What is a Home Appraisal?
An appraisal is a professional unbiased opinion of a home’s value. Appraisals are most always used in purchase-and-sale transactions and most commonly in refinance transactions, and are used to determine if the home’s contract price is appropriate given the home’s condition, location, features, etc. During a mortgage refinance transaction, a home appraisal protects the lender by ensuring that it doesn’t lend the homeowners/owners more money than what the property is really worth.
There are many reasons to obtain an appraisal
The most common reason is for Real Estate and Mortgage Transactions, but we have compiled a list of other reasons you may need to order an appraisal:
To obtain a loan
To lower your tax burden.
To establish the replacement cost of insurance.
To generic levitra contest high property taxes.
To settle an estate.
To help you make one of the largest financial decisions in your life.
To provide a negotiating tool when purchasing real estate.
To determine a reasonable price when selling real estate.
To protect your rights in a expropriation case.
To allow you to obtain a qualified appraisal report.
The bottom line
If everything goes smoothly during the mortgage transaction, the home appraisal is just going to be another box to check on your closing list. But if the appraisal value is significantly lower than expected, it could lead to the transaction being delayed or even cancelled. No matter what situation you encounter in your home, whether you’re buying, selling, or refinancing, it’s important to grasp a basic understanding of how the appraisal process works.
