Everything You Need to Know About Appraisals

Moving can bring with it a lot of questions. There can be so many different processes involved in real estate that it can feel overwhelming. So, we’ve decided to make articles outlying the different processes to help you understand them a little better.

Today we’re talking about appraisals!

There are three questions folks tend to ask themselves when considering an appraisal.

1. What is an appraisal?
2. What’s the purpose of an appraisal?
3. How can I get an appraisal for my home?

If you’ve ever asked yourself any of these questions, this blog is for you.

What is an appraisal?

The word “appraisal” has a number of different meanings. Within the context of real estate, appraisals are systematic processes attempting to assess the market value of a property. In Canada, appraisers are certified and designated by the AIC (Appraisal Institute of Canada). They have two separate levels of designation (lower level CRA and higher level AACI), both of which satisfy the requirements necessary to give appraisals of residences. CRAs are generally qualified for residential areas, while AACIs are qualified for all property types.

AACI—qualified to undertake any valuation and consulting assignment on residential, commercial, industrial, institutional, agricultural, land and special use property types.

CRA—qualified to undertake any valuation and consulting assignment on dwellings containing not more than four self-contained family housing units or on individual undeveloped residential dwelling sites.

– aicanada.ca

Why get an appraisal?

In real estate, appraisals can be useful in a variety of settings. They are important for everything from buying or selling to financing or refinancing and even reviewing property tax assessments. Property is among the most valuable assets a person can buy and hold. So, assessing a property’s exact value using an objective and qualified source is a vital component of any future transactions that may take place.

An easy way to think of an appraiser is like a ruler-stick. They measure out all of the objective features of a home and use their industry expertise to assign it a value. This means that the values of all the different homes in an area should be relatable to one another. The process also protects people from selling their home well-below market value (or vice versa).

How can I get appraisals on my home?

So there are a number of different firms you can contact to get home appraisals in the Okanagan. Here are three such firms and their contact information:

1. Okanagan Appraisals: 250-763-0346 (#203-1180 Sunset Drive)
2. Kelowna Appraisals: 250-868-2933 ([email protected], #210-347 Leon Avenue)
3. Appraisal West: 250-861-3101 ([email protected])
   

   Click HERE To Reach Out To Us Today!

If you would like to read more about some of the benefits of buying a new home in West Harbour please have a look at this list of

“9 Reasons To Buy Your Home On Leased Land”!