When you talk about a home appraisal, you’re referring to a professional, formal valuation of your property. A licensed appraiser inspects the home, examines its size, condition, lot size, age, upgrades, and compares it with recent sales of similar homes.
The lender usually orders it if you’re buying, refinancing or otherwise financing your property. Its primary role is to protect the lender by verifying that the home is worth enough to serve as collateral.
Because it’s done at a specific time and follows defined rules, the result is fairly fixed until something changes.
What a current market assessment (sometimes called a CMA) is
In contrast, a current market assessment is more of an estimate of what your home could sell for right now. A real estate agent or broker looks at recent sales of comparable homes, current listings, the state of the local market (supply, demand) and then gives you a range or suggested listing price.
It’s less formal than an appraisal. It doesn’t carry the same weight with lenders. It’s very much tied to how buyers are behaving in the market today.
The key differences you should keep in mind
- Purpose: The appraisal is used primarily for lender or legal purposes (buying, refinancing). The market assessment helps you decide on a listing price or estimating market value.
- Who does it: Appraisal = certified appraiser. Market assessment = agent/broker or you, using data.
- Timing & flexibility: The market assessment captures current trends and buyer behavior. Appraisal is a snapshot based on data available at that time and may lag market changes.
- Outcome: The appraisal gives you a value that lenders trust. The market assessment gives you a value range to help with listing or negotiating.
- Impact of market shifts: Because a market assessment uses recent sales and listings, it reflects “what buyers are willing to pay right now”. An appraisal might not always reflect rapid shifts.
Why it matters for you
If you’re selling your home, relying only on an appraisal might underprice your home (if the market has moved up) or overprice it (if the market has softened). Using a current market assessment helps you set a realistic listing price.
If you’re buying or refinancing, the appraisal matters because your lender will use it to decide how much they’ll lend. If the appraisal comes in lower than the purchase price, you’ll need to cover the difference or renegotiate.
Something to keep in mind
Don’t assume the appraisal equals the sale price or the market assessment. A home can appraise at, say, $300 000, but in a hot market the current market assessment could suggest you could list for $315 000 (or higher) — or the reverse in a slow market.
Use the market assessment to set strategy; use the appraisal to satisfy financing or legal requirements.
