We got our appraisal today and the house appraised for exactly what we're paying. That works out for our FHA loan but to be honest, I was really surprised. I thought it would be higher. I looked over the report pretty carefully and there are several mistakes: house is listed 1 year older than it actually is, report says there's no fence when the yard is fully fenced in, report says house has a porch but no patio but it has a covered patio, etc.
It also says on the report that foreclosures in the area are bringing down home values (which I already knew) so that doesn't help, but should we care about the appraisal as long as it's at least what we're paying? It irks me but does it matter at this point in time?
Re: Appraisal is in - Input needed
That's pretty normal from my experience. The first house we were going to buy last year appraised at $1100 more than the purchase price, and this one $2k. I think it's a messed up system anyway, because how unbiased is an appraiser going to be when they are given a copy of the contract? And yes, unfortunately the market is killing property values right now!
I would call them and make them fix the errors though, as that could affect your appraisal amount, and it's just plain incorrect! If they tell you they'll have to charge for another visit, throw the bullsh!t flag, since they should've done it right the first time!
"My 101 List - Updating asap, I swear!
Thanks for the input ladies. I spoke to my LO and he said I had every right to call and ask the appraiser about the inconsistencies since we paid for his services and there are errors. He said it was totally up to us if we wanted to or not but that it shouldn't influence any future appraisals. I think we'll probably call tomorrow just so it's correct.
On a positive note, we FINALLY got the approval letter from the bank that holds the mortgage on the house. We're looking at a closing date of May 18th or sooner (depending on how things go with our bank)!!!
Congrats on the closing date!
I have no idea about this house buying stuff, but I don't see how they can charge you for correcting a blatant error like saying there's not a fence when there is. That doesn't make sense.
I may have given the wrong impression. There wouldn't be any charge. Thanks for the congrats!