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Low Appraisals

5 New Year’s Resolutions for the Real Estate Community

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Have you ever dropped the ball on one of your New Year’s goals? We’ve all been there. That’s why I want to suggest some goals that are actually highly attainable. Here are some suggestions for New Year’s resolutions for the real estate community. I see these things all the time, so I thought it would be worth mentioning. By the way, I’m a humble guy and this is coming from a good place. Let’s improve in big and small ways to find profound success this year.

  1. abbreviation for Carbon-Monoxide-Detector - by sacramento appraiser blogAbbreviate Carbon Monoxide Detector Correctly: If you didn’t know, carbon monoxide detector is shortened to CO – not CO2. If you want some clever ways to remember that, check out 5 Ways to Remember Carbon Monoxide is “CO” instead of “CO2″.
  2. Pronounce “REALTOR” Correctly: I am not a grammar snob by any stretch, but I wanted to point out a common error. REALTOR is often pronounced as “REAL-A-TOR” even though there is actually no extra “A” in there. It is correctly pronounced as “REAL-TOR”.
  3. share-posts-on-social-mediaMore Listening on Social Media: The online sins of the real estate community are overselling and self-promotion, so listening to conversations and a focus on building relationships on social platforms is definitely something relevant. Join the conversation by asking questions, being personable and sharing helpful information rather than overly promoting your products.
  4. Step off the Toxic Platform for Appraisers or Agents: There is often enmity between appraisers and real estate agents – as if they are mortal enemies. Part of this is understandable because both parties are doing different jobs for the same transaction, but it crosses the line when either party speaks from a platform of hostility toward the other group. I hear agents bash appraisers and talk about them like they are village idiots. Likewise, I hear appraisers talk about real estate agents like they are uneducated morons. This is not professional – especially in a public forum. We can do better. Yes, there are issues with low appraisals as well as subpar agents, which means there is a place to complain. However, when complaining becomes a shtick or lifestyle, that’s not a fun place to live. If you find yourself continually ranting about appraisers or agents, it may be worth finding ways to step off that toxic platform and avoid being a perpetual complainer. Besides, it’s good for life and business to be positive.
  5. Other: What resolution would you suggest for the real estate community? Comment below.

I hope this year is unfolding well for you so far. Happy New  Year!!

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7 reasons why buyers offer more than a house is worth

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Have you noticed how some listings are receiving multiple offers at list price even though they are priced way too high for the neighborhood? I’m talking about the type of listings where agents and others all think, “There’s no way in heck it’s going to appraise that high.” But buyers are still offering at list price and even above. What does this tell us about the market?

Possibilities for why buyers offer full price even when the list price is REALLY high for the neighborhood:

  1. Value: The market has increased in recent months.
  2. Strategy: Since inventory is so tight in the Sacramento area, buyers feel the need to offer at list price or above to get into contract.
  3. Rejection: Buyers have become burned-out from getting their offers rejected, so they’re offering at higher levels to help compete with other buyers.
  4. Cash Competition: There is so much cash in the market, so financed offers need to find a way to be more attractive to sellers (higher offers can help).
  5. Money: It’s really cheap to borrow money right now, so taking out a larger loan is not as big of a deal.
  6. Financing: When buyers finance nearly all of their purchase (FHA), they’re essentially spending someone else’s money. It’s a whole lot easier to offer more when you’re not spending your own money, right?
  7. Good Deals: Many buyers still remember how high prices used to be, so offering more in today’s market still feels like a deal because current values are far lower in the post real estate “bubble” burst.
  8. Other: What do you think?

Housing Inventory in Sacramento County - Graph by Trendgraphix - posted on Sacramento Appraisal Blog

My take as an appraiser: Having multiple offers can be one indicator for how the market sees a property, but it’s not the end-all fool-proof metric for determining value. For example, 10 offers at list price sounds sincerely convincing on paper to establish value, but we also must sift through factors above to try to understand the motivations of buyers – not to mention consider competitive sales and other market metrics. After all, as mentioned above, there are many reasons why a buyer or group of buyers might offer more for a property than it is actually worth.

Listing a property at any price level: I was talking to an investor friend recently about how he could pretty much list his properties at any price level right now (relatively speaking), yet still generate multiple offers due to scarcity of supply. This isn’t true in every case of course, but it’s definitely a realistic dynamic in the Sacramento area real estate market.

All things considered, it’s easy to blame appraisers when appraisals come in “low”, and there are certainly scenarios where appraisers should be blamed. However, in cases like this where offers are unrealistically high for the market, the appraisal probably should come in “low”, right? By the way, check out a previous article if you need help challenging a low appraisal.

Anything you’d add? Any stories to share? Realtors, have you seen listings get into contract far above what you think is realistic? What advice would you give to buyers trying to get an offer accepted these days?

SacBiz Journal Mention: By the way, I was quoted in a Sacramento Business Journal article last week on a related topic of “Homebuyers starting to pay higher prices as investor market dominance wanes.”

If you have any questions or Sacramento home appraisal or property tax appeal needs, let’s connect by phone 916-595-3735, email, Twitter, subscribe to posts by email (or RSS) or “like” my page on Facebook

Blame appraisers when it’s due, but don’t forget about the housing market

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If the appraised value comes in lower than the contract price, did the appraiser do something wrong? It’s easy to think the appraiser has been negligent somehow if the contract price is not met, but that’s not necessarily true. Appraisers have been getting slammed lately by the National Association of Realtors among other sources for “low appraisals”. There are certainly horror stories and situations where botched appraisals have killed a deal. Believe me, I know this from many relationships I have with investors and real estate agents in the Sacramento area. That’s exactly why I’ve given tips for challenging a low appraisal. But let’s remember that negotiations are normative in real estate and a list price and contract price are not necessarily a reflection of value.

Case-in-point: I appraised a flipped property in Elk Grove recently and my appraisal came back close to $10,000 below the contract price (but still above list price). While this is frustrating for the seller or listing agent, there was no ill-intent or agenda on my part. I could be blamed for bringing down the housing market and stalling a recovery, but I simply interpreted the market in this case. The lender’s appraisal department actually agreed with my appraisal too as we talked in-depth about why the appraised value was reasonable. Recent sales in the neighborhood did not support the contract price, current listings did not support the contract price, I did not use distressed sales for comparables (those were far lower than equity sales) and even offers on the subject property supported a lower value. The seller ended up accepting the highest offer – an FHA offer asking for closing costs back. All other offers were conventional or asked for no closing costs, and they all came in near or lower than the appraised value. The type of financing is not a definitive point for establishing value, but buyers not using their own money tend to make higher offers, don’t they?

Don’t forget to point the finger at the market: It’s interesting to me that appraisers are often blamed for a lack of recovery in the housing market. I wrote two days ago about the increase in the percentage of short sales in the 95757 zip code of Elk Grove. While this is encouraging news on some levels (less foreclosures), short sales also tend to sell lower than traditional sales, which means the housing market is ultimately weighed down if short sales represent 39% of all sales in a given zip code. Short sales usually have to be priced more aggressively to generate interest and/or close quickly before foreclosure. Some banks are not easy to work with either, which can also impact pricing too. I’m not saying at all that appraisers are not to face blame for shoddy work, but when the market has a total of 66% of all sales being foreclosures or short sales (as in the case above), it’s important to keep in perspective just how much the market is driving property values.

My points: 1) Give blame when it is due; 2) Market > Appraisers.

What do you think? Does this seem reasonable or am I off my rocker? What are the factors helping and hurting our housing market right now? What role do you see flipped properties playing in the housing market?

If you have any questions or Sacramento area real estate appraisal or property tax appeal needs, contact me by phone 916-595-3735, email, Facebook, Twitter or subscribe to posts by email.

Is a property worth less if it’s a short sale?

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No. A property is worth what it is worth regardless of being distressed or not. With that being said, when a house is a short sale it may need to be marketed at a more aggressive price level to dump the property before a foreclosure date or offset any negative perception in the market for being a short sale. Notice though we’re talking about an aggressive “price” and not “value”.

Here’s a good question to ask. If a short sale was not a short sale, would it sell for more? The answer is very often “yes” and that leads us to a better picture of what market value is. The truth is that properties are frequently marketed as short sales and end up generating little interest before resulting in foreclosure. But then after these same houses end up as bank-owned they generate very quick offers at or above the original short sale listing price. Of course part of this could be banks not cooperating with the short sale process and buyers tiring of waiting for months for the deal to close, but it’s hard to ignore that short sales often (not always) sell at lower levels.

Case-in-point: I appraised a house recently in the City of Galt where competitive properties in the neighborhood showed a distinct difference between short sales and everything else. Comparable non-distressed properties were selling around $105,000-$115,000, REOs were selling mostly between $85,000-$100,000 and short sales were selling closer to $85,000-$90,000 near the bottom of the competitive range. It’s certainly true that condition and quality of updates played a role in the price differences, but it’s not an accident either that short sales were consistently finding their place near the bottom of the market.

Why is this important to understand?

  1. Appraisers:  From the appraisal standpoint, if short sale comps are used in an appraisal report (without an adjustment upward), then the value in the report may be lower than what it should be. The value could really be a “quick sale” value rather than “market value”. That’s not good on many levels. Please understand though that short sales do not always sell less than fair market value, so an adjustment upward is not always warranted in an appraisal. It all depends on what is happening in the market.
  2. Investors:  I just spoke with a Sacramento investor yesterday who has been growing frustrated to see some of his properties compared to bottom-of-the-market short sales by appraisers. This investor found me online and he called me to see if I had any advice on how to deal with his situation. That’ll be a different blog post, but I did give him some tips, a few which I mention below.
  3. Real Estate Agents:  I recommend real estate agents (and investors) provide a detailed list of all updates to appraisers (with costs if possible). Send this via email or provide in person to the appraiser. You can also discuss any relevant marketing information (ie.. “There were 4 full-price offers in 3 days and I am still getting calls and back-up offers”). Lastly, feel free to share market research and properties that helped you establish your listing price. Don’t tell the appraiser which comps to use and how to do his job, but rather share data that helped you establish your price so the appraiser might understand your point of view. You are allowed to talk with appraisers about property specifics and the real estate market, but don’t coerce and pressure for a certain value.
  4. Sellers:  Know your market if you are selling. You will have to compete with distressed properties around you, which can impact your price, but that doesn’t necessarily mean you have to price your property the same as neighborhood short sales and REOs. A trusted real estate agent or pre-listing appraisal should be able to give you guidance to understand the market. Misunderstanding what the market is doing can cost you dearly.

What do you think? Agree? Disagree? Any stories to share?

If you have any questions, or real estate appraisal or property tax appeal needs in the Greater Sacramento Region, contact Lundquist Appraisal by phone 916-595-3735, email, Facebook or subscribe to posts by email.

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