Some helpful tips to speed your appraisal along from Appraisals Unlimited, DBA William P. Crosby


	To appraise a property, an appraiser is required to be licensed by the state when the transaction involves any federal financial regulatory agency such as OTS, FDIC, etc.. Contact us if you have any questions about the appraisal process.

To simplify the appraisal process, it's recommended to have these documents ready for the appraiser:

A plot plan or survey of the house and land (if available).
Records on the latest purchase of the property in the last three years.
Information on any written private agreements, such as a shared driveway with a neighbor.
List of personal property to be sold with the home.
Any paperwork, such as a Title policy with information on encroachments or easements encroachments or easements.
A bill for your most recent real estate taxes which should also contain a legal description of the property.
Home inspection reports, or other recent reports for termites, EIFS (synthetic stucco) wall systems, septic systems and your well.
Brag sheet that lists major home improvements and upgrades, the amount of their purchase and date of their installation (for example, the addition of Insulation or roof repairs) and permit confirmation (if available).
A copy of the current listing agreement and broker's data sheet and Purchase Agreement if a sale is "pending".
Any "Homeowners Associations" agreements or, if applicable, condo covenants or fees .
A list of "proposed" improvements when the property is being appraised "as complete".

When the appraiser arrives, you do not need to accompany him or her along on the entire site inspection, but you should be present to answer inquiries about your property and be willing to point out any home improvements.

Here are a few other helpful recommendations:

Accessibility: Make sure that all areas of the home are accessible, especially to the attic and crawl space.
Housekeeping: Appraisers see hundreds of homes a year and are no strangers to clutter, but they're human beings too! A good impact can mean 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: If your borrower is trying to apply for either an FHA or VA loan, be sure to ask your appraiser if there are extra things that should be done before they come. Some items they may recommend might be: having a banister on all stairways; scraping and touching up where there's paint peeling; repairing any faucets that leak or dripreplacing broken glass. And lastly, we will need to look at the attic and crawl space areas, too.