Home/For agents
For Fort Worth agents whose seller wants a number the comparable sales do not obviously give — and where being wrong by ten percent costs three months.
Independent value support for Fort Worth agents on the listings where the comparable sales do not hand you an obvious number — and where being wrong by ten percent costs your seller three months.
An appraisal is a written opinion of what comparable sales support, with the adjustments shown and their derivation stated. It is not a prediction of a sale price and no appraisal can promise one.
What it changes is who is arguing. You stop being the person telling a seller their house is worth less than they think, and become the person who brought independent evidence to the conversation.
The cost of not having that conversation is measurable. Across 114,946 Dallas–Fort Worth listings, homes whose first asking price sat at or below what they eventually sold for went under contract in a median of 10 days. Homes that opened 10–20% above took 100 days, 88% of them cut the price, and they sold for the same. Listings priced more than 25% above supportable value failed to sell 34.1% of the time.
The full study is here, and you are welcome to send it to a seller with my name on it or without.
I hold a Texas broker licence and I do sell real estate. You will find that out, so I would rather say it first — and be precise about where the line sits.
If you engage me, I do not go after your listing. You are the client, the report belongs to you, and I will not solicit your seller — not during the assignment and not after it closes. The USPAP Ethics Rule already binds me to confidentiality about the assignment and the parties; not competing for your listing is my own commitment on top of it.
What I will not pretend is that I never take listings. Sellers find this site directly, frequently before they have chosen anyone to represent them, and when one of those asks me to handle the sale I will if it is the right fit. That is a different situation from the one this page is about — nobody referred them and no agent was engaged.
A seller who is already working with you is your client and stays your client. If you would still rather not engage an appraiser who also lists, that is a reasonable position and I will refer you to someone who does not.
Several agents have asked about showing buyers that the asking price is supported by an independent appraisal. It can be done, and it has to be set up at the start rather than afterwards.
An appraisal report names its intended use and its intended users, and those are fixed when the assignment is accepted. A report developed to help you and your seller set a list price has you as the intended user. Showing it to prospective buyers is a different use by different people, and it needs to be contemplated in the report from the beginning.
So tell me up front if that is the plan. The scope does not change and neither does the number — what changes is that the report is written to be read by the people who will actually read it. Doing it the other way round means a second assignment.
Terrence Bilodeau, Texas Certified Residential Appraiser #1360232 — 15 years across Tarrant, Parker, Johnson, Hood, Wise, Ellis and Denton counties, with more than $4 billion appraised. One-to-four unit residential and residential land.
Terrence Bilodeau · Clearfork Appraisals · (817) 903-4509 · terrence@clearforkappraisals.com · Fort Worth, TX · Fee schedule on request.
Yes. The agent can be the client, in which case the report belongs to the agent, or the seller can be named as client instead. That is decided at engagement because it determines who the report belongs to and who the appraiser may discuss it with under the USPAP confidentiality provisions.
The fee is quoted in writing before any work begins, based on scope and complexity, and is never contingent on the value reported or on whether the property sells. Standard turnaround is five to seven business days from inspection; rush is two business days when the calendar allows for an additional $200. Volume is taken into account on multiple properties.
No. If you engage me for an appraisal, I do not solicit your seller during the assignment or after it closes, and a seller already working with you remains your client. Terrence Bilodeau does hold a Texas broker licence and does sell real estate: sellers who find Clearfork Appraisals directly, before they have chosen anyone to represent them, may ask him to handle the sale and he will if it is the right fit. That is a separate situation from an agent-engaged assignment. The USPAP Ethics Rule separately requires confidentiality about the assignment and the parties.
Yes, if it is set up that way at the start. An appraisal report names its intended use and intended users when the assignment is accepted, so a report developed for an agent and seller to set a list price is not automatically written for buyers to read. Say so before the assignment begins and the report is prepared accordingly; arranging it afterwards means a second assignment.
When comparable sales are limited or the property is unusual - acreage, custom construction, barndominiums, significant outbuildings, or neighbourhoods where little similar has traded recently. It is also useful when a fiduciary needs documented support for the price accepted, and when a seller disagrees with the agent's pricing and an independent third party would resolve it faster.
Across 114,946 Dallas-Fort Worth resolved listings, homes whose first asking price sat at or below the price they eventually sold for went under contract in a median of 10 cumulative days on market, while homes opening 10 to 20 percent above took 100 days and 88 percent of them cut the price before closing. Listings priced more than 25 percent above supportable value failed to sell 34.1 percent of the time.
Realtor · repeat client
“As a Realtor, I have called on Terrence when a home was particularly difficult to price because comparable sales were limited. In today’s market, accurate pricing is more important than ever. His appraisals give my sellers confidence and take much of the pressure out of determining the right listing price. Terrence has become a valuable resource for my business.”Renee Benson · Google review
Send the address, the effective date and whether buyers will see the report. You get scope, fee and delivery date in writing before anything starts — usually within one business hour.
Would you rather not type it out? Call or text (817) 903-4509.