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Bankruptcy Appraisals
In a bankruptcy the value of the debtor's home is not a background detail. It determines what is exempt, what a trustee can reach, and in some cases whether a lien survives at all.
Why the number decides things
Schedule A/B requires the property's current value. Against that sits Florida's homestead exemption, which is unusually protective — the state constitution exempts homestead property without a dollar cap on value, subject to acreage limits and to federal timing rules for recently acquired homesteads.
Equity above what is exempt is what a Chapter 7 trustee may administer. In Chapter 13 the value feeds the liquidation test, which sets the floor on what unsecured creditors must receive. Where a junior mortgage is wholly unsupported by value, a Chapter 13 debtor may be able to strip it off — and that turns entirely on the appraised figure.
Those are legal determinations that belong to bankruptcy counsel and the court. We describe them here so it is clear why the valuation is scrutinised, not to advise on them.
The report has to expect a challenge
A trustee or a creditor may contest the value, and a valuation hearing means the appraiser explains the work under examination. We prepare bankruptcy files accordingly: comparables selected and justified, adjustments supported, condition documented at inspection, and the effective date stated precisely — usually the petition date, which may be months before we are engaged and therefore a retrospective assignment.
Who engages us
Debtor's counsel, creditors' counsel, Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 trustees, and occasionally debtors directly. We take the assignment from any of them on the same terms, which is the only way the report is worth anything to whichever of them ordered it.
Our experience
Appraising South Florida since 1992, 34,000+ appraisals in Palm Beach, Martin, St. Lucie and Broward counties, including 391 field reviews. Our staff includes an MAI and SRA designated appraiser. Residential only.
How the assignment runs
Engagement names the debtor, the property, the effective date — almost always the petition date — and who will rely on the report. Retrospective mechanics apply: comparables as of the date, condition as of the date. Inspection is arranged through whoever holds access; where the debtor occupies, we schedule with the same discretion as any assignment. The report is built for the audience these files actually meet: a trustee testing the schedules, a creditor testing the lien math, or a judge hearing both.
Where the number bites
Three places, and counsel knows them better than we do: the equity above exemptions that a Chapter 7 trustee may administer; the liquidation floor that shapes a Chapter 13 plan; and lien questions that turn entirely on whether value reaches a junior mortgage. In each, a casual appraisal invites a competing one, and the debtor pays for the fight either way. A defensible number filed first usually ends the matter before it starts — the cheapest possible outcome for everyone in the room.
Call 561-853-2129 or use the contact form.
Questions we hear about this work
What date is the property valued for bankruptcy?
Usually the petition date, which often means a retrospective assignment — we are frequently engaged weeks or months after filing and value back to it.
Who can order a bankruptcy appraisal?
Debtor's counsel, creditors' counsel, Chapter 7 and 13 trustees, or debtors directly. The work is identical whoever engages us, which is the only reason it is useful to any of them.
Will the appraiser defend the value at a hearing?
Yes. Valuation hearings are part of this practice, and the file is prepared from the first comparable on the assumption it will be examined.
Does homestead exemption change the appraisal?
No — exemption law is counsel's domain. What it changes is the stakes: with Florida's homestead protection, the appraised value often decides what a trustee can reach, which is why these numbers get fought over.