Home Appraisals: A Primer

Getting a home is the biggest transaction most of us will ever encounter. Whether it's where you raise your family, a second vacation home or an investment, the purchase of real property is a detailed transaction that requires multiple parties to pull it all off.


It's likely you are familiar with the parties having a role in the transaction. The most recognizable face in the transaction is the real estate agent. Next, the bank provides the financial capital necessary to bankroll the exchange. Ensuring all areas of the sale are completed and that a clear title transfers from the seller to the buyer is the title company.

So who makes sure the value of the property is in line with the amount being paid?   This is where the appraiser comes in.   We provide an unbiased opinion of what a buyer could expect to pay - or a seller receive - for a parcel of real estate, where both buyer and seller are informed parties. A professional Missouri licensed appraiser from United Appraisals, LLC will ensure you as an interested party are informed.

Inspecting the subject property

Our first task at United Appraisals, LLC is to inspect the property to determine its true status. We must see aspects of the property first hand, such as the number of bedrooms and bathrooms, the location, living areas, etc., to ensure they truly are present and are in the condition a reasonable person would expect them to be. The inspection often includes a sketch of the house, ensuring the square footage is accurate and illustrating the layout of the property. Most importantly, we look for any obvious features - or defects - that would affect the value of the property.


Cost Approach

Here, the appraiser uses information on local construction costs, labor rates and other factors to figure out how much it would cost to build a property comparable to the one being appraised. This value commonly sets the upper limit on what a property would sell for. The cost approach is also the least used method.

Analyzing Comparable Sales



Valuation Using the Income Approach

A third method of valuing a house is sometimes used when a neighborhood has a measurable number of rental properties. In this situation, the amount of revenue the real estate yields is factored in with other rents in the area for comparable properties to derive the current value.

Putting It All Together

Examining the data from all approaches, the appraiser is then ready to stipulate an estimated market value for the property at hand. It is important to note that while this amount is probably the best indication of what a property would sell for in an open market, it probably will not be the final sales price. There are always mitigating factors such as the seller's desire to get out of the property, urgency or 'bidding wars' that may adjust the final price up or down. Regardless, the appraised value is typically employed as a guideline for lenders who don't want to loan a buyer more money than they could recover in the event they had to sell the property again. It all comes down to this: An appraiser from United Appraisals, LLC will guarantee you get the most accurate property value, so you can make profitable real estate decisions.