How Do Home Appraisals Work?
Purpose – Lending Home appraisals are most often used by lenders to determine the value of a property on which they are considering lending money. An appraisal gives “an estimate of fair market value” as of a specific date. The lender makes a loan as a percentage of that value estimate. The higher the percentage, the more risky the loan. Purpose – Estate or Divorce Lawyers use home appraisals to settle probate or divorce cases. For estate purposes, the home is valued as of the date of death. In divorce situations, both sides will hire an appraiser and come to some kind of compromise depending on the resulting valuations. Since an appraisal is only an estimate of a home’s value, it is rare that two appraisers will come to an identical value conclusion. There are usually subjective differences between the two. What is the Appraisal Process? The appraisal process begins with a home inspection. The appraiser looks at the overall condition of the interior and exterior of the property. He me
