Some Suggestions for Quicker Turn Times

Appraising is a constantly changing profession. Commonly, it seems, appraisers are asked to supply more information or have steps added to their research. All of this is to guarantee their client is presented with the best information available. In order to keep up with the continuously changing requirements, The August Group Inc. is always acquiring additional tools and tweaking processes to increase efficiency so we can do more work for our customers. Since The August Group Inc. knows that time is important to everyone, we've listed some items you can do to speed up the process on any appraisals ordered with The August Group Inc..

Always order your appraisals electronically.: By ordering online, you get automatic e-mail acknowledgements that the assignment was received, and fast, secure .PDF format report delivery. This is 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 the order was received.
Are you providing complete and accurate information about the subject property?: There's nothing like being one number off on the street address to unnecessarily slow down an appraisal assignment. Unique identifiers like a tax parcel number, plat map number, or subdivision name are great data to pass long with your assignment. We even welcome lists of recent sales from the area — though be advised that professional appraisers are lawfully required to do their own due diligence on comparable sales, and ours may differ from yours.
Let us know up front of the property's unique elements.: It's relatively easy to appraise a cookie-cutter house. Most of an appraiser's time is spent analyzing how characteristics unique to a property contribute to or detract from what otherwise would be a property's market value. At the time you order your report, be sure to let us know if there are unique details of the home or surrounding area -- for example, it's had a recent addition built on, it's subject to zoning restrictions, it's prone to flooding. These are things we will find out on our own anyway, and knowing them early on makes your report arrive sooner.
Set proper expectations with the homeowner.: Confirming an inspection time and date with the homeowner can be one of the most inefficient tasks in the appraisal process. Many homeowners are clearly uncomfortable with the idea an unknown persons wants to come in their house, look around, and take lots of notes. Under the impression that it will increase the appraised value, some homeowners feel they must make the place spotless before the appraisal inspection. So they put off the inspection until it is cleaned.

Hearing from you -- the person they've been working with on their loan -- some knowledge about the appraisal process, who we are, and especially that dusting and polishing won't make it more likely their sale will close, and can shorten the appraisal inspection time. Our website has lots of pages of helpful information about the appraisal process for homeowners. I encourage you to share it with your clients. Have them call us if they want to meet the staff and learn more about our services. Remind them it benefits them to set the appointment soon!
Use our website to verify your report's status.: Why are you still playing phone and fax tag when our website offers up-to-the-minute status updates available online, anytime, 24/7? As we complete each important milestone in an assignment, that information can be viewed instantly online. It's never been faster to keep track of the status of your report.