Don?t Rely Excessively On Appraisals

Getting an appraisal on a home is a fundamental aspect of making a purchase. While appraisals are certainly helpful, you should not put too much stock in them.

An appraisal is a valuation of a property by an independent appraiser. The appraiser does an evaluation of the home, considers the home in comparison to others of comparable type and so on. Once completed, the appraiser then issues a written appraisal value of the home. Many homebuyers make the assumption the appraisal is the true value of the home both now and in the future. This can be a dangerous assumption.

First, appraisals are limited by something known as a moment in time. The appraisal done today, may not be entirely relevant a month or two later. If a property has been on the market for a few months, the appraisal may not reflect a slowing market. This, in turn, means the appraised value is actually higher than the current market will support. Homebuyers run into problems when this occurs because they put too much value on the appraisal. A seller will often list the home below the appraised amount and homebuyers will think they are getting a deal. In reality, they are not and may actually be paying more than a new appraisal would support. The older the appraisal, the less value you should put into it.

Most homebuyers assume an appraiser inspects the home for defects and discounts the value of the home accordingly. This is not really the case. An appraiser is not really doing a critical home inspection. In fact, the appraiser contract and/or report usually contains a long disclaimer whereby the appraiser covers his derriere by noting he assumes the property is in good condition and isn?t liable if it is not. Obviously, that should scare you. This, of course, is why you should insist on a home inspection for any property you make an offer on.

An appraisal is a solid part of the equation when considering a home purchase. It is not, however, the piece de resistance when valuing the property.

Posted by Patricia A Skipworth on August 04, 2009 at 09:35 AM

About Patricia A Skipworth
Patricia A Skipworth is affliated with Skipworth Real Estate, LLC, which is located in Elkton, KY. For further assistance please use the contact information located on the right.

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Local Information for Elkton, KY

Latitude: 36.854712 -- Longitude: -87.488872

ZIP Codes for Hopkinsville, Kentucky	42240 42241
Area Code for Hopkinsville, Kentucky	270
Time zone for Hopkinsville, Kentucky	CST

Other Area Cities: Hopkinsville, KY Clarksville, TN Oak Grove, KY

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Hopkinsville was settled in 1796 by Bartholomew and Martha Ann Wood, a couple from Jonesborough, Tennessee. The Wood family established a permanent settlement in the vicinity of present-day West Seventh and Bethel Streets, near what would become known as the Old Rock Spring. Wood staked a claim, based on his service in the Revolutionary War, on 1,200 acres of land. He built a second cabin on what is now the northeast corner of Ninth and Virginia streets and a few years later built a home southeast of Fourteenth and Campbell streets, where he died in 1827. Wood's settlement soon attracted other settlers, and a pioneer village emerged. Wood donated five acres of land and a half interest in his spring for the county seat. The following year a log courthouse, jail, and "stray pen" were built on the public square facing Main Street. The plat for the town, first called Christian Court House, was surveyed by John Campbell and Samuel Means in 1799. -- Source: Wikipedia.com

Kentucky 2000 Census Population Profile Map

	Hopkinsville	Kentucky	United States
Population	30,089	4,041,769	281,421,906
Median age	35.1	35.9	35.3
Median age for Male	32.7	34.6	34
Median age for Female	36.9	37.1	36.5
Households	12,174	1,590,647	105,480,101
Household population	29,090	3,926,965	273,643,273
Average household size	2.39	2.47	2.59
Families	8,125	1,104,398	71,787,347
Average family size	2.95	2.97	3.14
Housing units	13,260	1,750,927	115,904,641
Occupied units	12,174	1,590,647	105,480,101
Vacant units	1,086	160,280	10,424,540

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Don?t Rely Excessively On Appraisals

Local Information for Elkton, KY

Latitude: 36.854712 -- Longitude: -87.488872

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