Starting on the 15Th of February,  all FHA loans requiring an appraisal (including  HECM Reveres Mortgages) must be ordered through an appraisal management company (AMC). I would strongly encourage the borrower to work with their loan officer and order a preliminary electronic evaluation of their property first, commonly referred to as a AVM. These are electronically generated reports using sold properties of similar age,size, type, and location. They generally cost between 20-40 dollars depending on the detail.

While these can be useful in giving you a possible range of value it will never replace the traditional appraisal done by licensed appraiser who actually comes to the property and does a full site inspection and researches all the sold and listed comparables in the area. It’s important to know these reports from the AVM’s are strictly  an estimate of value and not a guarantee.