Five Tips for Quicker Turn Times

The appraisal profession is evolving continuously. On a regular basis, it seems, appraisers are asked to supply extra information or have steps added to their data gathering. All of this is to ensure their client receives the best analysis possible. In order to stay current with the constantly changing requirements, Central Mass Appraisals is constantly researching new tools and tweaking processes to increase efficiency so we can do more work for more efficiently. Since Central Mass Appraisals knows that time is important to everyone, we've listed some things you can do to reduce turn times on any appraisals ordered with Central Mass Appraisals:

Are you ordering appraisals online? By ordering online, you get automatic e-mail confirmations that the assignment was received, and fast, secure .PDF format report delivery. It's the single biggest time saver available to both of us! We don't have to retype information from a fax, and you don't have to wonder whether we got the order.
Complete and accurate subject property information is essential. Having just one number incorrect on the street address can really unnecessarily delay an appraisal assignment. Unique identifiers like a tax parcel number, plat map number, or subdivision name is good information to include with your assignment. Even a list of recent sales from the area is welcome — though be advised that professional appraisers must always do their own due diligence on comparable sales, and ours might differ from yours.


	If you have any questions about your property or an appraisal we're working on for you, feel free to contact us

Are you letting us know up front any features of the property that might make it unique? It's relatively easy to appraise a cookie-cutter house. Most of an appraiser's time is spent analyzing how details unique to a property contribute to or detract from what otherwise would be a property's market value. Let us know up front when ordering your report if there are unique details of the home or surrounding area -- for example, it's recently had an addition put on, it's subject to zoning restrictions, and it's susceptible to flooding. While these are things that we'll find out on our own, knowing them early on makes your report arrive faster.
Does the homeowner know what to expect? Setting an appointment with the homeowner can be one of the most tedious tasks in the appraisal process. It's understandable for a homeowner to be apprehensive with an unknown person looking in every square foot of their home, taking photos, and making lots of notes. One common belief is that they ought to make the place spotless before the inspection, with the idea that will make the house appraise for more money . So they choose to not schedule the appraisal inspection until it is cleaned.

Hearing from you -- a trusted party with whom they are already working -- a short explanation about the appraisal process, who we are, and especially that dusting and polishing won't make a significant difference in their home's value, will help move the process along for everyone. Our website has lots of pages of relevant information about the appraisal process for homeowners. I encourage you to share it with your customers. They can even call us if they want to become familiar with our staff and services. And tell them it benefits them to set the appointment quickly!
Are you using our website as a resource to track the status of your report? Phone and fax tag are a thing of the past with up-to-the-minute status updates available online, anytime, 24/7. As each important milestone in an assignment is completed, that information can be viewed instantly online. There's no faster way to track the status of your report.