Getting the house ready for the appraiser is a big thing in the life of every mortgage seeker. Getting a mortgage or a remortgage requires not only a long line of documents, but also a visit from the appraiser. If you house passes the test, you should manage to gather decent percentage as your mortgage or refinance loan. If your house does not manage to pass muster, your hopes of procuring a large amount shall be futile.
If you are trying to shift to a new house, get ready to see your house get compared to a number of other "comps". "Comps" is a term used to refer to houses that have a similar value to your own. Most often, the valuation of your house will be dependent on the prices of homes in the neighborhood. So if you are new to the house buying business, it might make sense to shop for a home where the other houses and apartments seem to have a good value.
If you are looking to swap your current mortgage plan for a less expensive one, much would depend on the way in which your house has been taken care of. The appraiser wants to be sure that you shall be a good enough caretaker. So make sure that your house is well turned out. We all know about the power of the first impression. In this case, your house has to make a favorable first impression. This would mean long term expenses. So try and see to it that your home looks as beautiful as ever.
One way to do this would be to get rid of all the junk. A cluttered house generally seems to suggest dirt and messiness. So hide away all the junk and create the illusion of space for the appraiser. An airy house gives off great vibes, and this might influence a good report.
If you like, you could go in for some home improvements before the appraisal becomes due. A paint job might be a good idea, as might getting a new table made. However, see to it that all the renovation work is completed by the time of the appraiser's visit. Incomplete renovation work might make your house look dirty and it might influence the appraiser to make an unfavorable appraisal.
Whether you are looking for mortgage or a refinance loan or are simply hoping to get a good equity loan, remember that the house needs to make a good impression. Do your best before that appraisal.
Go on a ?clean and repair mission? starting with the outside of your home. Walk out to the curb and take a good look at the landscaping and exterior of the house. What do you see? If you see dead plants, scattered toys, garbage cans, broken tree limbs, or anything else distracting, here's what I suggest:
?If it's ugly, dead, distracting, out of place, or in any other way has a negative impact on the overall look or feel of your home, GET RID OF IT! If you can't get rid of it, do your best to cover it up. If you can't cover it up, do your best to divert attention from it by highlighting other areas.?
When you get to the interior, it's clean and light (not dark), and roomy and spacious (not cluttered), that buyers want and expect to see. That means you should clean the house floor to ceiling. Paint rooms lighter colors if painting is needed. And very importantly, de-personalize and de-clutter.
Make your home look as roomy and spacious as it can look.
How? One way is to gather up those cool little collections of antiques, knick knacks, stuffed animals, baskets, family photos, Disney characters, cookie tins, and so on, and ? I hate to say this but ? box it all up and put it away in the attic or in storage until your house is SOLD!
Why? Because too many small items in a home will make a home look cluttered. A home with too many personalized items makes it harder for a potential buyer to visualize the house as ?theirs?.
Most sellers don't want to hear that. And that's understandable given that many times their "collectables" are associated with fond memories and special times. That fact aside, the truth is ... something that may give you or I the "warm fuzzies" is, more often than not, a "distraction" to a potential buyer. But if you expect to sell a house (and put money in your pocket), you have to prepare the house for the buyers. And that means you must depersonalize and declutter.
One way to do that is invoke ?THE RULE OF HALF!?
This is a rule born of necessity as I tried to help a friend sell a home that was getting plenty of "lookers", but no offers, no buyers. I knew the price was more than fair, but I also knew the house was, well ... a "clutter box". Her house was litterally overrun with little collectibles and personal photos.
I told her, to get her home sold, she would have to invoke "The Rule of HALF"! Yes, I made up that rule "on the fly", but I did so because I knew to say anything different could have been taken as an insult (as most of the items were given to her by family and friends).
I knew she would have to pack up "at least half" of all her collectibles, photos and knick knacks (even better would have been to put away ALL, but I settled for half), and half of all her kitchen gadgets (to give the look and feel of more counter space), and half of everything in her closets (shoes, clothes, hats, boxes, etc).
This made a huge difference in the look and feel of the house. The following weekend she showed her house three times, and received an offer (which she accepted) the following Monday.
Remember that most people are moving because they want or need more space. Declutter and depersonalize your home to make it look and feel as spacious and comfortable as possible.
If you can't bear to put away all your "warm fuzzy" items, then try this idea yourself ... invoke "The Rule of HALF". You'll be glad you did when the offers start coming in!
Both Ajeet Khurana & Marc Guidry are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Ajeet Khurana has sinced written about articles on various topics from Credit Cards, Home Improvement How to and Credit Cards. A home is a big part of your net worth. So when you look for you must get one that will help. Ajeet Khurana's top article generates over 1220000 views. to your Favourites.
Marc Guidry has sinced written about articles on various topics from Advertising Guide, Pregnancy Problems and Mortgage. is a private real estate investor who runs several private ventures including startup companies. His. Marc Guidry's top article generates over 9900 views. to your Favourites.