"On the flip side, I've also seen homes with finished basements or extra baths appraise lower than expected because the finishes were cheap or poorly executed."
Interesting point... makes me wonder about my own appraisal. We put a decent chunk into custom kitchen cabinets and quartz counters, but the appraisal still came in lower than we hoped. Could it be that these upgrades matter more in certain neighborhoods or price points? Or maybe we just got unlucky with our appraiser? Curious if others had similar experiences.
Good questions—I've seen this happen quite a bit. A few things I've noticed from experience:
- Neighborhood definitely matters. If your upgrades are way above the typical finishes in your area, appraisers might not give you full credit.
- Appraisers rely heavily on recent comps, so if there aren't similar homes nearby with comparable upgrades, it can hurt your valuation.
- Sometimes it's just luck of the draw with the appraiser... some are more conservative than others.
Did you check the comps they used? Might be worth reviewing to see if anything seems off.
I've noticed this too, especially when clients go all-in on custom finishes. Sometimes appraisers just don't see the value the same way homeowners do. Did you provide a detailed list of upgrades beforehand? That can sometimes help bridge the gap...
We ran into something similar when we built our place last year. Gave the appraiser a detailed list, but even then, some of the custom woodwork and built-ins didn't seem to carry much weight. Maybe it's because they're comparing to nearby homes without similar upgrades? Curious if anyone's had luck appealing by showing comps from other custom builds instead of standard neighborhood sales...
"Curious if anyone's had luck appealing by showing comps from other custom builds instead of standard neighborhood sales..."
We tried that once on a custom home project I was involved with a couple years back. Honestly, it didn't make much difference. Appraisers tend to stick pretty closely to neighborhood comps, even if those homes aren't really comparable in quality or finish. It's frustrating, but they're usually bound by guidelines that limit flexibility. Sometimes it's better to prep clients early on that custom upgrades might not fully translate into appraisal value... saves headaches later.
