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Today’s housing market has limited inventory, along with rising home prices and interest rates. For that reason, many people have opted out of the real estate market entirely for now and are instead putting their money toward making some improvements to their current homes. Even with inflation and supply chain issues, home remodeling projects are…
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An appraisal management company (AMC) plays many key roles in the home appraisal process. Its appraisal management services involve many moving parts. But most importantly, it ensures accuracy, fairness, compliance, and a better experience. Read on to learn why it is important to work with an appraisal management company and the benefits it provides to…
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When selling your home or buying a house, the appraisal and inspection are critical steps in the process. As they both involve a professional conducting an onsite examination of the property, it’s easy to confuse the two. However, there are key differences between a home appraisal and a home inspection. Is a Home Inspection the…
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When selling your home or refinancing your mortgage, the home appraisal inspection is a crucial step in the process. And of course you want the final appraisal report to reflect your home’s highest possible value. Remember, what your home is worth is also tied to your home equity. If the property appraises at a higher…
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Have you seen the most recent updates to the Appraiser Independence Requirements? This is something worth paying attention to. These guidelines affect loan officers and how closely AMCs can work with mortgage brokers and lenders moving forward. Lenders have previously been scrutinized for how they have interpreted the Appraisal Independence Requirements. But with the recent…
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At Kairos Appraisal, we take pride in providing an efficient and streamlined appraisal process that benefits our borrowers, our lending partners, and most importantly our appraisers. We talk a lot about our real estate appraisal tools, but one thing we don’t talk about enough is how we integrate technology to support our appraisers. At Kairos…
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Green and energy-efficient homes offer a ton of value to homeowners and homebuyers, thanks to their energy savings and safety, health, and comfort benefits. But how do we figure this value into home appraisals? Green home appraisals are a hot topic as green and energy-efficient properties continue to gain in popularity. Read on to learn…
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Buying a home today looks very different than it did in previous decades. From virtual house tours to applying for a mortgage online, the real estate industry has embraced new technology, weaving it into many of its processes. The home appraisal industry is beginning to use more technology, too. If you are buying or selling…
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The home appraisal report plays a significant role in the home buying process. This article provides a brief overview of its various sections and what is covered in each, so you can gain a better understanding of how to read a home appraisal report. In this article, we’ll walk you through the Uniform Residential Appraisal…
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Real estate appraisers use one of three methods: the sales comparison approach, the cost comparison approach, and the income approach. Sales comparison and cost comparison are the two most common methods. Below is an explanation of each, how they differ, and which types of home appraisals each one is most appropriate for. What Is the…
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Are you ready to put your house on the market and sell your home? You may wonder how your real estate agent arrived at a sales price and what factors influence your home’s appraised value. Whether you are delightfully surprised or disappointed in the pricing recommendation, it’s helpful to understand how homes are valued. While…
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If you have plans for home buying, selling, or refinancing, it will likely require an appraisal. While the mortgage lender will order the appraisal to ensure that they are not issuing a loan for more than what the property is worth, it’s still best for buyers and sellers to understand the home appraisal process and…
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Wouldn’t it make things so much easier if there was a blog containing all the things residential appraisers want sellers to know about their home appraisals? We thought so too, because here it is! That’s right, we’re unveiling all the mysteries. (Well, maybe not all of them—you wouldn’t need us if you already knew everything.)…
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The cooling housing market is forecast to continue in 2023, and buyers and sellers are proceeding with caution. With increased interest rates and declining home sales, there’s plenty to be nervous about—and there’s still the home appraisal, which can derail any mortgage deal if it comes in “low.” The good news is that a reconsideration…
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When purchasing a home with a mortgage or refinancing, the transaction may require that a home appraisal inspection be done. This is because appraisals assure the lender that they are not issuing mortgages for more than what residential properties are worth. Appraisals are conducted by real estate appraisers, who must meet an educational requirement and…
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Property comparables, called “property comps” for short, play a significant role in the home appraisal process. Whether you are a seller, a buyer, a real estate agent, or a loan officer, using accurate property comps is essential for determining a listing price, financing for a mortgage loan, and assessing how much equity is in the…
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The home appraisal is a key part of any home sale transaction, assuring the lender that they are not issuing a mortgage for more than a property is worth. Lending regulations restrict the borrower, mortgage broker, or lender from choosing which appraiser conducts their home inspection and prevent direct communication between these parties. Appraisal management…
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The ACE+ Property Data Report is a new component that could allow borrowers on Freddie Mac–eligible loans to avoid a full appraisal inspection on purchases or cash-out or rate-term refinances. Instead, property information is collected on-site by a real estate agent, inspector, or data collector using Freddie Mac’s proprietary PDR data sets. When the ACE+…
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October 27, 2022—Kairos Appraisal Services has expanded its service footprint to include the states of South Dakota, Oklahoma, and Minnesota. Kairos Appraisal, a nationally recognized AMC, is now licensed in 42 states. The company is known and recognized for its work in revolutionizing the appraisal process. This tech includes pre-appraisal tools that help improve turn…
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If you’re a mortgage loan officer and not taking advantage of pre-appraisal tools, your clients could be paying the price with higher fees and longer turnaround times. Read on to learn why pre-appraisal tools are the perfect solution for providing a better borrower experience and, for loan officers, how these tools can expedite the process…
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Seller concessions are costs the seller agrees to cover for the buyer’s closing fees on a home purchase. As purchasing a home is a big financial investment, negotiating seller concessions can help homebuyers with closing costs, which typically amount to 3% or less of the purchase price and are paid out of pocket by the…
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When you sell or buy a home, the sales price and appraisal value don’t always match up, and this discrepancy can lead to a change in the purchase price or dissolve the deal altogether. Therefore, it’s essential to understand how these numbers can differ and how the sale can still proceed when there is a…
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When buying a home, an appraisal contingency can serve as a safety net. If the home you want to purchase appraises for less than the price you agreed to pay, it gives you negotiating power with the seller. It also allows you to walk away from the deal without losing your deposit, should the seller…
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In today’s real estate market, it’s not uncommon for a house to receive multiple offers and sell above the asking price. In fact, depending on your market, this may be the norm at the moment. But just because a home sells for more than the asking price doesn’t always mean the appraised value will match. …
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While most mortgage brokers and lenders use financial technology (fintech), the same can’t be said for the appraisal industry. While a home loan can be processed in 10 days, the national average time to turn around a real estate appraisal is 17 to 20 days. The question then becomes, “How can the appraisal industry streamline…
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Doing multifamily property appraisals can be very challenging because they aren’t done the same way as either single-family home or apartment building appraisals. In fact, a multifamily property appraisal is quite different from either. In part, this is because a multifamily property is most often used to produce income rather than as a place for…
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The entire housing market has seen a lot in the past 18 months or so, and the appraisal industry is no exception. With all that’s happened since the COVID-19 pandemic started, we can all safely say that we’ve learned quite a bit. So, now the question is, what have we learned about the appraisal industry…
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Appraisal Management Companies (AMCs) are one of the newest additions to the real estate industry. AMCs were created from Dodd-Frank to separate mortgage brokers from appraisers, protect the market from inflated and/or biased values, and facilitate the entire appraisal process. In addition to managing the appraisal process, AMCs must also consider the perspectives and needs…
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As an AMC, we spend a lot of time talking and thinking about the responsibility of appraisers in the housing market and the vital role they play. We’re so grateful for the many incredible appraisers we work with daily and are always looking for ways to help our appraisers be more efficient and generally better…
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