I always feel a little bad when I don’t write here until into the evening, but when you’re working with buyers, sellers, inspectors, and appraisers the day sometimes gets away from you.

A home I have listed has an appraiser coming tomorrow morning and I feel very confident that we’ll be in good shape.  But I saw at Mahler & Associates that there are ways sellers can ensure a better appraisal,

• First start off with a clean slate, and by that I mean give your home a good old-fashioned cleaning. Strictly speaking this doesn’t affect the value of your home, but appraisers are people to and the better you present your real estate the better frame of mind the real estate appraiser will be in.
• Repair any damage to your home.
• Visit your county clerk or county recorders website to find recent selling prices of property in your neighborhood. Have these on hand when your appraiser arrives.
• Dig out maintenance records and system analyses for things such as septic systems, wells and structural reviews. The more informed the appraiser is, the better the appraisal will be.
• Interview appraisers, seek out one with experience appraising real estate in your expected price range and area…
• Make sure all parts of the house and property are accessible.

Explore the Mahler & Associates site. It’s chocked full of good information!