What is an appraisal?

A home purchase can be the most serious transaction some people may ever encounter. It doesn't matter if it's a primary residence, an additional vacation property or a rental fixer upper, purchasing real property is a complex transaction that requires multiple people working in concert to pull it all off.


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It's likely you are familiar with the parties having a role in the transaction. The real estate agent is the most recognizable face in the transaction. Then, the bank provides the money needed to finance the deal. Ensuring all aspects of the sale are completed and that a clear title transfers from the seller to the purchaser is the title company.

So who's responsible for making sure the value of the real estate is consistent with the amount being paid? This is where the appraiser comes in. We provide an unbiased opinion of what a buyer could expect to pay - or a seller receive - for a parcel of real estate, where both buyer and seller are informed parties. A professional Georgia licensed appraiser from Grantham Appraisal & Realty, Inc. will ensure you as an interested party are informed.

The inspection is where an appraisal begins

To ascertain the true status of the property, it's our duty to first conduct a thorough inspection. We must physically view aspects of the property, such as the number of bedrooms and bathrooms, the location, living areas, etc., to ensure they truly are there and are in the condition a typical person would expect them to be. To make sure the stated size of the property is accurate and convey the layout of the home, the inspection often requires creating a sketch of the floor plan. Most importantly, we look for any obvious features - or defects - that would have an impact on the value of the property.

Back at the office, we use two or three approaches when determining the value of the property: sales comparison and, in the case of a rental property, an income approach.

Cost Approach

This is where we pull information on local building costs, labor rates and other factors to derive how much it would cost to build a property similar to the one being appraised. This estimate usually sets the maximum on what a property would sell for. It's also the least used method.

Sales Comparison

Appraisers can tell you a lot about the neighborhoods in which they appraise. We innately understand the value of specific features to the people of that area. Then, the appraiser looks up recent transactions in the area and finds properties which are 'comparable' to the real estate being appraised. By assigning a dollar value to certain items such as upgraded appliances, additional bathrooms, an additional living area, quality of construction, lot size, we adjust the comparable properties so that they are more accurately in line with the features of subject property.

Say, for example, the comparable property has a fireplace and the subject doesn't, the appraiser may deduct the value of a fireplace from the sales price of the comparable home.
But, in the case where the subject has something such as an extra half bath that a comparable doesn't have, the appraiser might add the value of that bath to the comparable property.

When it comes to associating a value with features of homes in Fortson and Muscogee, Grantham Appraisal & Realty, Inc. is your local authority. This approach to value is typically given the most weight when an appraisal is for a real estate purchase.

Valuation Using the Income Approach

A third way of valuing a property is sometimes employed when an area has a measurable number of rental properties. In this situation, the amount of income the property yields is taken into consideration along with other rents in the area for comparable properties to give an indicator of the current value.

Arriving at a Value Conclusion

Analyzing the data from all approaches, the appraiser is then ready to document an estimated market value for the property in question. Note: While the appraised value is probably the strongest indication of what a property would sell for in an open market, it may not be the final sales price. There are always mitigating factors such as seller motivation, urgency or 'bidding wars' that may adjust the final price up or down. Regardless, the appraised value is often employed as a guideline for lenders who don't want to loan a buyer more money than the property would likely sell for in an open marketplace. At the end of the day: An appraiser from Grantham Appraisal & Realty, Inc. will guarantee you attain the most accurate property value, so you can make the most informed real estate decisions.