The Uniform Residential Appraisal Report

After a property has been appraised, the next step in the process is the correlation or reconciliation of the values arrived at under each of the three appraisal approaches. This process selects the most appropriate value from the values arrived at using the three approaches. The property type and use will determine which approach is most appropriate for the subject property. For instance, the income approach will not be used if the property has no income potential.

The final step in the process is the creation of the complete appraisal report – the documentation of the appraiser’s findings.

Generally, the appraisal is written up on the Uniform Residential Appraisal Report form 1004 produced by Fannie Mae, though other formats for writing up an appraisal such as a narrative report exist.

Further, RPI (Realty Publications, Inc.) produces a version of this form which replicates the contents of the government form but in an easy to use letter format, as opposed to the original version which is formatted for legal sized paper. [See RPI Form 200]

The following information is included in the appraisal report:

  • the property’s description;
  • the purpose and scope of the appraisal;
  • a description of the neighborhood;
  • the date on which the value is estimated;
  • qualifying conditions and assumptions;
  • factual data, photos and maps with analyses;
  • the estimate of value and basis for the estimate of value on the given date; and
  • the name, address, type of license and signature of the appraiser.

Stay tuned for the next part in this series covering the rules controlling appraiser independence.