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Appraisal terms, in plain English

The words that appear in reports and phone calls, defined the way we would explain them across a kitchen table. Cross-linked to the guide or service page that treats each one properly.

Adjustment. The dollar correction applied to a comparable sale for a difference between it and your property. Adjustments come from the market, not a rate card. How comparables work

AMC — appraisal management company. The intermediary most lenders order through, existing to keep loan officers away from appraisers. Why

Anticipated sales price. What a relocation appraisal reports instead of market value — the price likely inside a defined marketing period. Relocation

Arm's-length. A sale between unrelated parties, neither under unusual pressure. Family sales are not arm's-length by definition. Private and family sales

AVM — automated valuation model. A statistical estimate from public records. Has never seen your house. Appraisal vs Zestimate

Bracketing. Choosing comparables both superior and inferior to the subject so its value is enclosed rather than extrapolated.

Comparable (comp). A recently sold property that genuinely competed with yours — the real test is whether its buyer would have considered your property.

Completion certificate (1004D). A lender's confirmation that finished construction matches the plans it was financed against. We have issued 2,486 of them.

Date of death valuation. A retrospective appraisal effective on the date a person died, used for the estate and the heirs' stepped-up basis. Estate appraisals

Drive-by. Informal name for an exterior-only report.

Effective date. The date a value opinion applies to. An appraisal is a photograph, not a feed.

Effective age. The age a property behaves as, given condition and updating — what the market actually prices, unlike the year it was built.

ERC form. The Employee Relocation Council report format used for corporate relocations — a different question from market value. Relocation

Exterior-only report. A defined, legitimate scope in which the interior is not inspected and its condition is a stated assumption. 6,474 in our file.

Field review. An appraiser's examination of another appraiser's report — methodology, comparables, adjustments. 391 in our file. Litigation support

GLA — gross living area. Finished, heated, above-grade living space, measured to defined standards. Garages, most porches and below-grade space are counted separately.

Homestead / Save Our Homes. Florida's cap on annual assessed-value increases for homestead property — the reason a tax appeal can be pointless even when the county's market value is high. Market value vs assessed value

Market value. What a typical, informed, unpressured buyer would pay a typical, informed, unpressured seller. Not the price your neighbour got, and not your Zestimate.

Milestone inspection / SIRS. Florida's post-2022 structural inspection and reserve-study regime for older condominiums. Drives assessments; moves unit values.

Reconsideration of value (ROV). The formal route for submitting better comparables or correcting factual errors after a lender appraisal — new evidence, not an appeal. When the number comes in low

Retrospective appraisal. A valuation as of a past date, using only evidence available then. How that works

TRIM notice. Florida's annual Notice of Proposed Property Taxes, mailed each August. The petition clock starts from the date printed on it. Tax appeals

URAR (Form 1004). The standard Fannie Mae report form for a single-family home; 1073 for condominiums, 1025 for 2–4 unit income property.

USPAP. The Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice — the enforceable rules every licensed appraiser works under, including the independence requirements.

A term you expected is missing? Call 561-853-2129 and ask — the answer is free. Matt Thoren, State-Certified Residential Appraiser. Residential only.