Getting ready for an appraisal from NIckey J. Duhon, Real Estate Appraiser


	To appraise a property, an appraiser needs to be licensed by the state when the transaction involves any federal financial regulatory agency such as Fannie Mae, FDIC, etc. Just give us a call at 3372881905 if you have any questions about the appraisal process.

To help the appraisal go as smoothly as possible we generally recommend to have these documents, if available, ready for the appraiser:

A plot plan or survey of the house and land (if readily available).
Information on the latest purchase of the property in the last three years.
Written property agreements, such as a maintenance agreement for a shared driveway.
A list of any personal property that will be left behind and sold with the home, such as an oven, or a washer and dryer.
Title policy that describes encroachments or easements.
Most recent real estate tax bill and or legal description of the property.
Home inspection reports, or other recent reports for termites, EIFS (synthetic stucco) wall systems, your septic system and your well.
A list of any major home improvements and enhancements, the amount of their purchase and date of their installation (for example, the addition of energy efficiency upgrades or roof repairs) and permit confirmation (if available).
Locate copies of the current listing agreement, broker's data sheet and, if the sale is "pending", the purchase agreement.
Information on "Homeowners Associations" or condominium covenants and fees.
A list of "proposed" improvements when the property is being appraised "as complete".

Once your appraiser has arrived, you do not need to escort him or her along on the entire site inspection, but you should be present to answer questions about your property and be willing to point out any home improvements.

Here are some other helpful recommendations:

Accessibility: Appraisers are very detailed in their inspections. Make sure that all areas of the home are accessible, especially the attic and crawl space.
Housekeeping: Appraisers see many of homes a year and will look past most clutter, but they're human beings too! A good impact can translate into a higher value for your home.
Maintenance: We generally recommend fixing small things like leaky faucets, missing door handles and trim.
FHA and VA Inspection Items: In the case of your borrower applying for either an FHA or VA loan, we strongly recommend to ask your appraiser if there are specific things that should be done before they arrive. Some things they may recommend might be: having handrails on all stairways, scraping and repainting where there's paint peeling, eliminating pull-chain lights in areas other than the basement or attic.