Selling your home is a long journey, but it doesn\u2019t end with accepting an offer. Unless your buyer is paying in cash, the lender is going to want to make sure that the house is really worth the price that you\u2019ve agreed on\u2014and a home appraiser is the one who\u2019ll come check out your house and make that decision. If the appraiser thinks your house isn\u2019t worth the agreed-upon price, the lender won\u2019t give your buyer full funding and the deal might fall through.
\nWith so much on the line, can you woo this home appraiser? Not with flowers\u2014or even a wink and a nudge toward some cash casually left on the dining room table. But can an impeccably clean home dazzle that disinterested real estate professional into valuing your house higher than if it were a pigpen?<\/p>\n
Put in some elbow grease<\/strong> Hand in your homework<\/strong> Set the mood<\/strong> Comps and cookies<\/strong>
\nJennifer Chateauvert of San Jose, CA, and her husband spent two weeks deep-cleaning their home from top to bottom in anticipation of its appraisal, and she\u2019s convinced it paid off.
\n\u201cThe appraisal came back much higher than we had even hoped,\u201d Chateauvert says.
\nWas it just coincidence, or did that glow of cleanliness tilt the scales?
\n\u201cAppraisers are normal people. When they see something that looks nice and looks clean and presents well, they\u2019ll have a better impression of the property. But that won\u2019t affect the appraisal value,\u201d says Donald Boucher, president of the appraisal firm Boucher & Boucher in Washington, DC, and an appraiser with over 40 years of experience.
\nBut agents see it a different way.
\n\u201cHaving your house clean does make a difference, even though in theory it should not,\u201d says Mark Ferguson, a Realtor\u00ae and property investor in Greeley, CO. \u201cAppraisers are people, and they are swayed by smells and how a house feels, even if they aren\u2019t conscious of it.\u201d
\nThat\u2019s not all that might affect their impression, either.
\n\u201cSomeone in a good mood is far more likely to give you a better appraisal than someone in a rotten mood will, so make the appraiser\u2019s job as easy as possible,\u201d says Tracey Hampson, an agent with Century 21 in Santa Clarita, CA.
\nA 2011 study found that court judges gave out stiffer sentences leading up to lunch break, but were more lenient after they ate, suggesting that hunger can actually change the course of justice. And what is an appraiser if not a judge?<\/p>\n
\nYou can do much more than just a deep cleaning to show your home in the best light. First, create a list of all upgrades and notable features (especially things that don\u2019t leap out, like underground drainage systems or newly installed HVAC systems). Then you can gently guide your appraiser through the property, pointing out upgrades.
\nThat\u2019s what the Chateauverts did. While her husband didn\u2019t follow the appraiser around, he \u201cwas talking to him kind of casually.\u201d But if the appraiser gets annoyed at your presence, the list will do the talking. It will also serve as a reference for things the appraiser just can\u2019t access.
\n\u201cI want to know everything that the agent or owner wants to tell me about,\u201d Boucher says. He cites an example of a DC row house he recently appraised. \u201cI can\u2019t see the roof. It\u2019d be nice if the person can tell me if they replaced or upgraded the roof,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n
\nChoose very carefully what your home\u2019s first impression should be. Chateauvert chose to start with the worst. While they had made a ton of home improvements to the front of the home and the interior, the backyard \u201cstill needs a ton of work,\u201d she says. So she showed the appraiser the backyard before showing him the fresh interior.
\nOnce inside, the inspector commented on the improvements the couple clearly had made.
\n\u201cSome say the first impression is best, but maybe it\u2019s better to tell the story visually of the impact your improvements have made,\u201d she says.
\nChateauvert also hired cleaners to do a full scrub, spot-cleaned the walls, scraped away peeling paint, and touched up paint. Her living room has a quartz fireplace, so before the appraiser showed up she shined a halogen light on the mantel, letting it sparkle.<\/p>\n
\nWhile you\u2019re showing off your home\u2019s worth, it\u2019s also beneficial to point out the competition. You know\u2014comparable properties, also known as comps. Boucher says that while he has full access to the MLS and other programs, the software may not be perfect.
\n\u201cWhen you research the MLS, sometimes, for some reason, they won\u2019t appear. I\u2019ve had instances where comps just don\u2019t show up.\u201d Print out a list of comparable listings in the neighborhood for the appraiser.
\nAnd what about trying to sweeten the deal? Boucher says he and his fellow appraisers have had some truly illegal offers, from cash bribes to sex.
\nWait, what?
\n\u201cIt might have been a divorce case appraisal, and she wanted the value to be high,\u201d Boucher says, speaking of another appraiser, who was greeted at the door by a scantily clad woman. \u201cFortunately, he is a very honest guy and it did not influence him.\u201d
\nAnd if you want to make sure your house appraiser isn\u2019t hangry? Refreshments are welcome\u2014think of them as a gesture of courtesy, rather than a bribe.
\n\u201cFor good, straight-up honest appraisers, nothing like cookies and milk should have any effect at all,\u201d Boucher says. \u201cWhenever people have offered things like this, it is usually just a nice gesture.\u201d
\nSo if you can clean your house, point out all the great work you\u2019ve done, and provide some comps as well as snacks, you should be able to squeeze every bit of value from an appraisal. Just keep your pants on.<\/p>\n