What can I do about a low home sale price in my neighborhood affecting my appraisal?

Question

A house within a block of me needing updates and repairs (foreclosure that sat vacant for some time) recently sold about 20,000 below what two other homes in the area are listed for. Because it is in the same subdivision, it is causing my value to drop about 20,000 below appraisal from three years ago. People don't move frequently from my neighborhood (stable, family neighborhood close to services and highways), and the two in top-notch condition currently on the market haven't sold yet. The most recent sale is almost a year ago. I'd like to refinance before my ARM goes up, but I can't get a decent loan to value ratio with the low recent sale.

Answer 1

It is nice to think that your house is worth more than the market is saying. Reality is that very few houses are worth what they were three years ago. You can try to sell it for that and hope that someone is stupid enough to pay that, but even if they were it would appraise for that today and they wouldn't be able to get a loan for that amount.
The best thing that you can do is to get a new appraisal for your house. You are going to need it anyways, why not do it now. Face it, we are in a buyers market.pp

Answer 2

You are assuming too much, and I have heard this alot and none of it is true. Did you actually get an appraisal done, or are you assuming that your value dropped?

If a SINGLE home on your block or in your subdivision does under foreclosure, the appraiser is not supposed to use that home as a comparable sales.

Whenever I was underwriting loans, and saw an appraiser that did that, I would send the appraisal back and tell them to get me another "comp".

Appraisers have broad discretion in how an appraisal is written. Otherwise, all lenders would just use automated appraisal systems and not use real people as appraisers.

They can make adjustments for most any reason, and as long as the adjustments are reasonable and the appraiser can document it, most underwriters will accept it. The appraiser can also go outside of your block for comparables, and in many cases, can pull homes from as far away as a mile.

People are not penalized because they live in a stable neighborhood, that is another myth of home value.

I've never seen an appraisal in my life, where there was only ONE prior sale that could be used from a year ago. Only exception is rural property, and in that case, they can go out as far as 5 miles to pick up sales comps.

Good Luck.

Answer 3

Give this foreclosure information to your lender and ask them to pass it along to their appraiser.

Although he or she should already have this information, it is possible that the appraiser may not know it was a foreclosure, which is rarely a fair market sales price. At least try to eliminate that possiblity.

Also, if you know of any neighborhoods similar to yours in price range, style, proximity to services and the freeway - pass those along to the apprasier as well, for possible additional comps.

Remember, it's hard to compare houses, because no two are alike. Appraisers work very hard to do this, down to some infinite details that you may not be aware of - and it is quite possible that. even though that other house needed upgrades and repairs and was a foreclosure - the $20,000 price difference may, in fact, be on target.

Was that foreclosure house older? Smaller? On a smaller lot? Have a less desirable location or view? No pool? A smaller garage than yours? Older roof? A less desirable floor plan? No fireplace? Only one bathroom? And so on.

All these factors, and others, can affect value.

If you know a Realtor, ask them their opinion on the matter. Most Realtors have an excellent feel for pricing, or can do a little research and get that information for you.

Answer 4

The market bears what the market bears. Not all comparables will be the same. They are to show the low, middle and high end of the market so don't blame the low for your appraisal problem.

An appraisal 3 years ago will rise and fall just the same as if every house on the block was perfect.

Besides, your loan to value ratio has only to do with your credit, little to do with the appraisal.

Answer 5

Some areas are still down 50% from those 2006 highs. A guess is that 30% is average loss. Just make sure you thank all those people that put 0% down, did ARM mortgages, and made the max mortgage they could possibly make. * Note that zillow is not reliable. Contact a realtor if you need help. Or call your home insurance company and ask them to appraise your home. They will do this for free. And they are usually right on the money. Yes, even over the phone

Answer 6

Any appraiser worth their money will be able to realize that this home is not the norm for the neighborhood, and should not be counted in an appraisal of your home. Also remember all appraisals have a low value home and a high value home, so if that the low, no big deal.

Answer 7

Any appraiser worth his salt is going to realize that the property you are concerned about is probably not the best "comp" to use due the circumstances. The lack of upgrading alone will offset a lot of the value reduction in that sale.

The best "comps" are not necessaily just the ones in close proximity. Appraisers consider type, kind, amenity, size, age, condition, sales concessions, etc. in determining a comparable sale's validity.

Answer 8

It's unfortunate, but if your home is similar in style, design and sq.ft. finished, it will be impacted. But keep in mind, that once it surpasses 6 months, typically they aren't used in appraisals, and appraisals aren't recorded.

Also, I would investigate the condition of that property. As an appraiser, I wouldn't typically use a foreclosed property against an owner occupied property. It is just not in the same condition. And I have purposefully not used them due to condition.

I would refinance anyway, if like you said it's been almost a year.

Answer 9

I would talk to the bank's appraiser to let them know the condition of the other home. They can make adjustments based on the foreclosure. Otherwise, I would get another appraiser.

Answer 10

You may be able to speak to the appraiser(s) involved and try to explain the lower sale price of the property in question. Perhaps they are not aware of the condition of the property at the time of the sale.

However, they are not required to make any changes based upon your complaint. If the appraiser will not consider your complaint, you're rather stuck with his final valuation on your property.