How to Make sure a home is appraised accurately

How-To Make Sure a Home Is Appraised Accurately Posted By susanne On July 28, 2012 @ 12:00 am In Today’s Home Spun Wisdom | [1](MCT)—Despite a steadying housing market, sellers and real estate agents still complain that low appraisals delay or kill up to 15 percent of all deals. In recent years, agents and others blamed a 2009 law that they said inadvertently led to less-experienced appraisers working in unfamiliar neighborhoods. Now a common refrain is that appraisers purposely keep valuations down. St. Petersburg, Fla., appraiser Frank Gregoire, who testified before Congress, says banks and underwriters are pressuring appraisers “to be less optimistic and more cautious” to prevent another housing bubble. But that’s “patently false,” says Ken Chitester, spokesman for the Chicago-based Appraisal Institute. He concedes there may be a lag in valuations in a recovering market, but says appraisers can only work with the data available to them at the time. Appraisers make the final call, of course, but here are steps that sellers and their agents can take to ensure that valuations are fair and accurate: —Don’t get greedy. Strong demand for homes is resulting in multiple offers, and some properties are being bid up so high that they won’t appraise, real estate agents say. Cash buyers typically don’t request appraisals, but banks require them so they don’t lend more money than homes are worth. In accepting...