What should you look for when hiring an appraiser?

You need to consider the purpose of the appraisal and the type of property. Try to hire an appraiser with experience in the property type, geographic area of the property, and for similar purposes. Most experienced appraisers are state certified. A few very experienced appraisers are not state certified because they don't work for lenders.

If it is your home and lender-related such as PMI removal, select an appraiser who does residential lender appraisals in your city or nearby, and is state licensed or certified.

If it is a home and for non-lending purposes, select an appraiser with experience in appraisals for that purpose, who has appraised similar homes in that area (neighborhood or city). If it is for tax purposes, be sure to select a well qualified appraiser to minimize hassles with the IRS. Using a state certified appraiser, at the minimum, is a good idea, unless the appraiser is well known, with many years of experience, and very knowledgeable.

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