Yes, You Really Can (and should, and need to, and please do) Talk to the Appraiser

A few years ago, I wrote a blog post called “Yes! You Can Talk to the Appraiser!”

Apparently, it might be time for a refresher.  Because after more than 20 years in the appraisal business, I still run into Realtors who seem genuinely afraid to pick up the phone and call an appraiser.  I get it.  Somewhere along the way, the message became: “You’re not allowed to talk to the appraiser.”  But that’s simply not true.  In fact, there are plenty of times when I really wish you would call us.  Let me give you an example that happened to me yesterday.

A Five-Minute Phone Call Could Have Prevented All of This

We recently completed an FHA appraisal on a manufactured home.  During the appraisal, I noted an issue with the vinyl skirting around the home.  Without getting too far into the weeds, the skirting did not have the proper FHA-required backing behind it, so the appraisal was made subject to that deficiency being corrected.  Pretty straightforward.  The seller needed to make the repair, and then I would come back out and verify that it had been completed properly.  At some point, the seller apparently came up with a solution: put a 2×4 behind some of the skirting and call it a day.  I can’t blame them, honestly.  They were never given a snippet of what I wrote in my appraisal, which spelled out exactly what to do.  That’s a blog post for another day when we discuss lender communication.

Since neither the seller, nor the listing agent got a copy of even one page of my report, the listing agent wasn’t sure whether the simple 2×4 frame would work.  And this is where things went sideways.  Instead of calling me and asking, “Ryan, will this satisfy the requirement?” the decision was made to just go ahead and do it.

So they did.

My office called to schedule the appointment, all the work was said to be done, so I went back to the property for the final inspection.  And, unfortunately, it didn’t meet the requirement.  I could tell that five seconds after getting out of my car, because I could still see through the giant holes in the vinyl skirting.  Now the seller has to do additional work.  Someone has to pay for that additional work.  I have to make another trip to the property.  And, depending on the timing, the closing may be delayed.  The frustrating part?

Almost all of that could have been prevented with one phone call.

Please. Call the Appraiser.

I don’t know exactly where the idea started that Realtors aren’t allowed to talk to appraisers, but I’d really like to put it to rest.  If I had to guess, it came along the same time all the lenders were told to stop calling us as well (also not a good idea).  Here’s the truth:

You absolutely can talk to the appraiser.

Have a question about a repair requirement?  Call us.

Not sure what we meant by something in the appraisal?  Call us.

Have information about an addition to the house that isn’t showing up in the public records?  Tell us.

Know something important about one of the sales in the neighborhood?  Tell us.

Have a survey showing that the property actually includes another parcel?  Please tell us.

Know that the house next door sold $50,000 below everything else because the inside looked like somebody hosted a demolition derby in the living room?  We’d probably like to know that too.  I always tell folks the more information I have, the better report I can complete.

There is, however, an important line that Realtors shouldn’t cross.

What Can’t You Talk About?

Most of you reading this already know what I’m about to say (or write, I guess).  That one thing you can’t talk about with the appraiser?  Value.  More specifically, the value you hope the appraiser will come up with on your deal so it can close and everyone will be happy and not homeless.

For clarification, here’s an example of something you can and absolutely should say:  “This house had three offers the first weekend and went under contract above list price.”  Great.  Good to know.  That’s helpful.

On the other hand, “We really need this thing to appraise for $325,000.”  Not so great.  Not so good.  Not so helpful.  Why?  That’s pressure, and pressuring an appraiser is not what you want to find yourself doing.  You can give us comparable sales.  You can tell us how you arrived at the listing price.  You can explain why you think one sale is particularly relevant.  You can tell us about improvements, market activity, unusual features, repairs, additions, acreage, multiple parcels, contracts, concessions, or a hundred other things that might help us understand the property.

What you shouldn’t do is try to tell the appraiser what the final value needs to be.

Especially When Repairs Are Involved

I think communication becomes even more important when an appraisal has been made subject to repairs like in my example above.  If the report says something needs to be repaired and you’re not exactly sure what the appraiser is asking for, don’t guess.  And don’t let the seller guess.  Call us!  Send us a picture, send us an email, I don’t care.  Want to know how to install a TPR valve discharge pipe on water heater?  Call me.  Do your sellers need to remove peeling paint chips from the ground?  Shoot me a text and I’ll tell you.

If someone is about to spend hundreds—or thousands—of dollars correcting an issue, wouldn’t it make sense to make sure they’re correcting the right issue first?  Here’s the thing.  95% of the time, the answer is incredibly simple.  Sometimes the proposed repair will work just fine.  Sometimes it won’t.  But I’d much rather answer a five-minute phone call before the work is done than drive back to the property afterward and tell everyone that it still doesn’t meet the requirement.  And then have to drive back…and charge more for a second final inspection.

Nobody wins in that scenario.  The seller is frustrated.  The Realtor is frustrated.  The lender is frustrated.  Heck, even I’m frustrated!

And Then There’s UAD 3.6…

Do I really want to go here?  Not really, but since we’re talking about communication, let me mention UAD 3.6 briefly.  If everything you’ve read so far has failed to convince you of the need to talk with an appraiser, I’ll try one last attempt to change your mind.  UAD 3.6 is currently a nightmare.  No one knows what’s going on, the software is so far behind where it needs to be, appraisals are more expensive and take longer to complete, the homeowners are clueless, and the Realtors and lenders aren’t far behind.  Even most appraisers don’t know what to do.  So just ask.  I’m writing this in November, 2026 – just after the November 2 mandate that any loan purchased by Fannie Mae must have an appraisal in the new format.  If you’re a Realtor and you get a call from an appraiser, now’s the time to ask them “Is this a 3.6 appraisal?”  If it is, you’ll know to tell your sellers they should expect a longer appraisal appointment than what they’re used to in the past.

I’ll write more on that soon.  Stay tuned…

We’re All Trying to Get to the Same Place

One thing that’s easy to forget in a real estate transaction is that most of us are actually trying to accomplish the same thing.

The buyer wants to buy the house.

The seller wants to sell the house.

The Realtors want to get everybody to the closing table.

The lender wants to make the loan.

And the appraiser wants to complete an accurate appraisal that satisfies the requirements of the assignment.

We’re not on opposing teams.

There are rules we have to follow, and there are certain lines we can’t cross.  But that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t communicate with each other.  Actually, I think the opposite is true.  The more complicated the property or transaction becomes, the more important communication becomes.  So if you’re a Realtor and you’re staring at something in an appraisal wondering what in the world the appraiser means, don’t spend 30 minutes trying to interpret it.  Don’t ask five people in the office what they think it means.  Good Lord please don’t ask Chat GPT.  And please don’t spend money fixing something based on somebody’s best guess.

Pick up the phone.

Call the appraiser.

You might be surprised how much easier the entire process becomes.

Helping homeowners and real estate professionals navigate the appraisal process,

Ryan Bays, SRA, AI-RRS