You have a number. Does it hold up?
An appraisal is a professional opinion, and a good one can show its working. Here is how to ask for it — and what the answers tell you before you sign anything.
Six things worth checking
None of these require doubting the agent. They are the questions a good one is happy to answer.
Ask which sales it is based on
An appraisal is an opinion supported by evidence, and the evidence is comparable sales. The Real Estate Authority's client care rules require a written appraisal to realistically reflect current market conditions and to be supported by comparable information. So the reasonable question is simply: which sales, and why those ones? Any agent should be able to answer without hesitation.
Check the comparables are genuinely comparable
Same suburb is not the same thing as comparable. Look at land area, floor area, the number of bedrooms, the age and condition of the house, and whether the site has development potential yours does not. One unusually high sale in the set can carry the whole figure.
Check how recent they are
Sales settle weeks or months after the price was agreed, so a sale recorded in June may reflect a price struck in April. In a market that is moving, older comparables describe a market that no longer exists.
Treat a range as more honest than a number
A single figure implies a precision that no appraisal has. A range with the reasoning for each end — what would have to be true for the top, what pulls it to the bottom — tells you far more, and it is what a confident agent will give you.
Notice if the number moves before you list
A figure that arrives high and then drifts down once the campaign starts is a pattern worth being alert to. It is not universal and it is not always deliberate, but a price that changes without the market changing deserves an explanation.
Compare like for like across agents
If you get a second appraisal, ask the same questions and compare the comparable sales rather than the headline numbers. Two agents working from the same recent sales who land in the same range is a strong signal. Two who land far apart is worth understanding before you sign anything.
And the number after that one
Knowing what the property will sell for is only half of it. What reaches your account is the sale price minus commission, marketing, legal fees and GST, and that gap surprises people.
Work out what you would keepCommon questions
Is it rude to get a second appraisal?
No, and it is common. An appraisal is free and carries no obligation, and most agents expect sellers to speak to more than one. Deciding who sells your house is a significant financial decision and comparing is a normal part of making it.
What if the two appraisals are very different?
Ask both agents which comparable sales they used. A large gap usually comes down to a different set of comparables, a different view on condition or development potential, or one agent pricing to win the listing. The comparables will usually show you which.
Does a higher appraisal mean a higher sale price?
No. Buyers set the sale price, not the appraisal. An appraisal above what the market will pay generally results in a longer campaign and a price reduction, and a property that has been on the market a long time tends to attract lower offers regardless of what it is worth.
Do I have to list with the agent who appraised my property?
No. An appraisal creates no obligation of any kind. You can take the figure, thank them, and do nothing at all with it.