Home Appraisals:
A Look Under the Hood
W
By Jayson Stebbins
Mortgage Professional
Jayson Stebbins is a 20-year
veteran of the Mortgage
Banking industry and an
Accredited Mortgage
Professional through the
Mortgage Bankers Association.
He grew up in Morgan Hill
and currently lives in Gilroy. He
is the local Branch Manager
of Guild Mortgage, a 53-year
-old Mortgage Banking firm.
His office is in Morgan Hill and
serves all of Santa Clara, San
Benito, and Monterey counties.
You can reach Jayson and his
Team at 408-782-8800 or at
[email protected].
e know that we have
to qualify to buy a
home. Our income, credit and bank
statements are scrutinized to confirm
we have the willingness and ability
to repay the home loan. Sometimes
forgotten is the fact that the house
has to qualify as well. The property
we want to buy has to meet value and
quality standards to be acceptable
collateral for the home loan.
Appraisals are a unique mix of
facts and feel. A home appraiser has
to take the condition and state of
the property and compare that to
homes that have sold within the last
6 months, then come up with a value
that is supported by the market. Using
market knowledge, common sense,
and a little bit of art, the final valua-
tion determines if a lender will lend
on the house, and how much they
will lend.
Usually lenders want to see sales
in the past 6 months to support
the value of the house. This can be
frustrating to buyers or people trying
to refinance if they have a foreclosed
home in their neighborhood, or an
REO (bank-owned) type property that
is sold for a low value. This may affect
the value the appraiser can give.
Other things that impact the
value of the house are things like
marketability. Is the house one that
will sell quickly if put back on the
market? Have changes been made
that make it very specific to only a
small section of the buying public?
Appraisers also look at additions
(with permits or without) and the
condition of the home.
We are facing a unique challenge
at this moment as values move up
quickly. Sales prices are moving up
faster than the comparable sales
close, making it hard get the value
needed to support the purchase
price. This is hopefully a short-term
problem, as increased inventory and
a flattening of price acceleration will
help to even things out.
Increased regulations have also
made it more difficult, as Lenders
no longer can communicate directly
with appraisers and Realtors are
encouraged to minimize their
conversations to information
requested. Problem resolution,
questions and concerns must go
through the third party Appraisal
Management Company now, and
that can slow down the process.
Qualifying the house is just as
important as qualifying the borrower.
And the home Appraiser gets the
challenging job of making the
borrower and lender happy.
Jayson Stebbins is a licensed mortgage agent in CA for Guild Mortgage Company NMLS#38463;
Licensed by CA Disclosure:Licensed by the Department of Business Oversight under the California
Residential Mortgage Lending Act. NMLS Company Unique ID 3274; Branch Unique ID 38480.
The postings on this editorial don’t necessarily represent the positions, strategies or opinions of Guild
Mortgage Company or its affiliates. This information is not guaranteed to be accurate and shall not be
construed as a guarantee of loan approval. All loans are subject to underwriter approval, and are subject
to change without notice. Equal Housing Lender.
18
GILROY • MORGAN HILL • SAN MARTIN
MARCH/APRIL 2016
gmhtoday.com