The Invisible Appraiser

[Blue1]

It happened again! I have been attacked by the "Invisible Appraiser!" I know you think I'm crazy but he/she really does exist.....I just KNOW it! It all started several years ago when I appraised a strange property...well not REALLY strange but...a rather unassuming house on a typical City lot. The strange part was its listing price; several thousands above the typical prices in the neighborhood! I dealt with this conundrum like any good appraiser would....I spent hours and hours pouring over MLS data sheets and County Assessor data but I just could not support the sale price...let alone it's listing price. Anyway, after a day of soul searching and endless data searches I finally came to the conclusion.....This property has an inflated listing price and thus an inflated sale price! I completed my report and handed it to my client. I felt I'd done a good job and went back to the office for some much needed R&R and a tall cool one. Then it happened.....The phone.....It was my client...."The Realtor says he asked a bank appraiser and he (the bank appraiser) said he'd have no problem "coming in" at the sale price." "Which bank appraiser?" I said......"Well......he didn't say." My client said. Then I said..."O.K. if this appraiser can come in at a higher value then he/she MUST have better comparables....have them FAX them to me." Awright "Said my client." Well, guess what? I heard absouletly nothing from the Realtor or the appraiser!

Over the years there have been several of the same incidents, always revolving around inflated values and just recently in happened again and again I waited by my FAX machine for the "magic" comparables to come in but alas, there has been nothing forthcoming in the past 48 hours! I have never seen, talked to nor met this "other" appraiser but, I keep searching and asking......

 

[Richard Carlsen]

This Bank Appriaser must be related to that famous group of people that everyone talks about when needing support for an arguemnet, as in "They say that......blah, blah, etc." This group is also known to teenagers as "Everyone" as in "Everyone is doing it" or "Everyone has one".

You just happened to get one that was singled out in the banking community. Forget the FAX machine. Remember that "They" never send faxes,"They" never return phone calls and "They" are never around to personally defend a position.

 

[Dave Smith]

But Richard...

Don't you know "They" all know it is worth it. And "they" all know that most properties are selling for less than they are worth right now. I had a Realtor tell me that yesterday so it must be true. The Realtor made that statement relative to the condo he is selling for $30,000 more than any of the four good comps I had located. Says he... "But those comps sold for less than market value." Fun, fun, fun!

 

[Mountain Man]

The last time I got that "so in so has better comps" call, the agent sent the MLS sheets of the same sales I used in the report. :roll:
I told the LO (a good friend) darn, you found out our appraisers' secret. We always save the best comps for later!