In a home purchase, the buyer pays for the home appraisal; in a refinance, the homeowner pays. For a standard single-family property, the fee typically runs $300 to $600. The lender orders the appraisal because it needs an independent opinion of value to confirm the property is worth at least what it’s lending against, and the cost gets passed to the borrower as part of the loan.
Who Pays When You’re Buying
The buyer pays because the buyer is the one applying for financing. You’ll see the appraisal fee listed on your Loan Estimate shortly after you apply, and it shows up again on the Closing Disclosure at settlement.
Even though you pay for it, the appraiser doesn’t work for you. Under federal appraisal independence rules added by the Dodd-Frank Act, no one with a financial interest in the transaction can pressure or coach the appraiser toward a particular value.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1639e – Appraisal Independence Requirements Most lenders handle this by routing the assignment through an Appraisal Management Company, which picks the appraiser and processes payment so neither the buyer nor the real estate agent deals directly with the person doing the valuation.
Sellers sometimes agree to cover the appraisal as part of a broader closing-cost credit. The buyer still technically pays the appraiser, but the seller offsets it at settlement through a credit or price reduction. Whether a seller agrees depends on your negotiating position, and in a tight market the answer is usually no.
Who Pays When You’re Refinancing
When you refinance, you’re reapplying for a mortgage on a home you already own, and the appraisal cost falls on you. There’s no seller to split it with. The lender needs a current value to calculate your loan-to-value ratio, which drives your rate, whether you need private mortgage insurance, and how much equity you can pull out in a cash-out refinance.
The fee is not refundable based on outcome. If the appraised value comes in too low and the lender denies the refinance, you still owe for the appraisal. The appraiser performed the work regardless.
How Much a Home Appraisal Costs
Expect $300 to $600 for a standard single-family home. The exact figure depends on your local market, the size of the property, and how complicated the assignment is. A typical suburban three-bedroom in a neighborhood with plenty of recent comparable sales sits at the low end.
Several things push the fee higher:
- Two-to-four-unit residential buildings typically run $800 or more, because the appraiser has to analyze rental income and evaluate each unit.
- Rural or remote properties often carry travel surcharges of $50 to $500, especially where comparable sales are hard to find.
- Rush orders add roughly $100 to $300 on top of the standard fee.
Not every appraisal involves someone walking through your living room. Lenders increasingly accept lower-cost alternatives on qualifying loans. A desktop appraisal, where the appraiser works from public records and MLS data without visiting, runs about $75 to $200. A hybrid appraisal, where a third-party inspector collects photos and measurements and a separate appraiser analyzes the data, typically falls between $250 and $375. Conventional loans backed by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac are the most likely to offer these options.
FHA and VA Loans
Government-backed loans have their own rules, and the costs tend to run a bit higher because the standards are stricter.
FHA
FHA appraisals have to be done by an appraiser on FHA’s approved roster, and the report stays valid for 180 days. FHA doesn’t set the fee; the appraiser and lender negotiate it, and the buyer pays. One meaningful exception: if the lender finds a material deficiency in the original report and orders a second appraisal, the lender has to cover that second report out of its own pocket.2U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. FHA Single Family Housing Policy Handbook 4000.1
FHA appraisals also check whether the property meets HUD’s minimum property standards. The appraiser flags safety and structural issues a conventional appraiser might only note in passing, which can create repair negotiations between buyer and seller before the loan can close.
VA
VA appraisals follow a fee schedule set by the VA’s Regional Loan Centers. The veteran buyer pays unless the seller agrees to cover it. Fees vary by region and property type but generally run $600 to $800 or more for a single-family home. The VA caps certain extras: re-inspections at $150, and new-construction assignments add no more than $50 above the standard fee.3U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. VA Appraisal Fee Schedules and Timeliness Requirements
If a VA assignment gets canceled midway, the fee depends on how far the appraiser got. An appraiser who accepted the job but hadn’t yet visited the property can charge up to $50. Once the interior inspection is done, the charge caps at half the posted fee.
When You Can Skip the Appraisal Altogether
Both Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac offer appraisal waivers on qualifying conventional loans, which eliminates the cost. Fannie Mae calls its version “Value Acceptance,” offered through the Desktop Underwriter system when a loan meets the criteria.4Fannie Mae. Value Acceptance – Fannie Mae Selling Guide Freddie Mac’s equivalent is the Automated Collateral Evaluation (ACE) program.5Freddie Mac. Guide Section 5602.3
Fannie Mae’s value acceptance is available for one-unit properties including condos, covering principal residences, second homes, and investment property refinances, with the purchase price or estimated value under $1,000,000.4Fannie Mae. Value Acceptance – Fannie Mae Selling Guide Two-to-four-unit buildings, manufactured homes, co-ops, new construction, and manually underwritten loans don’t qualify.
A waiver is not something you can demand. The automated system evaluates property data, prior appraisals, and risk factors before offering one, and your lender can still require a full appraisal if it wants the additional assurance. Rate-and-term refinances on one-unit properties are among the most common candidates on the refinance side.
FHA and VA loans are never eligible for appraisal waivers. Those programs always require a full report.
When You Pay and Whether You Can Get It Back
Most lenders collect the appraisal fee upfront, shortly after you submit your loan application, usually by credit card through the AMC rather than directly to the appraiser. Collecting early makes sure the appraiser gets paid even if the deal falls apart. Some lenders still allow the fee to be bundled into closing costs and paid at settlement, where it appears alongside title insurance and recording fees on your Closing Disclosure.6Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. What Fees or Charges Are Paid When Closing on a Mortgage and Who Pays Them If you withdraw your application after the appraisal has been completed, expect to be invoiced for it.
Refunds depend on timing. If you cancel before the appraiser has visited the property, you can often get a full refund. Once the inspection happens, the fee is gone. VA loan appraisals follow the published cancellation caps, which offer more predictability than the conventional market.3U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. VA Appraisal Fee Schedules and Timeliness Requirements
Who Pays for a Second Appraisal If the First Comes in Low
A low appraisal can derail a deal, and a second opinion is sometimes part of the fix. In most situations, if you or the lender wants a second report, someone has to pay for it, and the lender’s position is generally that it’s the borrower’s bill.
There’s one federal carve-out: for higher-priced mortgage loans involving a property that was recently flipped, the lender must obtain a second appraisal at its own expense. The borrower cannot be charged for that second report.7Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1639h – Property Appraisal Requirements On FHA loans, as noted above, a lender-ordered second appraisal based on a material deficiency in the first report is also on the lender.
Appraisals Outside a Mortgage
Not every appraisal involves a lender, and the payment rules change when there isn’t one.
In a divorce, the parties typically split the fee, or the spouse who wants to keep the home pays. If the two sides can’t agree on value, each may hire a separate appraiser, which doubles the cost. The arrangement depends on your state’s family law framework and what the parties negotiate.
In an estate, the estate pays. The executor needs a date-of-death valuation to establish fair market value for estate tax purposes and to set the stepped-up basis for heirs.8Justia. Valuing Assets in an Estate and Legal Considerations
For a property tax appeal, you pay the appraiser directly and out of pocket. Whether that’s worth it depends on how far off the assessment is. For a small overvaluation the math often doesn’t work; for a significant one, a few hundred dollars in appraisal cost can produce savings across multiple tax years.
Your Right to a Copy of the Report
Even though the lender is the appraiser’s client, you have a federal right to see what you paid for. Under the Equal Credit Opportunity Act’s implementing regulation, any lender taking a first-lien mortgage application must give you all appraisals and written valuations developed in connection with that application.9Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. 12 CFR 1002.14 – Rules on Providing Appraisals and Other Valuations Delivery must happen promptly after the report is finished, or at least three business days before closing, whichever comes first.
The lender also has to notify you of this right within three business days of receiving your application.9Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. 12 CFR 1002.14 – Rules on Providing Appraisals and Other Valuations If the deal falls through, the lender must still send you the appraisal within 30 days of determining the loan won’t close. You can be charged a reasonable fee for the appraisal itself, but not an extra fee for the copy.
Is the Appraisal Fee Tax Deductible
For most homeowners, no. The IRS treats the fee as a settlement cost connected to obtaining or refinancing a mortgage. It cannot be deducted and cannot be added to your home’s cost basis.10Internal Revenue Service. Publication 530 – Tax Information for Homeowners It also isn’t mortgage interest and can’t be amortized as points over the life of the loan.