Michaela Phillips, Guaranteed Rate, Inc.
BOULDER – Whether you’re buying or selling, getting a home appraisal is one of the necessary steps before closing the deal. While you may not give this process a lot of thought (after all, much of it is out of your control), you should be aware that appraisals in the Front Range are taking longer than usual. Plan accordingly to avoid delays and extra costs.
First, you should familiarize yourself with what an appraisal is and how it works. An appraisal is an objective estimate of the fair market value of what a home is worth. It consists of three steps: a physical home examination, researching sales of comparable properties in the area, and creating an appraisal report. To determine your property’s value, appraisers take into account your home’s square footage, age, location, room count and other factors.
A typical turnaround time for an appraisal in this market is 18 days. FHA and VA appraisals take a little longer (three or four weeks), as their appraisal reports require more detail than
standard reports.
However, we are noticing an industry-wide trend that appraisals in the Front Range are taking up to four weeks for a typical condo or single family residence. An appraisal on a more complex property, such as a mountain residence, can take as long as six weeks. If you need it sooner, keep in mind that many appraisers won›t even consider a rush order, but for those who will, we’ve seen quotes range from $1,000 to $3,000!
Don’t get stuck shelling out thousands of extra dollars for your appraisal to meet your contract deadlines because of unforeseen delays. Be sure to ask your Realtor to allow enough time in the contract for the appraisal dates to save you valuable time and money and avoid delays in the sale.
Michaela Phillips is the Vice President of Mortgage Lending at Guaranteed Rate, Inc., the 8th largest retail mortgage company in the country. Since entering the mortgage industry in 1994, she’s consistently been a top producer. Being a VP at Guaranteed Rate offers many advantages to her and her clients including unparalleled customer service, efficiency, and most importantly competitive rates. Contact Michaela at 303.579.5517 or via e-mail at [email protected]. NMLS: 312874.
