Appraiser's Blog

When appraising new construction, the appraiser may need to rely solely on the builder of the property to provide comparable sales data as this data may not yet be available through typical data sources. In this case, it is acceptable for the appraiser to verify the transaction of the comparable sale by analyzing a copy of the HUD-1 Settlement Statement from the builder. The appraiser should confirm the sales date and price and if any sales concessions are present. The appraiser still has the responsibility to determine the upgrades and level of finish to the property and how they attribute to value.

When appraising new construction it is required that at least one comparable sale be selected from the subject's subdivision or project, and one comparable sale must be selected from outside the subject subdivision or project (outside the developer/builders control). The third comparable sale may be selected from either inside or outside the subject's subdivision or project.

As a reminder, use of comparable sales that are more than 6 months old require an explanation as to why more recent sales were not available.