The Home Appraisal Process

So you're buying a new home and you're wondering how the appraisal works. Many people believe that Liberty Home Mortgage calls an appraiser on the phone and asks them to go out and do the appraisal. Wrong. Liberty Home Mortgage follows the federal rule called the Home Valuation Code of Conduct. How it works:
Here's how the appraisal process works. Liberty Home Mortgage calls a third-party, independent company, called an appraisal management company, who charges the homebuyer for the appraisal. The appraisal management company then calls multiple appraisers in the local market to see which appraiser will accept the order. Believe it or not, one appraiser might be too busy to accept the order. One might not wish to take on the appraisal due to the type of property being appraised. One appraiser might want more money than the appraisal management company is willing to pay them.

After multiple phone calls, an appraiser is found who accepts the order and then calls the listing agent to schedule a time to go out and do the appraisal. After doing a visual inspection of the home, the appraiser goes back to their office and completes the appraisal over the next few days. They then send the appraisal back to the appraisal management company, who analyzes the appraisal and then sends the appraisal back to the lender. In total, the process is approximately two weeks from start to finish, and Liberty Home Mortgage never actually speaks to an appraiser.