[Rick Lee]

Most of an appraiser's work is done on the computer. Visiting the property is just to make sure the house matches the tax records and to check on condition. Plenty of properties are sold as teardowns too. Can you imagine getting a loan on a house that didn't exist because the appraiser didn't even do a drive-by? It has happened. The appraiser has a copy of the sales contract before he does the appraisal because he has to run comps on the computer. There's a mathematical formula as to how they reach their final value and it's pretty well documented between tax record, recent sales in the area, comps, etc. They don't just throw a number out there based on the contract price. Rest assured, if they're ever accused of wrongdoing, they need to show exactly how they arrived at that value, so it's all in the report.