Common myths about appraising

It is enforced by law that a real estate appraiser must be state-licensed to write appraisal reports for federally-related real estate purchases in North Carolina. The law gives you the right to acquire a copy of your finished appraisal report from your lending agency after it has been produced. Contact All State Appraisal Partners, Inc. if you have any concerns about the appraisal procedure.

Myth: Market value must be the same as the assessed value of the property.

Fact: It is probable that North Carolina, like most states, supports the idea that the assessed value equates to the market value; however, this is sometimes the exception rather than the rule. Examples include when interior remodeling has happened and the assessor is unaware of the improvements, or when homes in the vicinity have not been reassessed for an prolonged period.

Myth: The buyer or the seller can have leverage in the value of the house depending upon for whom the appraiser is working.

Fact: The value of the house does not affect the salary of the appraiser; as such, the appraiser has no preconceived interest in the value of the house. This means that he will complete his job with impartiality and objectivity regardless for whom the appraisal is conducted.

Myth: Any time market value is found, it should equate to the replacement cost of the house.

Fact: The way market value is found is based on what a home buyer would likely pay a willing seller for a property without being under duress from any external group to purchase or sell. If the home were rebuilt, the dollar amount required to do so would form the replacement cost.

Myth: Specific formulae, such as the price per square foot, are what appraisers use to ascertain the value of a home.

Fact: An appraisal report is a collection of data concluded from the house's size, location, proximity to undesirable facilities, the condition of the home and the price of recent comparable sales. You can count on All State Appraisal Partners, Inc.'s appraisers to be professional in assessing this information.

Myth: In a robust economy - when the worth of homes in a given region are found to be increasing by a certain percentage - the worth of individual homes in the area can be expected to increase by that same percentage.

Fact: Any value at which an appraiser arrives in regards to a particular home is always personalized, based on certain factors found from the data of comparable properties and other specifications within the house itself. It doesn't matter if the economy is doing well or declining.

Myth: Just looking at what the home looks like on the outside gives an excellent idea of its value.

Fact: Property worth is concluded by a multitude of factors, including - but not limited to - area, condition, improvements, amenities, and market trends. There's no real way to get all of this data from simply viewing the property from the exterior.

Myth: Because consumers fund appraisals when applying for loans to buy or refinance their home, they legally own their appraisal.

Fact: Unless a lender releases its vestment in the document, it is legally owned by the lending agency that ordered the appraisal. Under the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, any consumer asking for a copy of the document must be provided with one by their lending agency.

Myth: There's no reason for home buyers to even care about what the appraisal report contains so long as their lending company is satisfied.

Fact: Only if consumers read a copy of their appraisal can they ensure its accuracy and possibly need to question the result. Remember, this is probably the most expensive and important investment a consumer will ever make. There is a great deal of data contained in an appraisal that could be useful to the home buyer in the future, such as the legal and physical description of the property, square footage measurements, list of comparable properties in the neighborhood, neighborhood description and a narrative of current real-estate activity and/or market trends in the vicinity.