Do I get a copy of my appraisal, and when?

The federal rule says you get a copy, free

The rule comes from the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, through a section of Regulation B often called the Valuations Rule. The CFPB enforces it.

Here is what it requires. If you apply for credit secured by a first lien on a dwelling, the lender must give you a copy of all appraisals and other written valuations developed in connection with your application. That covers most home purchase loans and most first mortgage refinances.

The copies are free. The rule says a lender cannot charge you for providing a copy. It can charge a reasonable fee to cover the cost of the appraisal itself. Those are two different things: paying for the appraisal is normal, paying a "copy fee" is not allowed.

It does not matter how the loan turns out. The rule applies whether credit is extended or denied, and even if the application is incomplete or withdrawn. You paid for the appraisal. You get to read it, even if you walked away from the house because the kitchen had a "unique" avocado theme.

When it has to arrive

The rule sets a deadline with two parts. The lender has to give you the copy:

• promptly upon completion, or
• three business days before closing (the rule says consummation),

whichever is earlier.

That "whichever is earlier" part matters. A lender cannot sit on a finished appraisal for three weeks and send it the morning of your three-day deadline. If the report is done, it is supposed to come to you promptly.

You should also hear about this right at the start. Within three business days of receiving your application, the lender must notify you in writing that you have a right to a copy of all appraisals. It is usually one paragraph in the pile of disclosures most people skim right past, somewhere between the privacy notice and the page about flood insurance.

What happens if you waive the timing

You can give up the timing, but you cannot give up the copy.

A borrower can agree to receive the copies at or before closing instead of earlier. Under the rule, that waiver must be given at least three business days before closing. Even with a waiver, the lender still has to deliver the copies at or before closing.

There is a narrow second kind of waiver. If a revised appraisal has only clerical changes that do not affect the value or the method, and you received the original at least three business days before closing, you can waive the timing for the revised copy.

If you signed a waiver and the loan never closes, the lender must send the copies no later than 30 days after it determines the deal will not close.

My advice: do not waive it unless there is a real reason. Three days is not much time, but it is enough to catch a wrong bedroom count before you sign 140 pages with a pen that skips.

It is more than the appraisal

The rule says "appraisals and other written valuations." Regulation B defines a valuation as any estimate of the value of a dwelling developed in connection with an application for credit.

So if your lender relied on other valuation tools during your application, those written valuations fall under the rule too. If you got an appraisal and a second valuation was done to review it, ask for both.

What about the seller? Freddie Mac notes that when you are selling, you typically will not receive a copy of the buyer's appraisal, though you can ask the buyer to share it. The buyer's lender has no duty to the seller. If you are a seller who wants a value you can see and use, a pre-listing appraisal you order yourself is the way to get one.

How to make sure you actually get it

1. Look for the notice in your early disclosures. It tells you that you have the right to a copy.
2. Ask your loan officer when the appraisal is scheduled and when they expect the report.
3. Ask for it as soon as it is complete. You do not have to wait for the three-day deadline.
4. Think before signing a waiver. If you sign one, it must be at least three business days before closing.
5. Read it the day it arrives. Check the address, bedrooms, baths, square footage, lot size and condition. Factual mistakes are the easiest thing to get corrected.
6. If there is a problem, put it in writing to your lender, with evidence. Ask about the lender's reconsideration of value process.
7. If a lender refuses to give you a copy, you can submit a complaint to the CFPB.

Why I want you to read it

An appraisal should teach you the market, not only hand you a number. A good report tells you which sales mattered, how your house compares and why the value landed where it did.

That is information most buyers never see anywhere else. Your agent's comps are a sales tool. The online estimate is a guess with good marketing. The appraisal is the one document in your file where someone had to show their work.

Read the comparison grid. Read the comments. If something does not make sense, ask. A good appraiser expects questions.