Five Suggestions for Faster Turn Times

Appraising is a constantly changing profession. Regularly, it seems, appraisers are asked to supply additional information or have steps added to their process - all to ensure their client receives the best analysis possible. To stay current with the continuously changing requirements, Fisher Appraisal Services is always acquiring new tools and improving processes in order to increase efficiency so we can do more work for you. Since Fisher Appraisal Services knows that time is important to everyone, we've listed a few things you can do to lower turn times on any appraisals ordered with Fisher Appraisal Services:

  1. Order your appraisals online. When you order online, you receive automatic e-mail acknowledgements that the request was received, and fast, secure .PDF format report delivery. Ordering online is the single biggest time saver available to both of us! No longer do we have to retype information from a fax, and you don't have to wonder whether the order was received.

  2. Complete and accurate subject property data is crucial. 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 from the area — though be advised that professional appraisers are lawfully required to do their own due diligence on comparable sales, and ours might differ from yours.

    3. Feel free to call us at 781-603-5542 if you have any questions about your property or an assignment we're working on for you.

  3. Are you letting us know up front any details of the property that might make it unique? It's relatively easy to appraise a cookie-cutter house. What takes time is analyzing how unique characteristics contribute to or detract from what otherwise would be a property's market value. Let us know up front when you order your report if there are unique elements of the home or surrounding area -- for example, it's recently had an addition built on, it's subject to zoning restrictions, and it's predisposed to flooding. While these are things that we will find out on our own, knowing them as early as possible will likely make your report arrive sooner.

  4. Set proper expectations with the occupants. Setting an inspection time and date with the homeowner can be one of the most time consuming tasks in the appraisal process. Many current homeowners are understandably uncomfortable with the fact that an outsider wants to come in their home, look around, and take numerous notes. A common belief is that they ought to make the place spotless before the inspection, believing that will make the house appraise for more money and will put off the inspection until they can get around to cleaning.

    Coming from you -- a trusted party with whom they already have a business relationship -- a short explanation about the appraisal process, who we are, and especially that dusting and polishing won't make a significant difference in their home's value, will help move the process along for everyone. I encourage you to point your clients to our website, where we have several pages of relevant information for homeowners as well as others about the appraisal process. They can even call us if they want to become familiar with our staff and services. Remind them it benefits them to set the appointment quickly!

  5. Our website is a great resource for tracking the status of your report. No more phone and fax tag. Up-to-the-minute status updates are 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 faster and easier to track the status of your report.