what do home appraisers look for when appraising a house?

Answer 1

A lot of things actually. What they do is take a lot of measurements and get what is called a "comp" price. They basically try and compare the house to what very similar ones in the same area have sold for. On top of that they look for obvious things that would detract from the value (if in need of desperate repairs) and look for things that would obviously add to the value.

Answer 2

Appraisers usually begin their appraisal in the same way that Real Estate Agents do: by getting 'comps' - comparable prices of properties within the vicinity that have sold recently.
This establishes a general market quota.
After that, they will compare differences (if any) in square footage, size of garage, presence or absence of a pool, etc., to make adjustments.
Lastly, they will look at the condition of the house, subtract for obvious damage, and even take into consideration dirt, mess, and untidyness, as these are all things that a new owner may want to remedy.
You cannot change the size of the house, its location or style of building. You CAN change the appearance, cleanliness, and appeal.
Therefore, before getting an appraisal (if you are the seller), you want to make the property as presentable as possible. Consider having your pets stay elsewhere for the appraisal and removing any pet messes (including smells). Have floors mopped, walls painted, and the house generally pleasant and clean.
This DOES influence an appraisal, even in small but potentially crucial ways.

Answer 3

They look at comparable sales in the area, how the house is different from those houses, the neighborhood, lot, structure, what sort of major work may be necessary...
It's pretty complicated. Do a general search on elements of an appraisal or something like that, I'm sure it will all come up.

Answer 4

one, they are licensed, just like real estate brokers. two, they get much of the material they need for the appraisal from the multiple listing service CLOSED sales, which is what we Realtors (r) use ourselves to try to come up with a viable listing vs. sales price for our sellers.

if we are the listing agent and the house sells, the bank sends the appraiser out to learn, via mathematical, monetary value(s) added and subtracted for the plusses or minuses of the sold house as opposed to a sold house in the past with similarities, what the value of this house, the one he was hired to appraise from the bank, will be. it is for mortgage purposes. the house has to appraise out at least in the amount of the mortgage. so we listing agents will meet the appraiser at the subject property with the "comps" that we ran, from the MLS database, for the appraiser to use. we do not hand him the sales contract. one, in my history, asked for it, and i did give him it, but it felt VERY strange. that's because they themselves are supposed to come up with the value without knowing what the sales contract says at all.

that then leads you to know why banks want 20% down instead of less. and the secondary mortgage market, groups of investors, want higher down payments too: so that the value of the property will be no problem in meeting how much the mortgage will be. that is why if you put less than 20% down, you will be charged PMI, private mortgage insurance--to assure the investors of these packages of mortgages that they are SAFE. (in turn, if the secondard market did not buy up portfolios of mortgages at a discount, then where would the lenders get enough cash to close out a deal)?

example: one tract house has exactly the same square footage as does the one that is on the corner. in fact, it was built by the same builder. all lot sizes were equal. all number of rooms were equal. other than current condition, nothing is different in this case other than one of these houses is on a corner lot, more valuable, and one is in the middle of the block, less valuable. unless the owner of the corner house destroyed it, it will have a higher value.

it is quite a science. if you looked at one, you'd be pretty amazed to see which factors led to additions and subtractions on the subject property! it's pretty fun, really!

if you face an upcoming appraisal and now have a specific question, ask me at my provided email on this profile.