If you are in need of a Philadelphia home appraisal or a suburban appraisal, the following is general information regarding the appraisal and parts of the appraisal process.

What is an appraisal?

As per Appraisal Institute, Appraising Residential Properties 4^th Edition

An appraisal is the act or process of developing an opinion of value.  A real property appraisal provides an answer to a client’s specific question about the value of a real property interest.  An appraiser’s opinion of value reflects what market participants believe to be the value of a property.  Appraisers base their opinions on research in the appropriate market, the collection and verification of pertinent data, and the application of appropriate analytical techniques. 

The objective of a real property appraisal is to develop an opinion of the defined value of an interest in real estate.  According to USPAP (Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice), value is the monetary relationship between properties and those who buy, sell, or use those properties.

It is important to keep in mind that an appraisal is not a report.  This is a common misconception among appraiser’s clients because the report usually is the only evidence they have of the appraisals.  A report, however, is merely the means by which the opinion of value is communicated.  The focus of an assignment, from the appraiser’s viewpoint, is the agreement with the client to provide a specific service:  an opinion of value, based on a stated definition, as of a specified date, prepared under a certain scope of work, to satisfy a specified intended use, for a specified intended user. 

Each year buyers, sellers, lenders, builders, insurers, brokers, and government officials make real estate decisions involving billions of dollars, and these decisions depend on real estate appraisals.  Informed investment or loan decisions based on competent real estate appraisals help prevent business failures.

The services of a professional real estate appraiser may be required in a variety of circumstances, such as the following:

            Decisions concerning market transactions
Personal Decisions

            Tax questions

            Legal claims

            Investment planning and counseling

            Other real estate-related manners