My recent appraisal was a partial factor in killing my refinance (or at least this round, we’re trying again in a couple months)…I have my concerns about the legitimacy of the appraisal, given that the appraiser was willing to go below industry standards for SF size of comparable sales. (He made adjustments but no adjustments can make up for the cost differences between 720SF & 1005SF, and he neglected to use a very recent sales comp that was the exact same size as our unit, instead opting to stick with older & smaller sales.) My appraiser also said “I have an idea of where the bank needs me to be” which I found to be foul…and not on the up & up since there are now strict regulations re: banks talking numbers with appraisers.

Any advice re: what I can do in my next round of refinancing attempts to make the appraisal process go a bit smoother? What options are there for fishy-sounding appraisals?