© 2002-2021 Ratehub Inc. All rights reserved. Unfortunately, if your home appraisal … For sellers, a good appraisal is important to secure the best price possible for your house. Journalists and qualified financial professionals produce the content. A much higher appraisal gives the buyer more home equity, which is a huge advantage if someone wants to avoid mortgage insurance and get a home equity loan or line of credit down the road. Have you considered refinancing your existing mortgage? If you need to spend to update, be prudent. Also, get rid of projects. One last tip: don’t bug the appraiser with questions and comments. Homeowners who believe their property has been assessed too high should try to arrange an informal evaluation with the assessor's office in their municipality. So, it's probably the same in your area. When my husband and I decided to move into a more family friendly home, we decided not to sell our first home. Your best next steps are to review the report with your loan officer to find out why. Keep the $500 rule in mind. In some cases, prior to advancing mortgage funds, a lender will require that an appraisal be completed so that … This is another area where comparable properties come in handy. First, consider the fact that kitchen and bathroom remodels can be some of the priciest reno costs. When the appraiser calls to make the appointment, ask if they're local. So, make a list of features your home has and provide this list to your appraiser. You’ll need to do some research to see what similar homes in … MoneySense is not responsible for content on external sites that we may link to in articles. I was stunned when one of the three appraisers we hired came in with a value $30,000 less than their competitors. Despite the fee, an appraisal is one way to check out the value of your investment. The home we left was built in 1898 and when people hear this they often expect the worse. How do you know if your home is assessed too high? The current appraisal value has truned out to be low because home prices have dropped down in many states. While it’s always great for the property appraisal to come back higher than the amount you agreed to buy it for, this is no way affects the loan amount you need to qualify for, or the down payment you need to close on the mortgage loan. Share on Linkedin But we knew, from doing our homework, that our renovations and upgrades and effectively altered the “effective age” of our home. List your updates. Can you switch mortgage lenders before closing? Make your own list of notables. So, keep a list. Renegotiate the deal. Is probate an inevitable cost for a surviving spouse? So, when an original appraisal valued a home at the purchase price, which happened 99.99999% of the time when the original appraisal was performed through our sister company by one of their fee panel appraisers, the client sent an appraisal review order to our company. Let’s say an appraisal comes in 4% too high as would seem common from the study. Without records of his DIY oil changes, NJ worries... You can now use bitcoin to buy a Tesla,... Sandra and her husband have lived in their principal... Be mindful of these money concerns, even after retirement. We’re also talking about giving your carpet or floors a good vacuum or scrub and making sure dust isn’t prevalent on tables, furnishings or baseboards. Romana King  on February 15, 2012. Sure, that sounds simple, but we’re not just talking about making the bed or cleaning the cat litter. For that reason, it may be more prudent to spend a bit of money, for just a bit of updating. While it may not seem like it would matter, a thorough cleaning is essential. Rates are low. MoneySense continues to update and make changes to correct any factual errors. In some instances, home appraisals can come in low because values have been declining in the neighborhood, improvements need to be made to the dwelling or … First, remember that there’s a lot less at stake now than when you purchased your home. If the appraisal is too high or too low compared to the agreed-upon selling price, a bank or lender may renege on the loan. Refinance Your Mortgage with a Better Rate. Furthermore, our editorial team does its best to ensure the information published on MoneySense.ca and other MoneySense properties is accurate.