Do you need a real estate appraisal in South Florida?
If you need to hire a real estate appraiser in Palm Beach County or South Florida,
it is important to understand what to look for and how to hire the best one.
1. Start by doing a web search on Google or Bing with search terms such as:
– Licensed Real Estate Appraiser South Florida
– Property Appraiser South Florida
– Property Appraisal Service South Florida
2. Click through the different results pages looking for appraisers who
represent themselves as Residential Property Appraisers in South Florida.
This will weed out commercial property appraisers who do not specialize in
residential properties. If you live in Palm Beach County, it is usually best to
hire a an appraiser who represents themselves as a Palm Beach County
Property Appraiser or Palm Beach Property Appraiser for instance. That
will best ensure that the appraiser you hire knows the neighborhood you
live in. They will hopefully have been there before, they will know the type
of property where you live, the positive and negative influences of the
neighborhood.
3. Very Important: Look for a State Certified Residential Property Appraiser.
Once you feel like you have found someone you like, go to
www.myfloridalicense.com and hit “Verify a License”. Do a “search by
name”, enter in the appraiser’s first and last name, and hit “Search”.
Hopefully the appraisers name will pull up. You want to make sure it says
“Certified Residential Appraiser “ under license type. This is important
- if it only says “Registered Trainee Appraiser” then that appraiser is
much less experienced and can only appraiser properties under the
supervision of a State Certified appraiser. I would stay away from that
appraiser! Also note, if the license type is indicated as “Licensed Appraiser”
then I would be wary as well. The Florida Department of Business and
Professional Regulation (DBPR) stopped issuing Florida “Licensed Appraiser”
licenses in July 2003!
4. So now you know you want a Florida State Certified residential property
appraiser. How can you tell how long an appraiser has been appraising and
which one is the best? Good question! The DPBR hands out state certified
appraiser licenses in the order they become state certified. So a license
number of “1615” has been an appraiser for much longer than an appraiser
with a license number of “5237” for instance. If you want the most
experienced appraisers pick an appraiser with as small a number as you
find. But be careful…don’t pick too small a number! They might be so old
that they aren’t even actively appraising anymore! You don’t want that!
Which leads me to #5..
5. Call the Appraiser You Pick and Interview Them. Ask them how long they have been state certified as a residential real estate appraiser in Florida and
are they actively appraising right now. If they give you anything other than
“yes” then move on! Be hesitant of anyone who indicates they are “taking
some time off” or “taking a break from appraising”. Appraisal guidelines
and property values in South Florida are changing rapidly and you need to
hire someone who is on top of both of them! Ask them if they are familiar
with your neighborhood and have they ever been there before. Secret tip:
Ask them if they need directions to your property. They better say no! Why would an “expert” in South Florida real estate who supposedly has been to
your neighborhood before need directions? They sure shouldn’t!
That’s it! Hopefully if you follow these steps you will be in good hands. You can
feel confident that you have reached out to a state certified appraiser who has
years of experience and knowledge of the current market conditions in South
Florida and your neighborhood.
For More Info :- Property Appraisal Service South Florida