Preparing for an appraisal from Caywood Appraisals

	To appraise a property, an appraiser is required to be licensed by the state when the transaction involves any federal financial regulatory agency such as Freddie Mac, Office of Thrift Supervision, and the like. Contact us if you have any questions about the appraisal process.

To help the appraisal go as smoothly as possible we generally recommend to have these documents, if available, ready for the appraiser:

• A survey or plot map of the property and building (if available).

• Any records on the purchase of the property for the last three years.

• Written property agreements, such as a maintenance easement for a shared driveway.

• List of personal property to be sold with the home.

• Any documents, such as a title policy with information on encroachments or easements encroachments or easements.

• Most recent real estate tax bill and or legal description of the property.

• Any inspection reports, or other recent reports for termites, EIFS (synthetic stucco) wall systems, your septic system and your well.

• A list of any major home improvements and enhancements, the amount of their purchase and date of their installation (for example, the addition of insulation or roof repairs) and permit confirmation (if available).

• A copy of the current listing agreement with broker's data sheet and purchase agreement if a sale is "pending".

• Any "Homeowners Associations" agreements or, if applicable, condo agreements or fees.

• A list of "proposed" improvements if the property is to be appraised "as complete".

When the appraiser arrives, you do not need to escort them along on the entire site inspection, but can be helpful be present to answer questions about your property and be willing to point out any home improvements.

Here are a few other tips:

• Accessibility: Appraisers are very thorough in their inspections. We recommend that all areas of the home are accessible, especially the attic and crawl space.

• Housekeeping: Appraisers see quite a few of homes a year and will look past most clutter, but they're human beings too! A good impact can mean a higher value for your home.

• Maintenance: We generally recommend fixing small things like leaky faucets, missing door handles and trim.

• FHA and VA Inspection Items: If your borrower is applying for either an FHA or VA loan, we strongly recommend to ask your appraiser if there are specific things that should be done before they arrive. Some items they may recommend might be: having handrails on all stairways, scraping and repainting where there's paint peeling, repairing any faucets that leak or drip, replacing broken glass.