Homeowner Appraisal Services

Homeowners need appraisals or appraisal reviews for a variety of reasons, including a mortgage refinance, home equity loans, Pre-listing services, and PMI removal. When you order an appraisal or review from us, you can rest assured that you will get the best in professional service, courtesy, and quality.

Refinance / Home Equity

A lender will typically require an appraisal if you refinance, apply for home equity loan or equity line of credit.  Do not jump the gun and get an appraisal before talking to your lender or you may end up paying for two appraisals.  Many lenders require that the appraiser be contracted by them, in fact it is a Federal requirement, but some lenders will still instruct loan applicants to get their own appraisal.  The problem with this practice is that many home owners shop for the best rate and switch lenders in midstream.  An appraisal ordered by one lender will often be accepted by other lenders.  An appraisal ordered by the home owner, even if it was on a lender's advice, will often be rejected by the other lenders that are abiding by Federal Banking Regulations.  This means that the home owner could end up paying for a second appraisal.  More than likely we are already on the lender's "approved list", and if not we will quickly provide your lender with the necessary documentation to become approved. 

For-Sale-By-Owner (FSBO) / Pre-Listing Services

It's very hard to be objective about your own home because of your emotional attachment to it. A Professional Appraiser is objective and will tell you what you need to know, not just what you want to hear. In addition to helping you set a realistic selling price so your home will attract buyers, a professional appraisal is very valuable as a negotiating tool once you have a potential buyer. It gives you something concrete to show your buyer. It's an independent third party's opinion of your home's value, and not just you saying how much your home is worth. Potential buyers know you have an emotional attachment to your home and will be far more likely to give credibility to a professional appraiser's value opinion than yours.  Secondly, how many times have you heard a neighbor, friend or relative say "I listed my house for sale and sold it in one day to the first person that looked at it for asking price".  When we hear statements like this it translates to "I did not get an appraisal and I sold my home to cheap."  Unfortunately, many homeowners forego the small expense of an appraisal and opt to have a real estate agent complete a free CMA (comparitive market analysis) in the hopes of getting your listing.  In some neighborhoods a CMA may be all that you need.  For example:  If your neighborhood consist of 200 homes built by the same builder over a few years and all the homes are one of a half dozen floor plans and there are numerous recent sales all within a very narrow price range and your home has nothing unique or different that sets it apart from the others - then you do not need an appraisal.  Otherwise, for a very small cost you can have the piece of mind that you got the best price possible for the home and you did not leave money sitting on the table.     

PMI Removal Appraisals

A popular money saver for homeowners in the last few years is to get the PMI removed from their mortgage loan, thus saving them money on their monthly payments. PMI stands for "Private Mortgage Insurance". Once your mortgage loan amount is down below 80% (sometimes 75%) of the value of your home, in most cases you can apply to the lender to have the PMI removed from your loan, which will make your monthly payments go down. We are experienced in helping folks just like you rid themselves of unneeded and unwanted PMI insurance.

Field and Desktop Appraisal Review Services

Have you just received an appraisal and youd like to have a professional "double-check" it for accuracy or do you need a second opinion without the expense and delay of waiting for a whole new appraisal?