KeptGuides
Appraisal after a home inspection: timing and repairs
The appraisal usually comes after the inspection and takes 1 to 2 weeks. It sets value for your lender, but it can make safety repairs a loan condition.
Updated · By 
Ben Sikes
How long after the home inspection is the appraisal?
The appraisal usually comes after the inspection, often while you're still negotiating repairs. Lenders typically order it within 7 to 10 days of your accepted offer, and the report comes back 3 to 10 business days after the appraiser's visit. Federal Housing Administration (FHA) and Veterans Affairs (VA) loans can add another week or two. Use that gap to price your inspection report, so you have real numbers ready if the appraiser flags a repair or the value comes in low.
Key takeaways
- The inspection usually comes first. The appraisal report often lands mid-negotiation.
- The inspection finds what's wrong. The appraisal tells your lender what the home is worth, and only safety, soundness, or structural problems become required repairs.
- A credit or price cut agreed after the appraisal usually doesn't trigger a new one.
What comes first, the appraisal or the home inspection?
The inspection, in most deals. Redfin puts it simply: "The inspection usually comes first, so buyers can address repairs or withdraw before paying for an appraisal."
Lenders don't all work the same way, though. Opendoor notes that "Some lenders wait until the inspection contingency has been resolved so they don't pay for an appraisal on a deal that might collapse; others order it immediately to compress the timeline." Ask your loan officer on day one which they do. If the appraisal happens before you decide on the inspection, you could lose the fee, which runs $500 or more according to American Family Insurance.
| Step | Typical timing |
|---|---|
| Lender orders the appraisal | Within 7 to 10 days of your accepted offer |
| Appraiser's report comes back | 3 to 10 business days after the visit |
| Whole appraisal, start to finish | About 7 to 10 days |
| FHA or VA loan | Add 1 to 2 weeks |
Sources: Opendoor, Pennymac.
How does an appraisal differ from a home inspection?
The inspection tells you what's wrong with the house. The appraisal tells your lender what it's worth. The VA's buyer's guide says it flatly: "An appraisal is not a home inspection."
| Home inspection | Appraisal | |
|---|---|---|
| Who orders it | You | Your lender |
| What it answers | What is broken, worn, or unsafe | What the home is worth as loan security |
| Who sees the report first | You | Your lender |
| What it does with a defect | Describes it, often recommends a repair or specialist | Rates condition, and can make a safety or structural repair a loan condition |
A clean appraisal doesn't mean a clean house, and a long inspection report doesn't mean a low value. The full side-by-side is in appraisal vs. home inspection, and how to read a home inspection report helps you sort the report you already have.
Can an appraiser require repairs your inspection found?
Yes, if the problem affects safety, soundness, or structural integrity. Cosmetic items and normal wear go into the value instead of onto a repair list.
| Loan type | What the appraiser does with a serious defect | What's usually left alone |
|---|---|---|
| FHA | Lists repairs needed to meet the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Minimum Property Requirements, with a cost estimate, and makes the appraisal subject to them | Holes in window screens, cracked window glass, a dripping faucet |
| VA | Lists the repairs needed to meet VA minimum property requirements on the Notice of Value | Not itemized in VA's buyer's guide |
| Conventional | Appraises the home subject to the specific repairs, or to an inspection by a qualified professional | Worn floors or carpet, minor plumbing leaks, holes in screens, cracked window glass |
Sources: HUD Handbook 4000.1, VA Buyer's Guide, Fannie Mae Selling Guide.
On FHA loans, the appraiser doesn't get the last word. HUD's handbook says: "Regardless of the Appraiser's suggested repairs, the Mortgagee will determine which repairs are required." The mortgagee is your lender. Each loan type has its own list: see FHA required repairs, VA loan required repairs, and conventional loan required repairs.
Who pays for repairs the appraiser requires?
It's negotiated, like any inspection item. The difference is that your lender wants the work done, so a credit on its own usually won't clear the condition. The usual routes:
- The seller makes the repair before closing.
- You pay for the repair before closing, with the seller's permission since it isn't your house yet, and ask for a credit or price cut to cover it.
- The lender holds back money in escrow so the work gets done after closing, if your loan allows it. See repair escrow holdbacks.
Put the route you pick in your repair addendum. Your contract sets who pays and every deadline in this process, so confirm the terms with your agent. More detail is in who pays for appraisal-required repairs.
Does a repair credit or price reduction change the appraisal?
Usually not, once the appraisal is done. Fannie Mae's Selling Guide lists contract changes after the appraisal that don't need a revised one, including "sale price, transaction terms, financing concessions, seller-paid closing costs". A change to the description of the property does go back to the appraiser.
If the appraisal came in below your price, a price cut usually does more for you than a credit, because it closes the gap between the price and the value. Lenders also cap seller credits. See seller credit vs. price reduction and how a repair credit works at closing.
What should you do between the inspection and the appraisal?
Price your inspection report before the appraisal comes back. If the appraiser makes your roof or water heater a loan condition, you already know what it costs. If the value comes in low, you go back to the seller with a repair total instead of a guess.
Get contractor quotes on the big items and price the rest. Kept prices every line of an inspection report for $79, usually under 4 hours. For other ways to get numbers fast, see how to get repair estimates during the inspection period.
Is the appraisal the last step before closing?
No. Underwriting still has to clear the remaining conditions, including any repairs the appraiser required. Pennymac puts closing 15 to 30 days after the appraisal, and Opendoor says a low appraisal can add another 1 to 2 weeks. The full run is in how long after inspection is closing.
Who gets the appraisal report first?
Your lender. Opendoor describes it as a report "your lender reviews before sharing it with you." Ask your loan officer when you'll get your copy, then match each required repair to the same item in your inspection report.
What is the biggest red flag in a home inspection?
Anything that affects safety, soundness, or structure, because those are the findings an appraiser can also turn into a loan condition. Fannie Mae's lowest condition rating covers defects "severe enough to affect the safety, soundness, or structural integrity of the improvements." See the biggest red flags in a home inspection and when to walk away.
Can you still back out after the appraisal is ordered?
Usually, if your inspection window is still open. Most inspection contingencies let you cancel inside the window whether or not the appraisal has happened. The money at risk is the appraisal fee, since the buyer usually pays it. More in can you back out after the inspection.
If your appraisal is on the calendar and your inspection window is still open, upload your inspection report to Kept: $79 per memo, usually under 4 hours.
Sources
- Redfin, appraisal vs. inspection
- Opendoor, how long does an appraisal take
- Pennymac, what happens after the appraisal
- American Family Insurance, the home inspection and appraisal process
- HUD Handbook 4000.1
- VA Buyer's Guide
- Fannie Mae Selling Guide B4-1.3-06, Property Condition
- Fannie Mae Selling Guide B4-1.1-05, Disclosure of Information to Appraisers
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