Brooklyn appraisals – can outsiders be trusted?

Our local appraiser based in Bay Ridge has over 15 years of experience appraising in Brooklyn. His familiarity with Brooklyn’s many diverse neighborhoods is invaluable knowledge when providing accurate real estate appraisals.   Always stay local, never choose outsiders.

Do you know how appraisals are done in Brooklyn and in other counties? Basically, for the purposes of appraisals in Brooklyn, appraisers identify comparable properties within the subject neighborhood. Properties that have recently sold (usually within 6 months) are used in an appraisal report.  The properties are then adjusted for any discrepancies and a fair market value is derived for the subject property.

However, despite the process clearly outlined, it often happens that different appraisers end coming up with different figures. How do you justify this? I mean consider a case where as a borrower when you contact a bank to get the apartment which you intend to buy mortgaged, the Brooklyn bank conducts an appraisal and reaches a particular value. This value is lower than the quoted price. It is now possible that when you contact a different bank, the new appraisal report might come up with the same value as demanded by the buyer. Why this deviation?

Banks in Brooklyn for appraisals tie up with different appraisal agencies. Many of these appraisers aren’t located in Brooklyn. This is to say that an appraiser is evaluating a property in an area, which he is least aware of. The outsider is not aptly informed on the legal norms and neither is apprised of local property conditions or neighborhood trends. Thus, when he works out the appraisal report for a Brooklyn property, it tends to deviate from the actual price.

It is thus suggested that for purposes of property appraisals in Brooklyn, only those appraisal agencies or appraisers be hired, who are well aware of local region. Outsiders, kindly pass!