So, my wife and I have been in the process of trying to purchase a house for the last month. We found a house that is perfect for us: it's relatively new, it's in immaculate condition, it has all the space we'll need as we have kids during the rest of residency, etc. We made an offer and negotiated to what we think is a very fair price.
For our mortgage we've been working with a regional bank that offers doctor's loans (100% financing to resident physicians). There are several other banks around that offer these loans. So we submitted all of our paperwork and our loan was approved. We had the home inspection and the inspector found nothing more than three missing shingles and one bad seal on a window, all of which have since been taken care of by the sellers.
The next step was the appraisal. The appraisal came in substantially lower than the negotiated price. Having looked at a good number of other houses in the area I am convinced that this appraisal is wildly inaccurate. Other houses that we've looked at for as much as $15,000 more are 30-40 years older and smaller, with lower quality finishing. We've talked with the seller and they're at the point that they absolutely cannot afford to go any lower than the current negotiated price and if this sale doesn't go through they're going to take their house off the market for a while.
My realtor looked at the appraisal and found some local comps that had been missed and submitted them for consideration. The appraiser said he would not consider changing the original valuation. Also, my realtor has spoken with other five other appraisers who are certain that this appraisal drastically undervalued the property. Short of going to another bank and hoping for a different appraisal next time (which the sellers have agreed to pay for), what is to be done? I've spoken with the mortgage broker I've been working with and he's unwilling to consider a new appraisal. Is there likely any benefit to going to his boss and explaining that I'm going to pursue a mortgage with other banks and that if they are interested in doing this deal they need to consider ordering a second appraisal?
Thanks, H_S.
For our mortgage we've been working with a regional bank that offers doctor's loans (100% financing to resident physicians). There are several other banks around that offer these loans. So we submitted all of our paperwork and our loan was approved. We had the home inspection and the inspector found nothing more than three missing shingles and one bad seal on a window, all of which have since been taken care of by the sellers.
The next step was the appraisal. The appraisal came in substantially lower than the negotiated price. Having looked at a good number of other houses in the area I am convinced that this appraisal is wildly inaccurate. Other houses that we've looked at for as much as $15,000 more are 30-40 years older and smaller, with lower quality finishing. We've talked with the seller and they're at the point that they absolutely cannot afford to go any lower than the current negotiated price and if this sale doesn't go through they're going to take their house off the market for a while.
My realtor looked at the appraisal and found some local comps that had been missed and submitted them for consideration. The appraiser said he would not consider changing the original valuation. Also, my realtor has spoken with other five other appraisers who are certain that this appraisal drastically undervalued the property. Short of going to another bank and hoping for a different appraisal next time (which the sellers have agreed to pay for), what is to be done? I've spoken with the mortgage broker I've been working with and he's unwilling to consider a new appraisal. Is there likely any benefit to going to his boss and explaining that I'm going to pursue a mortgage with other banks and that if they are interested in doing this deal they need to consider ordering a second appraisal?
Thanks, H_S.
