6 Appraisal Tips To Help Avoid A Disaster
As lenders, we look at a LOT of appraisals and know the best appraisal tips to get the outcome you and your borrowers need.
We also see a lot of the same common mistakes that can be deal-killers. Here are 6 appraisal tips to ensure that your borrowers’ appraisal supports their application instead of becoming a disaster.
- Your borrowers should remember to take their mother’s advice! Before the appraiser shows up – “go clean your room and make your bed.” The pictures in the appraisal are part of the story about who the borrowers are and how they take care of the things in their lives. What do they want the story to tell us?
- Warn the borrowers that the appraiser will need to see every room. Even if the baby (or teenager) is sleeping, they need to see inside. Refusal to grant access to any part of the house will almost automatically spell disaster for the mortgage application.
- Don’t tell the appraiser the value they need to get, it will not help the borrower. They’ll typically just ignore you anyway as they’re liable to the lender, not the borrower, if they exaggerate.
- Control the borrowers’ expectations early. Let them know that the appraiser’s opinion of the value of their home may be significantly less than what they think it’s worth. This can save a lot of grief after the appraisal is completed.
- Let the borrower know that they’ll be paying for the appraisal up front. The appraiser will expect their payment before they get to work. And most appraisers will take credit cards.
- This maybe the most important point – make sure the appraiser is familiar with the lender’s specific appraisal guidelines. There’s nothing worse than having to go back to a client because the appraisal is unsatisfactory due to the fact that the appraiser didn’t include (and was unaware) of all the information or pictures that were required.
If you have questions about appraisal requirements, the friendly staff at Kokanee Mortgage is always happy to offer advice to get your borrowers set up for success.