A Few Tips for Swifter Turn Times

The appraisal profession is continuously evolving. Often, it seems, appraisers are asked to supply more information or have steps added to their research. All to ensure the end user is presented with the best information to be had. In order to stay current with the constantly changing requirements, H.M. Hoffman & Company is always acquiring additional tools and tweaking processes in order to increase efficiency so we can do more work for you. Since H.M. Hoffman & Company knows that time is important to everyone, below are a few tips you can do to reduce turn times on any appraisals you order with H.M. Hoffman & Company.

Are you ordering appraisals online?: With online ordering, you automatically receive e-mail confirmations that the assignment was received, and fast, secure .PDF format report delivery. This tip alone will save the most time! We don't have to re-key information from a fax, and you don't have to wonder whether we received the order.
Confirm that the subject property information is accurate and complete.: Being just one number off on the street address can really unnecessarily interrupt an appraisal assignment. Unique identifiers like a tax parcel number, plat map number, or subdivision name is great information to pass long with the assignment. Even a list of recent area sales is welcome — remember, however, that professional appraisers are lawfully required to do their own due diligence on comparable sales, and ours may differ from yours.
Be sure to tell us about the unique features of this property.: It's relatively easy to appraise a cookie-cutter house. What takes time is analyzing how unique elements contribute to or detract from what otherwise would be a property's market value. Let us know up front when ordering your report if there are unique features of the home or surrounding area -- for example, it's recently had an addition constructed, it's subject to zoning restrictions, it's prone to flooding. These are things we'd find out on our own anyway, and knowing them as early as possible is likely to make your report arrive quicker.
Set proper expectations with the homeowner.: Confirming an inspection time and date with the homeowner can be one of the most inefficient tasks in the appraisal process. It's understandable for a homeowner to be apprehensive with an unknown person inspecting every corner of their home, taking photos, and making abundant notes. Not uncommonly they think they should make the place spotless before the appraiser comes by, believing that will make the house appraise higher. So they reschedule the inspection until they can get around to cleaning.

Coming directly from you -- a person they have been working with on their loan -- a little bit about the appraisal process, who we are, and especially that dusting and polishing won't change their home's value one little bit, and likely shorten the appraisal inspection time. Our website has lots of pages of helpful information about the appraisal process for homeowners. Please feel free to share it with your customers. Tell them to call us if they want to meet the staff and learn more about our services. And tell them it benefits them to set the appointment as quickly as possible!
Use our website to track your report's status.: Why are you still playing phone and fax tag when our website offers up-to-the-minute status updates available online, anytime, 24/7? As each important milestone in an assignment is completed, that information is available to you online. There's no faster way to keep track of the status of your report.