Five Suggestions for Shorter Turn Times

Appraising is an always changing profession. Regularly, it seems, appraisers are asked to present more information or have steps added to their appraisal process. All of this is to guarantee their client is presented with the best information to be had. In order to stay current with the always changing requirements, Race Appraisal Services, LLC is always seeking new tools and tweaking processes to increase efficiency so we can do more work for our clients. Since Race Appraisal Services, LLC knows that time is important to everyone, below are some things you can do to speed up the process whenever you order an appraisal from Race Appraisal Services, LLC.

Always order your appraisals electronically.

When you order online, you receive automatic e-mail acknowledgements that the order was received, and fast, secure .PDF format report delivery. This tip alone will save the most time! We don't have to manually enter information from a fax, and nor will you wonder whether the order was received.

Are you providing complete and accurate data about the subject property?

Having just one number incorrect on the street address can really add unnecessary time to 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. We even welcome lists of recent sales in the area — though be advised that professional appraisers are lawfully required to do their own due diligence on comparable sales, and ours may be different from yours.

Feel free to contact us if you have any questions about your property or an assignment we're working on for you.

Be sure to let us know about the unique elements of this property.

Cookie-cutter homes are relatively easy to appraise. What takes time is analyzing how unique details contribute 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 details of the home or surrounding area -- for example, it's recently had an addition put on, it's subject to zoning restrictions, it's prone to flooding. These are things we will find out on our own anyway, and knowing them sooner makes your report arrive quicker.

Did you make the homeowner of the home aware of what to expect?

One of the most tedious parts of the appraisal process is confirming an inspection date with the occupants of the home. Some homeowners are clearly uneasy with the notion an outsider wants to come in their home, look around, and take copious notes. Believing that it will increase the appraised value, a few homeowners believe they must make the place spotless before the appraiser comes by. So they choose to not schedule the inspection until it is cleaned.

Hearing from you -- the person they've been working with on their loan -- some information about the appraisal process, who we are, and especially that dusting and polishing won't make it more likely their sale will close, and likely shorten the appraisal inspection time. Please feel free to point them to this website, where we have many pages of helpful information for homeowners and others regarding the appraisal process. Have them call us if they want to meet our staff and learn more about our services. And tell them it benefits them to set the appointment as quickly as possible!

Our website is a great resource for tracking your report's status.

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 to keep track of the status of your report.