What are the parts of an appraisal?

Purchasing a home can be the most serious transaction most people might ever encounter. It doesn't matter if it's where you raise your family, a seasonal vacation home or a rental fixer upper, purchasing real property is an involved financial transaction that requires multiple parties to see it through.

To learn more about appraising, click here to see a short video or call us today to talk about your specific property.


It's likely you are familiar with the parties taking part in the transaction. The most recognizable entity in the transaction is the real estate agent. Next, the lender provides the money needed to finance the deal. Ensuring all areas of the transaction are completed and that the title is clear to transfer from the seller to the buyer is the title company.

So who's responsible for making sure the value of the property is in line with the purchase price?   In comes the appraiser.   We provide an unbiased estimate of what a buyer might expect to pay - or a seller receive - for a property, where both buyer and seller are informed parties. A professional California licensed appraiser from Scott E. Davis Real Estate Appraiser will ensure you as an interested party are informed.

Inspecting the subject property

Our first duty at Scott E. Davis Real Estate Appraiser is to inspect the property to ascertain its true status. We must actually view aspects of the property, such as the number of bedrooms and bathrooms, the location, and so on, to ensure they indeed are present and are in the condition a reasonable person would expect them to be. To make sure the stated square footage is accurate and illustrate the layout of the home, the inspection often includes creating a sketch of the floor plan. Most importantly, we look for any obvious features - or defects - that would affect the value of the house.

Next, after the inspection, we use two or three approaches when determining the value of the property: a sales comparison, a replacement cost calculation, and an income approach when rental properties are prevalent.

Replacement Cost

Here, the appraiser gathers information on local building costs, the cost of labor and other elements to figure out how much it would cost to replace the property being appraised. This estimate often sets the maximum on what a property would sell for. The cost approach is also the least used method.

Analyzing Comparable Sales

Appraisers get to know the subdivisions in which they work. We innately understand the value of particular features to the people of that area. Then, the appraiser looks up recent sales in the area and finds properties which are 'comparable' to the home in question. By assigning a dollar value to certain items such as square footage, additional bathrooms, hardwood floors, fireplaces or view lots (just to name a few), we add or subtract from each comparable's sales price so that they more accurately match the features of subject.

  • If, for example, the comparable has a storm shelter and the subject doesn't, the appraiser may deduct the value of a storm shelter from the sales price of the comparable home.
  • If the subject has an extra half-bathroom and the comparable does not, the appraiser might add an amount to the comparable property.
At Scott E. Davis Real Estate Appraiser, we are an authority in knowing the value of particular items in Yucca Valley and San Bernardino County neighborhoods. This approach to value is usually given the most consideration when an appraisal is for a real estate purchase.

Valuation Using the Income Approach

In the case of income producing properties - rental houses for example - the appraiser may use an additional approach to value. In this case, the amount of revenue the real estate yields is factored in with other rents in the area for comparable properties to determine the current value.

Coming Up With the Final Value

Combining information from all applicable approaches, the appraiser is then ready to document an estimated market value for the property in question. It is important to note that while this amount is probably the best indication of what a house would sell for in an open market, it probably will not be the price at which the property closes. It's not uncommon for prices to be driven up or down by extenuating circumstances like the motivation or urgency of a seller or 'bidding wars'. Regardless, the appraised value is typically employed as a guideline for lenders who don't want to loan a buyer more money than the property would likely sell for in an open marketplace. The bottom line is: An appraiser from Scott E. Davis Real Estate Appraiser will guarantee you attain the most accurate property value, so you can make wise real estate decisions.