Move The Appraisal You Already Paid For
The appraisal from your first lender can usually come with you, as long as it is still inside the age limits.*
The appraisal you already paid for can move to your new loan.
Two clocks decide whether it still counts, and they are not the same clock.
- At least one program allows an appraisal transfer when the appraisal was completed prior to the loan being closed.
- On that program the report must be less than 60 days old at the time of transfer and less than 120 days old at closing.
- Another program dates the appraisal no more than 120 days prior to the note date.
- A re-certification of value is acceptable to extend the expiration date of the appraisal to 365 days.
- The report must be ordered through an approved Appraisal Management Company, or AMC.
- At least one conventional program will not transfer an appraisal when the qualifying FICO score is under 620.
Your paid appraisal can transfer to the new loan
Less than 60 days old at the time of transfer
A re-certification of value can extend it to 365 days
The report must come from an approved AMC
Appraisers on probation are not accepted
Loan amounts above $1,500,000 require two appraisals
What is the Saxton Appraisal Transfer?
Moving an appraisal you already paid for from one lender to the next.
An appraisal transfer moves a completed appraisal report from the lender who ordered it to the lender who will close your loan. At least one program allows a transfer when the appraisal was completed prior to the loan being closed. Another states it in five words: appraisal transfers are allowed. The report does not get rewritten. It gets reassigned, reviewed against the new program’s rules, and used.
You paid for an appraisal at your first lender. Then the rate moved, or the underwriting stalled, or the program turned out not to fit. Most borrowers assume that money is gone and start over. Often it is not gone. If the report is still inside the age limits and came through an approved AMC, it can follow the file to a new lender instead of being replaced.
Transfers are not universal, and this page is honest about that. At least one conventional program refuses a transfer when the qualifying FICO score is under 620. At least one jumbo program treats exterior only appraisals and appraisal waivers as ineligible. Appraisers on probation with any regulatory agency are not accepted, with no exceptions. Once a report passes 365 days, a new appraisal report is required.
Why choose the Saxton Appraisal Transfer?
This is for the borrower who already paid for an appraisal at one lender and does not want to pay for a second one.
Transfers Are Allowed Here
A transfer is not a favor someone does you. Multiple programs put it in writing. One allows appraisal transfers when an appraisal was completed prior to the loan being closed. Others state simply that transferred appraisals are permitted, or that a transferred appraisal is acceptable. Your request is not unusual and it is not a special exception.
The 60 Day Clock
At least one program measures the same report twice. It must be less than 60 days old at the time of transfer, and less than 120 days old at closing. Those are two different deadlines sitting on one document. That program also requires the appraisal to have been ordered through an approved AMC in the first place.
The 120 Day Note Date
A second program sets the clock differently. The appraisal should be dated no more than 120 days prior to the note date. The note date is the day you sign, not the day you apply, so a file that sits can push a good report past the limit. Watch the signing date when you plan the calendar.
Re-Certification Extends To 365
If the report is aging out, there is a documented path forward. A re-certification of value is acceptable to extend the expiration date of the appraisal to 365 days. That is the outer wall. After 365 days, a new appraisal report is required, and the collateral side of the file starts over from scratch.
AIR Compliance Travels With It
By accepting a transferred appraisal, the lender is warranting the appraisal is AIR compliant. AIR means Appraiser Independence Requirements. That is the reason the report has to come through an approved AMC, and the reason appraisers on probation with any regulatory agency are turned down. At least one program states that limit with no exceptions.
Large Loans Need Two Reports
Size changes what the file needs. On at least one program, loan amounts above $1,500,000 require two appraisals. On that same program, loans with a CU score above 2.5 require a Desk Review unless two appraisals are already in the file. CU score is Fannie Mae’s Collateral Underwriter risk score for the report.
Hear From Homeowners Like You
Frequently Asked Questions
Short answers to what borrowers ask before they move a file to a new lender.
Often, yes. At least one program allows a transfer when the appraisal was completed prior to the loan being closed, and other programs state plainly that transferred appraisals are permitted. It is not automatic. The report still has to meet the new program’s age limits, have been ordered through an approved AMC, and be AIR compliant. Ask before you pay for a second report.
It depends on the program, and the two common answers are not the same. One program requires the appraisal to be less than 60 days old at the time of transfer and less than 120 days old at closing. Another allows the appraisal to be dated no more than 120 days prior to the note date. Find out which clock your file is on before you set a closing date.
Then it cannot be used. A re-certification of value is acceptable to extend the expiration date of the appraisal to 365 days, but after 365 days a new appraisal report is required. There is no second extension past that point. If your report is close to the 365 day mark, plan for a new one rather than counting on the old one.
On at least one conventional family of programs, yes. An appraisal transfer is not allowed if the qualifying FICO score is less than 620. That restriction sits on the transfer itself, not only on the loan approval. If your qualifying score is under 620 on that program, expect to order a new appraisal even when the loan otherwise works.
Not on every program. At least one jumbo program treats exterior only appraisals and appraisal waivers as ineligible. A waiver also means no full report was ever produced, so there is nothing to move. For that program a new appraisal is ordered, and the money you saved by skipping one earlier does not carry forward.
An Appraisal Management Company the program has approved. At least one program requires the appraisal to have been ordered through an approved AMC before it can be transferred at all. On at least one super jumbo program, a transferred appraisal is acceptable as long as the second appraisal is ordered from the program’s approved AMC. Ask your first lender who ordered the report.
CU score is Fannie Mae’s Collateral Underwriter risk score for an appraisal report. On at least one program, loans with a CU score above 2.5 require a Desk Review unless two appraisals are in the file. That same program requires two appraisals on loan amounts above $1,500,000. Ask which of those applies before you assume one report is enough.
Find out what you qualify for
You already paid for the appraisal once. Before you pay again, let us check the report date, the ordering AMC, and the program rules against the file you have. If it can move, it moves. If it cannot, you will know why before you spend anything. Get a fast, no-obligation pre-qualification today.
Get Pre-Qualified*Loan amounts, rates, terms, and down payment requirements are subject to credit approval, income and asset verification, and program eligibility. Rural housing financing is governed by USDA area loan limits and income limits rather than by conforming loan limits. Down payment and cash-out limits vary by occupancy, credit score, and documentation type. Not all applicants will qualify. Saxton Mortgage, LLC is an Equal Housing Lender.