Some Hints for Swifter Turn Times

The appraisal profession is evolving at all times. Regularly, it seems, appraisers are asked to include more information or have steps added to their appraisal process. They do this extra work to guarantee their client gets the most useful data. To keep up with the always changing requirements, 1 Tree Real Estate Appraisal Service is constantly seeking additional tools and tweaking processes to increase efficiency so we can do more work for our customers. At 1 Tree Real Estate Appraisal Service we know that time is important to everybody, so we've listed some things you can do to decrease turn times when you order an appraisal from 1 Tree Real Estate Appraisal Service:

  1. Order your appraisals electronically. With online ordering, you automatically receive e-mail confirmations that the request was received, and fast, secure .PDF format report delivery. This tip single-handedly will save the most time! No longer do we have to manually enter information from a fax, and you don't have to wonder whether we received the order.

  2. Complete and accurate subject property data is key. There's nothing like being one number off on the street address to 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 in the area — though be advised that professional appraisers are lawfully required to do their own due diligence on comparable sales, and ours may differ from yours.

    3. If you have any questions about your property or an appraisal we're working on for you, you're always welcome to call us at 901-461-9662

  3. Are you telling us up front any details of the property that might make it unique? It's relatively easy to appraise a cookie-cutter home. What takes time is analyzing how differing characteristics contribute to or detract from what otherwise would be a property's market value. Let us know up front when ordering your report if there are unique elements of the home or surrounding area -- for example, it's recently had an addition constructed, 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 makes your report arrive faster.

  4. Set proper expectations with the occupants. One of the most tedious parts of the appraisal process is setting an appointment with the occupants of the home. We understand that a homeowner may be uncomfortable with an unknown person inspecting every square foot of their home, taking photos, and making copious notes. Thinking that it will make the house appraise for more money, some homeowners think they must make the place spotless before the appraisal inspection and will delay the appointment until it is cleaned.

    Coming from you -- a trusted party with whom they are already working -- a little information 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. Please feel free to point your customers to our website, where we have multiple pages of helpful information for homeowners and others regarding the appraisal process. Have them call us if they want to meet the staff and learn more about our services. Remind them it benefits them to set the appointment as quickly as possible!

  5. Our website is a great resource for keeping tabs on the status of your report. Phone and fax tag are a thing of the past with up-to-the-minute status updates available online, anytime, 24/7. As each important milestone in an assignment is completed, that information is instantly available to you online. It's never been easier to keep track of your report's status.