate Valuation's appraisers to be forthright in assessing this information.

Myth: In a robust economy - when the prices of houses in a given area are found to be increasing by a certain percentage - the values of individual homes in the area can be expected to increase by that same percentage.

Fact: Worth increase of a certain property has to be concluded on an individualized basis, factoring in information on comparable homes and other relevant specifications within the house itself. It doesn't matter if the economy is doing well or declining.

Myth: The home's outside is determinate of the actual price of the house; there is no need to do an interior inspection.

Fact: There are a multitude of different factors that determine the value of a home; these factors include location, condition, improvements, amenities, and market trends. There's no possible way to get all of this information from simply looking at the property from the exterior.

Myth: Because consumers pay for appraisal reports when applying for loans to buy or refinance real estate, they legally own their appraisal report.

Fact: Unless a lending agency releases its interest in the report, it is legally owned by the lending company that ordered the appraisal. Home buyers have to be provided with a copy of the appraisal report upon written request due to the Equal Credit Opportunity Act.

Myth: Consumers need not worry about what is in their appraisal so long as it exceeds the requirements of their lending institution.

Fact: Only if home buyers look through a copy of their appraisal can they verify its accuracy and possibly need to question the result. Remember, this is probably the most expensive and important investment a consumer will ever make. There is a wealth of data stored in an appraisal that can be useful to the home buyer in the future, such as the legal and physical description of the property, square footage measurements, list of comparable properties in the neighborhood, neighborhood description and a narrative of current real-estate activity and/or market trends in the proximity.