Five Tips for Shorter Turn Times

Appraising is a constantly changing profession. Each year, it seems, appraisers are asked to provide additional information or have steps added to their research. All to guarantee their client has the best information to be had. In order to stay current with the always changing requirements, Advance Real Estate Appraisals, Inc is continuously acquiring new tools and improving processes to increase efficiency so we can do more work for our clients. Since Advance Real Estate Appraisals, Inc knows that time is important to everyone, we've listed a couple of items you can do to speed up the process every time you order an appraisal from Advance Real Estate Appraisals, Inc.

Order your appraisals online.: With online ordering, you receive automatic e-mail acknowledgements that the order was received, and fast, secure .PDF format report delivery. This tip single-handedly will save the most time! We don't have to manually enter information from a fax, and you don't have to wonder whether we received the order.
Are you providing complete and accurate data about the subject property?: There's nothing like being one number off on the street address to unnecessarily slow down an appraisal assignment. And if you have a tax parcel number, plat map number, subdivision name or anything else that uniquely identifies the property, please pass it along. Even a list of recent sales in the area is welcome — though be advised that professional appraisers are lawfully required to do their own due diligence on comparable sales, and ours might differ from yours.
Tell us up front of the property's unique elements.: It's relatively easy to appraise a cookie-cutter house. Most of an appraiser's time is spent analyzing how unique details add to or detract from what otherwise would be a property's market value. At the time you order your report, be sure to let us know if there are unique characteristics of the home or surrounding area -- for example, it's had a recent addition built on, it's subject to zoning restrictions, it's prone to flooding. These are things we'd find out on our own anyway, and knowing them sooner will likely make your report arrive without delay.
Are you making the homeowner of the home aware of what to expect?: One of the most tedious parts of the appraisal process is setting an appointment with the current homeowner. Many current homeowners are clearly uneasy with the thought an unknown persons wants to come in their home, look around, and take numerous notes. With the notion that it will increase the appraised value, many homeowners believe they have to make the place spotless before the appraiser comes by. So they delay the inspection until the house is cleaned.

Hearing from you -- someone they've been working with on their loan -- a little information about the appraisal process, who we are, and especially that dusting and polishing won't increase their home's value one little bit, and can decrease the time it takes to inspect a home. Our website has numerous pages of relevant information about the appraisal process for homeowners. I encourage you to share it with your clients. Have them call us if they want to become familiar with the staff and our services. Remind them it benefits them to set the appointment as quickly as possible!
Easily verify the status of your report on our website.: Phone and fax tag are a thing of the past with up-to-the-minute status updates available online, anytime, 24/7. As each important milestone in an assignment is completed, that information can be viewed instantly online. It's never been easier and faster to track your report's status.