Whether you’re buying, selling or refinancing a home, you’ll encounter an appraiser.

When I’m representing a seller, I always make a point to meet the appraiser ordered by the buyer’s lender to provide him/her/them with a Comparative Market Analysis for the home (my listing). This provides the appraiser with critical information about the home, confirms facts like square footage, number of bedrooms, if there’s a pool, garage or guest house and lists out any updates that may have been completed by the owners since the purchase.

Additionally, I provide comparable properties to the subject property – these are usually sold/closed properties, maybe one or two that are currently under-contract or pending, and an active listing, if possible. As a seller’s agent, my job is to ensure (to the best of my ability) that the price my clients have agreed to in a purchase contract is confirmed by an appraiser. Banks and lenders look to a licensed appraiser to ensure the amount their lending is warranted.

How does this come into play with a refinance?

Well, banks and lenders still need assurance that the amount their letting you borrow is warranted. Your lender will almost definitely require an appraisal.

But your house isn’t listed… do you need to talk to a real estate professional?

No, you don’t need to. But you should.

Getting a refinance *could* help you:

• Lower your interest rate if rates are lower now than they were when you purchased… or if your credit situation is better today than it was when you purchased. A lower interest rate, will lower your payment.
• If you put less than 20% down on your purchase, it could drop your Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI), thereby lowering your payment.
• Qualify for a cash-out or a home equity line of credit (HELOC) to help you pay for updates or renovations to your home, consolidate debt, and even purchase an investment property or new primary residence.
• Avoid the potential consequences staying in an adjustable rate mortgage (ARM)

For my clients, I try to make a habit of checking in if they’ve:

• Purchased in areas that have seen growth and increased home prices in the last year or two.
• Completed renovations or updates to their home.
• Had a down-payment of less than 20% when they purchased.
• Or I have a hunch that the current rates are lower than when they purchased.

If they decide the time is right for a refinance, I connect them with a trusted loan officer (or two) AND provide them with a packet of information to provide the appraiser when they meet them.

My service to my clients doesn’t end when the transaction closes and the keys are handed over. If you have questions about a refinance, interest rates or getting connected with loan officers I trust, please reach out. If you’re a former, current or future client or friend, and want to be sure your appraiser has real and relevant data from another licensed professional, I’d be happy to help.

I’ll follow this post up with the results of the two recent refinances that I helped with, and give you real data on what a couple of the properties I’ve recently provided CMAs for were purchased at, what updates were done, what the payment and interest rates were, and what the appraised value, payment amounts and interest rates are at with their respective refinances. Because who doesn’t like a real time example?