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Step 1
You are planning to refinance and you receive a call from the appraiser. What do you do? Relax. When the appraiser arrives at your house, the appraiser will take a minimum of three photos: a street scene, a front scene and a rear scene. Sometimes additional photos may be required depending on the type of appraisal or lender requirements.
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Step 2
The next step, the appraiser is ready to go inside and inspect the interior. The appraiser will need to draw an interior sketch showing all the rooms, above and below grade. The appraiser will walk through each room taking notes.
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Step 3
What does the appraiser look for?
Floor coverings: hardwood, ceramic, vinyl, wall-to-wall carpet; Walls: drywall, plaster, panel.;
Trim and lighting: crown, chair, shadow box molding, recessed, ceiling fans.
Bathroom flooring and wainscot.
Kitchen appliances, counter tops.
Type of heating and cooling.
Attic access.
Condition: typically most homes are in average to good condition. If fair is indicated on the report, then the appraiser will indicate the circumstances.
Basement: The appraiser will indicate if the basement is finished, partially finished or unfinished. If the basement is finished, the appraiser will calculate the percent of the basement that is finished and what rooms are in the basement. -
Step 4
After inspecting the interior of the property, the appraiser is ready to go outside and start the exterior inspection. The appraiser will measure the exterior of the property and these measurements are used to calculate gross living area. Also, these measurements will be used on the sketch in the report. The appraiser will note whether there is a deck, patio, porch, pool, fence, shed, any outbuildings.
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Step 5
Typically the inspection will last approximately 15-30 minutes. For more complex properties, the inspection may last a bit longer.
