Tax Assessment/Appraisal: How Do I Know What My Home is Worth?
If you are in the home buying or selling market, its important to understand the difference between tax assessment and appraisal value. Concentrate on the appraisal value because this determines your asking price.Understanding Tax AssessmentThe tax assessment is a tool local governments use to ... more...

Appraisal vs. Market Value: How to Avoid Pitfalls in the Sale of Your Home
When you sell your home, appraisers use comps (comparable market sales) of local properties sold within the last six months to value your home. With todays rapidly rising sellers market, six-month-old information is ancient history. Appraised value does not always equal the true market value, or ... more...

Alamo California Appraisal Home Value
There are places you can seek out online that will give you access to an appraisal of your homes value. But what is an appraisal exactly? It is an opinion in written form of the value of a piece of real estate at a certain time or date. It should be an analysis that is both independent and ... more...

Home Equity Loans Beware of Appraisal Fraud
A new report by the independent Demos group has revealed what may not be a surprise to many people corruption is rampant in the home appraisal industry. The bust in the dot-com market of some five years ago has left would-be lenders with a surplus of cash to lend. This has led to a huge boom in ... more...

What To Expect From Your House Appraisal
Having your house appraised can be a scary step in the moving process, especially if you dont know what to expect. Will your house pass muster or will they find some hidden defects and problems lurking in the basement and attic? Should you scrub the house clean?Dont worry this isnt a test of how ... more...

Real Estate Appraisal - Do It Yourself
For single family homes, there are two basic methods used in real estate appraisal. They are replacement cost analysis, and using comparable sales. A third appraisal method, based on capitalization, is used for income properties, and is covered in another article.In figuring replacement cost the ... more...

10 Things to Look for in a Home-Equity Line of Credit
If you are a homeowner, you've probably received offers to apply for a home equity line of credit (HELOC). Handled with care, home equity credit lines can be an excellent way to improve financial flexibility, provide readily available cash reserves for emergencies, or pay for large expenses (like ... more...

How to Become a Real Estate Appraiser
Learning how to become a real estate appraiser starts with an introduction to the work itself. Real Estate Appraisers will either work for themselves or are part of a larger company. Many work for lending institutions, including banks and mortgage companies. Appraising property is necessary before ... more...

Appraisal or Home Inspection?
People sometimes confuse a home inspection and an appraisal when they are in the process of buying a home.Most mortgage applications involve an appraisal, which can be a physical inspection of the property plus a written analysis of similar homes that have recently sold in the area. An appraisal ... more...