Sometimes appraisals come in low. When they do, they jam a stick in in the spokes.
After seeing a slew of homes, you know what’s out there, you grasp the VALUE … And it’s tough to be at the mercy of the bank and the bank’s appraiser.
We have been very fortunate with appraisals overall … but last month we got a low appraisal that threw a wrench in the works. It wasn’t on my listing, but I had the buyer.
We disputed the appraisal, ordered an appraisal review … then had underwriting take a look at it. Comparable recent sales had various roof issues . The subject property had a brand new roof … and the buyer saw value in that. But the appraiser didn’t. And the appraisal review, and the underwriting overview, each upheld the original quote. So we moved on… On to the NEXT lender! Our buyer wanted the house enough to apply with a NEW lender… That appraisal came in higher than the first … but below contract price.
We knew there was already a BACK UP OFFER on the house, but we made every effort to renegotiate with the seller. Our buyer was willing to come out of pocket meeting the seller half way between the appraised value and the contract price … but the seller opted to move on and accept the back-up offer … which was for more money… from someone willing and able to pay above appraised value.
Bad appraisals, fortunately enough, are infrequent. The remedy for them is to dispute any inaccuracies … provide comps, facts and perspective … If that fails, you renegotiate the contract. And if both parties wish to keep the transaction moving forward, you do whatever is humanly possible to hold the transaction together, get to the closing table and exchange keys.
Now … here’s to the new house we just drafted an offer on! Persistence and optimism make for a good pairing.
The Restivo Team – EWM Realtors – 305 793-1365. We would love the opportunity to talk with you about buying or selling…. whenever you’re ready!
