If the appraisal results in pre-sale repairs being necessary, the loan officer will notify the agents. At that point, perhaps the buyer’s agent will negotiate having the seller do the repairs for the house in order for it to appraise at the appropriate value. Or, possibly, the price of the home could be adjusted to take into account the repairs the buyer will have to pay for. If not, again the contract can be canceled. Check for any other issues. For example, sometimes the appraiser may note that the property is in a flood zone. If that’s the case, and the contract and the MLS sheet do not indicate that, then the agent will have to address that issue with both the buyer and the seller and work it out. The buyer may choose to get flood insurance or the seller may reduce the price. They may arrive at some sort of a compromise. If not, the deal falls apart. Unfortunately, I have seen deals fall apart for flood insurance. I’ve also seen cases where the house is incorrectly placed in a flood zone; disputing the flood zone status can be a lengthy process involving application, review, and reassessment by your local floodplain administrator. And I say this as a licensed insurance professional who works with this type of insurance product. The appraisal is the final step of the processing phase, and it is without a doubt the step where the most loans dissolve. Appraisals can be tough on both buyers and sellers. Buyers usually want the house to be as cheap as possible, so they are always looking for ways to bring the price down. Meanwhile, sellers usually have lived in the home for a long time and “feel” like it has more value than it actually does, at least according to the appraisal. When the buyer is pushing to drop the price and the seller is pushing to raise it, things can get complicated.
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