Real Estate Appraisers Can Be A Realtor’s Best Friend
Contrary to popular belief appraisers and real estate agents can interact with one another. One of the main messages I make sure to get across whenever I speak at local agent’s offices is that it is okay for them to call the appraiser who is appraising one of their sales. Appraisers can be a Realtor’s best friend because the benefits they offer can help the agent perform their job better.
You need to keep in mind though that not all topics are up for discussion. Any talk about value is taboo. Keeping that very important caveat in mind, there is still a lot that we can talk about. Communication is one of the most important factors in creating a smooth loan process.
If we take a step back and look at the whole appraiser-agent relationship from a bird’s eye view it might help us to understand how the relationship between an appraiser and agent can be beneficial to consumers. Appraisers should think of this as being a resource to an industry colleague and agents should consider how appraisers can be a source of valuable information to help make them a better agent.
Today I thought I would share my thoughts on how appraisers can be a Realtor’s best friend. We’re not talking about buddy deals here, where the appraiser will help “make the deal work” for their agent friends. What we are talking about is how appraisers can inform and educate agents and provide a service that creates a better experience for all people involved in the home buying process.
6 Ways the appraiser can help out an agent
1) Appraisers can provide agents with education about the appraisal process- One way I educate agents is by speaking at their sales meetings. I have found that in the past appraisers didn’t do the best job at explaining to agents why and how appraisers do what they do.
Most agents I run into are very interested in knowing the process involved in an appraisal. Some of the main questions I’m asked have to do with comparables and what to do if there are none.
In my 25+ years appraising, I’ve only run into one situation where I could not find any similar comps to use in an appraisal. I let agents know that it’s okay to search beyond the immediate subdivision to find sales as long as the sales come from a competitive market area. Knowing an appraiser will answer any question the agent has is invaluable in helping them better understand what we do.
2) Appraisers can help agents by providing pre-listing appraisal services- Pre-listing appraisals and real estate agents can exist together. Just because you are using an agent does not mean that you shouldn’t get a pre-listing appraisal if you determine that it would be advantageous to sell your home.
Knowing an appraiser that you trust can go a long way when agents just can’t get a handle on the value of a property. An appraiser will be able to approach the appraisal as if they were doing it for the bank.
This can help because the appraiser will be picking comps that would be acceptable to the bank. Most banks have specific underwriting guidelines and if the appraiser is able to complete the assignment by similar guidelines then the value arrived at will more closely match what the other appraiser comes up with when they do the appraisal for the mortgage.
3) Appraisers can help agents by providing house measuring services- Sometimes a pre-listing appraisal
is not necessary but maybe an accurate home measurement is. Most agents do a great job in pricing a home if they have the correct square footage.
Whenever an agent works with square foot figures that are less than accurate their list price can be way off. Just keep in mind that if a house is off by 100 square feet and other similar homes are selling for $100 per square foot the list price can be off by as much as $10,000. This can make a big difference in a competitive market.
In addition to providing more accurate living area figures, the appraiser can give you insight into how various areas of the home are factored into the appraisal. I’ve seen some agents include enclosed porches with the main area of the house. This can overstate the square footage and cause you to over price the home.
4) Appraisers can answer questions that crop up during a sale- On numerous occasions I have had agents I know call me and ask an appraisal related question on a deal they are working on (not one I am doing). Sometimes they will have a question as to why the appraiser did what they did in the mortgage appraisal.
I’m not out to discredit or question what fellow appraisers do but I can sometimes provide answers to questions the agents may have about something within the appraisal report. While it is okay for the agent to speak with the appraiser about non-value related issues some may not feel comfortable doing it. By having a good relationship with an appraiser the agent will have another source of information to help them understand what is going on.
5) Appraisers can help agents do their job better- By helping agents price homes more accurately, providing more accurate square footage, or answering simple questions they may have, an appraiser can help the agent be the best agent they can be. An effective agent will have a solid understanding of the appraisal process that will help them prevent potential problems.
6) Appraisers can help new agents to understand how to read the appraisal report- One of the best
things a new agent can do is make friends with a local, highly respected appraiser. The appraiser can educate the new agent from the beginning on how the appraisal process works, and this includes how to read the appraisal report.
Let’s face it, the appraisal report is not always the easiest thing to decipher with all of the abbreviations that have to be used to fit everything on the form. Learning all of this, in the beginning, can help the agent be more effective and useful to their clients.
Question
Does it make sense that by having an appraiser as a friend whom you can ask questions that the agent can be more informed and knowledgeable for their clients? Can you add another way the relationship can be beneficial? If you have any other questions feel free to contact me and as always thanks for reading.
If you liked this post subscribe by email (or RSS feed). Thanks for visiting.
Finding the perfect real estate agent is worse than finding a home. Selling a home through a realtor will save you a lot of time.
It would be good to interview an agent before hiring them to make sure they are qualified to handle your sale.
There is so often animosity between appraisers and agents, but there are so many ways each can mutual benefit each other. I think that is not case always, there are many different examples.
I agree, Alex. As with many things I think we need to concentrate on the things that we can agree on rather than those that we disagree with. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
Thanks Tom. And I agree, but how do I find out who the appraiser is so that I can reach out to them?
I think I could help you out there Joe, just give me a call. 🙂
I’m an appraiser and I love real estate agents. Networking with agents gives me new perspective on appraisals, helps me do my job better, and they send me more work than anyone else.
Thanks, Gary. I’m aware that your firm specializes in non-lender appraisal work so I am sure you have a good working relationship with agents. Are there any tips you would like to add to help other appraisers move to doing more work for agents?
Thanks for the post Tom. There is so often animosity between appraisers and agents, but there are so many ways each can mutual benefit each other. During an escrow an agent and an appraiser really aren’t playing on the same team, but that doesn’t mean there cannot be good relationships on both sides.
Yes, I agree, Ryan. I think we can be beneficial to each other.