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The main factors that can hurt a home appraisal include needed updates, comparable properties, market conditions, your home’s location, and whether you hired an inspector to flag issues or necessary repairs. By getting ahead of the factors within your control before an appraisal, you may get a more favorable answer to the all-important question of what your house is really worth.

The more you know and understand about the home appraisal process, the better. Here’s a crash course of sorts on the process and what negatively affects home appraisal.

Recommended: Should I Sell My House Now or Wait?

A Primer on Home Appraisals

A home appraisal reveals the fair market value of a home, which is important whether you’re buying, selling or refinancing a mortgage. An appraisal can also be used to determine property taxes. Lenders require appraisals because they ensure that the lender won’t offer you a loan that’s more than what the home is appraised value is worth.

So, what do appraisers look for when they do a home appraisal? A real estate appraiser, who is a third party licensed or certified by the state, will review a home inside and out, looking at a home’s age, size, foundation, appliances and neighborhood, among other things. They will then compare the house to similar homes in the area to assess its value.

An appraisal is usually required by a lender when a buyer is getting a mortgage or when someone is refinancing their mortgage. If an appraisal is for a home sale, neither the buyer nor the homeowner can be present. When someone is refinancing, on the other hand, the homeowner is permitted to attend. That no doubt is a plus as it’s an opportunity for the homeowner to ensure the appraiser takes note of any upgrades and new features that could increase their home’s worth.

Things That Can Hurt Your Home Appraisal

Much hinges on the home’s appraisal itself, so you’ll want it to go as smoothly as possible. Start by knowing what hurts a home appraisal so you can avoid any hiccups that could prevent you from getting the highest value for your home.

1. Much-Needed Updates That Never Happened

If you’ve been putting off any needed upgrades, this is when it could come back to bite you. Let’s say you’ve been meaning to renovate your kitchen and somehow just didn’t get around to it. A kitchen that looks pretty much like it did 30 years ago isn’t going to wow anybody, least of all an appraiser who will wonder what else is in decline.

While it can be helpful to take care of some common home upgrades that can net you a return on your investment, you don’t necessarily want to go crazy updating either. Not only could it be tougher to recoup all the money you put into home improvements, you may find that while you love the changes you’ve made, your taste may not have universal appeal. It’s a delicate balance to make upgrades that will get two thumbs up from the appraiser and the potential buyers.

2. Comparable Properties

When it comes to housing, you do kind of have to keep up with the Joneses. With appraisals, it’s all about sales of comparable homes over the last 12 months. What are homes similar to yours on your street or a few blocks over selling for? If they are getting top dollar that will push up the price of your home. On the flip side, if those homes are hanging around on the market for months and selling at prices below expected, that could put a drag on what you can get for yours.

Comparable sales help determine the market, which is why both your real estate and your appraiser will look at them. Ideally, the appraiser, as much as possible, is comparing apples to apples so you get a fair appraisal. The other properties should be similar in size, age and amenities, among other factors. It’s a losing proposition for you if the appraiser goes for the extreme, say a house that sold at a bargain because someone was in a hurry to bail for whatever reason.

3. Skipping a Home Inspection

When it comes to your house, ignorance is not bliss. While you may know when you need to make a repair to a leaky roof, for instance, there can be plenty wrong that’s not obvious to you. That’s why it’s a good idea to have a home inspection before you put your house on the market.

A home inspector can suss out all manner of malfunctions that could be plaguing your house, particularly things you may be clueless about. If you get bad news, think of it as good news since you’ll now have the opportunity to make necessary home repairs before you put your house on the market and an appraiser comes with a magnifying glass of sorts looking for signs of trouble.

4. An Undesirable Location

Few things matter more in real estate market than location. If you’re in a neighborhood that’s seen as flawed or your house is on a busy or noisy street, that could all come into play when it comes to the value of your property.

Location also counts within your home. If your layout is dated — say it’s old-fashioned and highly compartmentalized instead of today’s more in-demand open layout concepts — that could be less attractive to buyers. Or, they might only be interested in knocking down walls and reconfiguring the space, which likely means they’ll want to pay less for the house if they are going to have put money into it to bring it in line with what they’re looking for.

4 Ways to Prevent Low Home Appraisals

Just like there are some things you can get out ahead of before they hurt your home appraisal, there are also some moves you can make to prevent your home appraisal coming in lower than you’d like.

1.   Hire your own appraiser: Typically, the lender hires the appraiser. However, there’s no reason you can’t hire your own appraiser before the sale. Your realtor should have a handle on someone who is experienced and has a reputation for giving fair estimates. You then can ask the buyer or lender’s appraiser to review what your appraiser produced.

2.   Provide records: If you have records of repairs and upgrades that’s the kind of proof that works in your favor. It also doesn’t hurt to have documentation like photos — before and afters aren’t just for an Instagram post of your new haircut.

3.   Prepare for the appraiser’s visit: Don’t dismiss the importance of maintaining curb appeal. Your home should be clean inside and outside before the appraiser comes over. Strive to get as close to an interior design catalog as you can.

4.   Dig up property comparables on your own: You don’t have to leave it to the appraiser and real estate agents to do all the homework. Go the extra mile and consider calling real estate agents with homes in escrow to get the sales prices. Create a list that you can pass along to the appraiser.

Checking Your Home Value Without an Appraisal

You can get a sense of what your home is worth even if you don’t get an appraisal. There are several websites that can give you valuable insight into your home’s potential value, including Zillow, Trulia, Redfin, Realtor.com and Eppraisal, among others.

Another option is to use a house price index (HPI) calculator , which relies on data from mortgage transactions over time to estimate a home’s value. Projections are based on both the purchase price of the home and the changing value of other homes nearby. This tool can help you see how much a house has appreciated over time. You’ll also get a glimpse of estimated future changes in mortgage rates.

Recommended: Does Net Worth Include Home Equity?

The Takeaway

Because appraisal value of your home is likely your biggest asset, it’s worth putting the time and effort into the appraisal process. The payoff could be huge if you tend to the major factors that hurt an appraisal or get proactive about preventing a low appraisal.

If you’re worried about budgeting for any necessary updates or repairs, a tool like SoFi can help you track your spending in different categories.

Photo credit: iStock/ucpage

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Fighting about money is one of the top causes of strife among couples, and one of the main reasons married couples land in divorce court.

Married or not, it’s important to address the problems at the heart of financial disagreements and start communicating. Otherwise these issues may fester and grow.

Instead of judging each other’s spending habits or fighting over money, couples can learn how to start working on financial issues together as a team.

Here are some ways to help you make money discussions productive, and not a fight.

Common Causes of Couple Money Fights

While there are countless variations of money fights you might have, these are a few of the most common triggers:

Sharing important account information

Some couples struggle with privacy limits and financial security, and they may disagree upon what level of access their partner should have to their financial accounts. If one partner feels they don’t have fair access to financial accounts, passwords, and paperwork, resentment can build.

Married couples in particular may find it confusing and challenging to not have a full picture of their complete financial health.

Determining budgeting and spending limits

Maybe one of you likes to spend and enjoy life. And the other likes to save for a rainy day. This disconnect happens all the time. Not all couples see eye to eye on how much they should be spending and this can lead to anger and tension.

Dealing with debt

If one partner brings debt with them to the relationship, it isn’t uncommon for the couples to disagree about who is responsible for paying off the debt.

Tackling debt can be stressful under the best circumstances, and it can lead to turmoil and fighting if a romantic partner feels the debt is an unfair burden on the relationship.

Savings and investing

Some couples can’t agree how much money they should save and how they should be saving it.

One partner may feel investing their savings is the better path to a stronger financial future, but the other partner may find investing too risky and want to keep the money in a high-yield savings account. This can cause turmoil if both partners’ chosen path forward is the only one they are comfortable with.

Retirement planning

When you’re balancing a lot of different expenses, deciding as a couple how much money to save for retirement and what age they may want to retire can be challenging.

But those who don’t have a plan for slowly and consistently saving for retirement can find themselves continually fighting about retirement savings. This is especially true if one partner is particularly worried about not being financially prepared for the future.

How to Stop Fighting About Money

Before your next money fight erupts, try these tips to help stop the arguing.

Changing the way you talk about money

Working on your communication skills can help keep financial discussions from devolving into arguments.

When you’re discussing money, the main goal of a productive talk is to really listen to each other and try to understand the other person’s point of view, as opposed to jumping to conclusions or making accusations.

One technique that can help with this is using “I” instead of “you” in your statements. For example, one partner might say, “I get frustrated when the bills aren’t paid on time. Can I help you out with that?” rather than, “you never pay the bills on time.”

Another method is trying to avoid using the words “always” and “never” when discussing money matters. These terms can put the other person immediately on the defensive.

Setting up a budget together

Creating a budget as a couple is key. To help establish your saving goals and monthly spending targets, begin by figuring out what your joint net worth is. Then track your income and expenses for several months.

Once you know what you’re spending money on, you can work out a flexible budget, with short-term financial goals and long-term goals.

Planning ahead helps both partners agree on how much needs to be set aside for retirement or a down payment on a house, and how much you each can allocate to spending as you individually see fit.

Being open and honest

It’s tempting to omit key information when we’re trying to avoid conflict. But even if a person doesn’t fib about an expensive purchase or lending money to a family member, failing to share significant financial information can make the other partner feel like they’re being lied to and misled. This can breed distrust and cause financial stress.

Prevent these problems by being honest about financial decisions, even if you know they may upset your partner. As reluctant as you may be to bring these topics up, it can be better in the long run than hiding it from them and committing financial infidelity.

Establishing some boundaries

One way to avoid the need to cover up pricey purchases is to agree to a few simple rules about what spending decisions should be shared and what spending decisions are okay to make solo.

For example, one couple may decide they don’t need to alert each other about a purchase if it’s under $500. Another couple may agree to lend money to siblings when they need it. And some couples may together decide to never lend money to friends or family under any circumstances.

By setting boundaries and limits, and then adhering to them, couples may stop feeling like they have to report their every financial move.

Setting up a joint account

One of the main benefits of opening a bank account together is that it can provide a clear financial picture. A joint account allows couples to track spending, and it can make sticking to a budget easier, while also helping to foster openness.

On the downside, sharing every penny can sometimes lead to tension and disagreements, especially if partners have different spending habits and personalities. One solution might be to have a joint checking and savings account, as well as two individual accounts with a set amount of money to play with every month.

Having different accounts, including one for their personal use, can give each partner some freedom to spend on themselves without having to explain or feel guilty about their expenditures.

Teaming up against debt

Working together on a reasonable plan to start getting out of debt can help couples alleviate a major stress on their marriage.

One strategy for debt reduction might be the avalanche method. To do it, you make a list of all your debts by order of interest rate, from the highest percentage to the lowest. Then, while continuing to make all your minimum monthly payments on existing debts, the couple might decide to put as many extra payments as possible to the highest interest rate loan.

Or, they might decide to simply eliminate the smallest debt first, or look into consolidating debts into a single loan, which could make it easier to manage.

Whatever plan you agree on, working on debt reduction can give you a shared goal to work toward together.

Scheduling a monthly financial check-in

Even if one partner takes on a bigger role in managing finances, paying bills, and keeping on top of the budget, both parties need to stay up to date on what’s going on in order to achieve financial security.

Rather than only talking about your finances when you’re stressed about bills, a better strategy might be to set a specific time on your calendar each month to sit down together and review your recent spending, income, savings, bills, and investments.

If you can’t swing monthly meetings, then aim for quarterly or biannual financial sit-downs.

Getting help from an advisor

While spending more money may seem like an added stressor, some couples who pay for a financial coach may find that it helps them save more down the road.

And, it might be easier to talk about an emotionally charged subject like money with an unbiased third party who can help diffuse tension and get you both to agree on a smart spending and savings strategy.

The Takeaway

Fighting over money, or finding it hard to talk openly and constructively about it, is a common source of friction between couples. Some strategies that can help include learning how to communicate about financial issues more productively, setting up monthly money check-ins, and letting each partner have some financial privacy.

For couples who are ready to integrate their finances, SoFi Checking and Savings makes it easy to create a joint account that gives you both shared access to your money. Plus, you’ll earn a competitive APY and pay no account fees. That’s something that you can both agree is a good thing!

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