Some helpful hints to speed your appraisal along from Wigal Group, LLC

	Legally, an appraiser must be state licensed to perform appraisals prepared for federally related transactions. Just give us a call at 304-546-3684 if you have any questions about the appraisal process.

To speed the appraisal process along as quickly as possible we generally recommend to have these documents, if available, ready for the appraiser:

• A plot plan or survey of the house and land (if readily available).

• Records on the latest purchase of the property in the last three years.

• Information on any written private easements, such as a shared driveway with a neighbor.

• List of personal property to be sold with the building.

• Title policy that describes encroachments or easements.

• A bill for your most recent real estate taxes which should also contain a legal description of the property.

• Any inspection reports, or other recent reports for termites, EIFS (synthetic stucco) wall systems, your septic system and wells.

• Find copies of the current listing agreement, broker's data sheet and, if the sale is "pending", the purchase agreement.

• Information on "Homeowners Associations" or condominium covenants and fees.

• A list of "suggested" improvements when the property is being appraised "as complete".

Once the appraiser arrives, you do not need to accompany him or her along on the entire site inspection, but you should be available to answer inquiries about your property and be willing to point out any home improvements.

Here are some other helpful recommendations:

• Accessibility: We recommend that all areas of the home are accessible, especially the attic and crawl space.

• Updates: It's important that we understand recent work you may have completed on your home. This includes updating, significant repairs, or replacement of major components like the roof, windows, heating & cooling etc.

• Maintenance: We often suggest fixing small things like leaky faucets, missing door handles and trim. Keep in mind that recent changes to appraisal requirements mandate interior photographs be taken and included in the appraisal report for all properties.

• FHA and VA Inspection Items: In the case of your buyer trying to apply for either an FHA or VA loan, we strongly recommend to ask your Realtor if there are extra things that should be done before we arrive. Some items they may recommend might be: having handrails on all stairways, ensuring there are electrical receptacles in every room and that each receptacle functions, repairing any inoperative components, replacing broken glass.