Home Appraisal (Cost & Process)

What it costs and who pays

In Florida a conventional single-family appraisal typically runs $500 to $700, paid by the buyer to the lender at or shortly after application and sometimes rolled into closing costs; complex, rural, waterfront or large-acreage properties, FHA and VA assignments, and rush orders cost more. Cash buyers are not required to appraise, though some order one for their own protection.

The lender selects the appraiser through an appraisal management company; neither the buyer, the seller nor either agent may choose or contact the appraiser to influence value. Agents can and do supply comparable sales and a list of improvements.

What the appraiser actually does

For a standard assignment the appraiser inspects the home briefly (measurement, condition, quality, improvements), then values it primarily by the sales comparison approach: recent closed sales of similar homes nearby, adjusted for differences in size, condition, lot, age and features. New construction and unusual properties add the cost approach; rentals add an income approach. The result is reported on a standardized form, most often for conventional loans, and delivered to the lender within about a week to ten days of the order.

Florida wrinkles that move value: flood zone and elevation, roof age (because of insurance), concrete-block versus frame construction, pool and screened enclosure, and whether the comparable sales carried CDD or club obligations.

When the appraisal comes in low

If the value is below the contract price, the lender bases the loan on the appraised value, and the gap must be closed. The buyer can pay the difference in cash, the seller can reduce the price, the two can split it, or the buyer can walk if the contract's financing contingency or an appraisal contingency is still open. A reconsideration of value can be requested through the lender if the appraiser missed better comparables or made factual errors; it succeeds only with specific evidence.

Sellers avoid low appraisals mostly by pricing to closed sales rather than to asking prices. Our Florida home value tools use the same recent-solds logic an appraiser will.

Appraisal vs. inspection vs. CMA

The appraisal is for the lender and answers 'what is it worth?'. The inspection is for the buyer and answers 'what is wrong with it?'; in Florida it is paired with the 4-point and wind mitigation reports insurers require. A CMA is an agent's pricing analysis before listing, free and not a formal valuation. The county property appraiser's just value is a fourth, separate number used only for taxes.