Birmingham Appraisal Blog

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Entries Tagged as 'Appraisal Tips'

Appraising In The Aftermath Of A Tornado-Birmingham, Alabama

January 30th, 2012 by Tom Horn · 4 Comments · Appraisal, Appraisal Tips, FAQ's

How do you appraise a home that has been destroyed in a tornado?  That is the question I got from a friend recently after I told him I had gotten some assignments in the storm devastated areas of Birmingham, Alabama.  I thought that since he was curious about this that others may be also.  I [...]

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Are these FHA required repairs?

January 20th, 2012 by Tom Horn · No Comments · Appraisal, Appraisal Tips, Education, FAQ's, FSBO Tips, Home Improvement, Realtor Tips

I was doing some work recently for a novice property investor and he was asking me some questions about FHA required repairs.  He wanted to prepare the house he just purchased so that if the buyers were going to use FHA financing there wouldn’t be any issues at the last minute to hold up the [...]

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Birmingham, Alabama Cash Buyers: Don’t Make This Mistake

January 11th, 2012 by Tom Horn · 6 Comments · Appraisal, Appraisal Tips

After seeing an article about how cash buyers have made a strong showing in residential real estate transactions I started wondering how many of them got appraisals on their purchases. Most of the time people think the only reason to get an appraisal is so you can borrow money from the bank. This is only [...]

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I Can Help Birmingham, AL Realtors With Their Sales Meetings

January 9th, 2012 by Tom Horn · No Comments · Appraisal, Appraisal Tips, Education, FAQ's

If you are a Realtor in the Birmingham, AL area I would like to help you with your sales meetings by providing appraisal education to your agents. I have spoken in the past at local real estate offices about how to read an appraisal, how we come up with comparables, why we sometimes must use [...]

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Seller Tips: Picking The Right Comps To Help Narrow The Gap Between List Price and Sale Price

December 19th, 2011 by Tom Horn · 6 Comments · Appraisal, Appraisal Tips, FSBO Tips, Realtor Tips

After looking over a weeks worth of real estate sales data I have found a trend in some market areas.  That trend is the increasing gap between what a house was initially listed at and the final sales price.  This is one of the statistics appraiser’s  look at, and this week in one area I [...]

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Why You Need A Local Appraiser In Today’s Real Estate Market

November 21st, 2011 by Tom Horn · 5 Comments · Appraisal, Appraisal Tips, FAQ's, Realtor Tips

I’ve written about this in the past but thought I would mention it again because I have received a couple of calls within the past month from loan officers not happy with the appraisals they have received. In both situations, out of town appraisers were used.

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Market Value: The X-Factor in Most Real Estate Transactions

November 16th, 2011 by Tom Horn · No Comments · Appraisal, Appraisal Tips

Most people have a good idea of what market value is.  A short and abbreviated definition of Market Value is as follows: Market value is the most probable price which a property should bring in a competitive and open market under all conditions requisite to a fair sale, the buyer and seller, each acting prudently, [...]

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What Red Flags Can Kill A Birmingham, AL Area FHA Appraisal?

October 18th, 2011 by Tom Horn · 2 Comments · Appraisal, Appraisal Tips, FAQ's

Have you ever wondered if a house would pass an FHA appraisal inspection?  FHA does have more stringent appraisal guidelines than conventional loans but if you know what to look for then you can be ready before any problems come up.  I have included some of the top problems I have seen in my 20+ [...]

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How To Estimate The Value Of Your Home Without Getting An Appraisal

August 1st, 2011 by Tom Horn · 2 Comments · Appraisal, Appraisal Tips

If you are in the market to sell your home the best thing you can do is to get a qualified appraiser to provide you with an appraisal of your home.  This will ensure that the most accurate sales and listing information is used to give you the most precise value estimate. If you are [...]

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FHA Repair Item…or Not?

July 5th, 2011 by Tom Horn · 2 Comments · Appraisal, Appraisal Tips, FAQ's, Home Improvement, Realtor Tips

I get a lot of questions about FHA appraisals and what types of repairs are required, and which ones are not.  As I have stated in a previous blog post, most items of repair in an FHA appraisal are related to safety, soundness, and security. Some items will definitely need to be repaired before the [...]

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