If you are refinancing your home, here are some tips that may help. Part of the process will include an appraisal of your home. When the appraiser calls you, ask her or him a few questions. Find out if they are from your city. Ask them if they have recently appraised properties similar to your home recently. If they are not from your area, tell them that you are not interested. You want to make sure the appraiser is familiar with the market you are in. Ask your lender to get another appraiser. As a homeowner who is refinancing, you can speak to the appraiser. Before the appraiser comes to your house, try and make a list of recently sold properties to give them. If you need comps, ask a REALTOR familiar with your area to help you. Also let the appraiser know of any improvements you have made to your house. You have a right to see the appraisal at closing (or prior) and to ask questions about it. After all, you paid for it.
You also have a right to receive a copy of the appraisal, so long as you make the request to the bank in writing.
Richard,
You make great points that all make sense... unfortunately, the government does not factor in common sense when creating policy. Due to the Home Valuation Code of Conduct that was implemented on May 1, 2009, lenders are not permitted to choose or have any contact with an appraiser prior to receiving a copy of the appraisal report. Although using an appraiser that is familiar with the property's immediate area is completely logical, lenders do not have the ability to select an appraiser that fits this criteria. To change this, please contact your representatives and ask them to help repeal HVCC.
Karl, the lenders hands are tied because of HVCC. A refinancing borrower can and should ask the appraiser about their familiarity with the local market. Good point about contacting Congress and asking them to fix it.
Richard, I totally agree that the borrower should ask those types of questions. My point is that even if the appraiser is from another state, I do not believe there is anything the lender can do to re-assign a different appraiser. Perhaps the borrower could ask the initial appraiser for the contact info for the appraisal management company and call them directly to have another appraiser assigned.
Best bet would be to tell the appraiser when they call that you are not interested in their service if they are not from your market. The appraiser who just finished the site visit for my refi told me he gets asked where he is from a lot on refinance appraisals.
I did have a customer in southwestern PA tell me he recently had an appraiser from West Virginia. And HVCC was suppose to make things better.
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