5 Things to Try When Buyer’s Appraisal Comes in Low

Home buyers these days have many hurdles to jump through in order to finally purchase a new home, from finding a home, to making an offer in possible multiple offer situations, to actually getting to closing without other issues. One such issue is appraisal – with inventory so low and prices climbing to meet demand it is not out of the ordinary for an appraisal to come in on the low side. But have no fear – there are a few things you can do to keep the sale moving along.

1. Renegotiate price/ compromise. If the home does not appraise there is always an opportunity to renegotiate price with the seller. Either the price can be negotiated down to the appraisal price, or the buyer and seller can agree on a compromise (for example, if the appraisal comes in $10,000 under contract price the parties can split the difference – buyer pays $5,000 more in cash and seller lowers the price by $5,000). However, if the seller had multiple offers there may be another buyer willing to pay that high price just to get into contract, so sometimes a seller will not renegotiate. It is always worth a try though, because if the other potential buyers are getting loans the seller could wind up in the same position.

2. Pay the difference with cash. Lenders are only concerned with the appraisal only because it affects the borrower’s loan-to-value ratio. The lender will only make a loan based on the contractual amount or appraised value.

3. Seller can carry a second loan. If you cannot lower the price and the buyer cannot pay cash over appraisal value, the seller can offer to carry a small second loan to make up the difference. The problem with this is that often the interest rate is higher than normal, but you can negotiate with the seller

4. Challenge the appraisal and ask for another to be ordered. Depending on the type of loan the buyer is obtaining this can be a possibility. If there is a good reason to challenge the appraisal with a conventional loan, say the appraiser was from out of the area or did not know the reasons why comparable properties sold for different prices (maybe your home is highly upgraded or has a better lot or view, etc.), then the appraisal can be challenged and you can ask for a second appraisal. Make sure that you provide comparables and an analysis of their sales to the new appraiser or to the lender – a job that the listing agent should have done (but even if s/he did there could still be other issues that did not bring in the appraisal value to the contract price). Talk to your agent and mortgage professional and figure out a plan that works best.

5. Cancel the sale. If there are no other options available the buyer has the right to cancel the sale without losing any deposits (unless otherwise agreed in the contract).

The bottom line is that there are potential solutions if your appraisal does not come in at contract value, so don’t panic. Make a plan with your agent and mortgage professional and see what you can do. Most of the time there will be a valid solution.