Mississippi Appraisal Associates, LLC
Residential Real Estate Appraisal & Consulting Services

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Mississippi Appraisal Process

The State of Mississippi requires all real estate appraisers to be state licensed, which requires them to complete rigorous education and training requirements. They must also follow strict industry standards and a professional code of ethics has been lead by the Appraisal Foundation. Licensed Mississippi appraisers get their information from a number of sources, including the multiple listing service, local realtors, county public records, private data vendors, interviews with buyers and sellers, and their own personal knowledge of the subject market from prior appraisals.

The Mississippi laws governing the appraisal and valuation process require the appraiser to appraise the property according to its highest and best use. “Highest and best use” is generally the use that provides the most profitable return on investment, what is legally (zoning) allowed, and physically possible. For most residential properties, highest and best use will be determined by comparing residential against commercial/agricultural use.

Prior to visiting the site, a licensed Mississippi appraiser will look up the property on public record or the multiple listing service to identify the property to be appraised. Research of other properties within the subject's neighborhood and market area are usually also identified prior to inspecting the property. The physical inspection of the real property being appraised can take from approximately twenty minutes to several hours, depending upon the size and complexity of the assignment.

After the initial inspection of the property the Mississippi appraiser will drive the through the neighborhood and market area reviewing and possibly photographing other recent sales of properties comparable to the subject. The appraiser is looking for recent sales of similar square footage, age, design, appeal, and quality.

In some cases, the appraiser may determine after physical inspection of the subject property that the information on public record or multiple listing service was incorrect or that the research completed prior to inspection is not the most accurate data available. In this case, appraiser will return to the office, conduct additional research, and return to the subject property market to examine new comparables or otherwise ensure an accurate appraisal.

Once good comparable sales have been located, the remainder of appraisal and valuation process will be completed in the office. This is the final stage in completing a appraisal report. The typical residential report in this final stage will take two to four hours to completed.