The appraiser spends 30 minutes to an hour at the home and delivers the report to the lender in three to seven days, so the whole step usually takes one to two weeks from the order, and the report stays usable for months, with an update required once it is four months old on a conventional loan.
The appraisal is the lender's check that the home is worth what they are lending against, and it is one of the two steps in escrow that everyone waits on. The visit is short. The wait is in the appraiser's schedule and in the report, and both stretch when the market is busy or the home is unusual.
The three parts of the wait
Ordering: the lender orders the appraisal after the buyer commits to the loan, typically in the first week of escrow, through an appraisal management company that assigns it. Scheduling: in a normal market the visit happens within a few days; in a busy spring or a rural area it can be one to two weeks. The report: the appraiser pulls comparable sales, adjusts them, writes the report and sends it to the lender, three to seven days after the visit. The lender then reviews it, and a buyer usually sees it a day or two after that.
What makes it longer
Unusual homes with few comparable sales, large acreage, new construction that needs a completion inspection, and FHA or VA appraisals, which check the property against programme standards and can require repairs and a second visit. A low appraisal adds the time it takes to dispute it (a reconsideration of value, with the buyer's agent supplying better comparables) or to renegotiate the price. Desktop and hybrid appraisals, where the appraiser works from data and a third party's photographs, are faster and increasingly common on straightforward homes.
How long it is good for, and what happens if it is low
A conventional appraisal can be used for up to twelve months from its effective date, but once it is more than four months old the lender needs an appraisal update (an exterior look and a market review) rather than a new report; FHA appraisals are valid for 180 days, with an update stretching that to a year; VA appraisals for six months on an existing home. If the escrow runs past those marks the appraiser does the update rather than a new appraisal. If the value comes in under the price, the buyer makes up the difference in cash, the seller lowers the price, the two meet in the middle, or the buyer cancels under the appraisal contingency; the report belongs to the buyer, who paid for it, and the seller does not see it unless the buyer shares it.
Questions people ask
How long after the appraisal is closing?
Usually two to three weeks. The appraisal goes to underwriting with the rest of the file, conditional approval and final approval follow, and the closing disclosure's three-business-day wait comes before signing.
How long is a home appraisal good for?
A conventional appraisal is usable for up to twelve months but needs an update once it is four months old, an FHA appraisal is valid for 180 days (a year with an update), and a VA appraisal for six months. Past those marks the lender orders the update, not a new report.
What happens if the appraisal is lower than the offer?
The lender lends against the appraised value, so the buyer covers the gap in cash, the seller cuts the price, they split it, or the buyer walks under the appraisal contingency. A reconsideration of value with better comparables sometimes moves the number.