Appraisal services for Burlington and Des Moines County homeowners

Here are the top seven reasons why IA homeowners hire Koestner & Associates:

Find the right listing price (whether they're selling the home on their own or using an agent)
Challenge a property tax assessment
To cut their monthly mortgage payment by removing PMI
To reinstate their Home Equity Line of Credit (HELOC)
To review another appraiser's report for verification
In the case of a IA divorce, where real estate needs to be divided
To settle an estate in IA by determining the true market value of property in question

Need help deciding the value of your house in or near Burlington, IA?
Contact Koestner & Associates.

We at Koestner & Associates understand the particular needs of a customer after appraisal services. While our usual clients understand the appraisal process and standard reporting formats, you as a consumer will get extra customer service in the form of an explanation of the process and even special consumer-friendly reporting forms if the assignment allows for them.

For-Sale-By-Owner (FSBO) / Pre-Listing Services

Since you have an emotional attachment to your house, it's often very hard to be objective about it. The professional appraisers at Koestner & Associates will tell you what you need to know -- not just what you want to hear. We are objective. In addition to helping you set a realistic price to sell at so your property will attract interested buyers, a professional appraisal is a very valuable negotiating tool once you have a potential buyer. It gives you something concrete to show your buyer. The appraisal is an independent third party's opinion of your home's value, not just how much your house is worth. Potential buyers assume that you have an emotional attachment to your house and will be much more likely to give credibility to a qualified appraiser's value opinion than yours.

Need to cancel PMI?

Getting the PMI (Private Mortgage Insurance) eliminated from your mortgage loan is a popular way to cut costs for homeowners. Once your mortgage loan amount is below 80% of the value of your home, in most cases you can apply to a lender to have the PMI removed from your loan, which will make your monthly payments go down. We're seasoned in helping homeowners just like you remove unwanted PMI insurance.

Challenging Des Moines county's assessment of your property

If you live in a local area that is declining or is not appreciating as much as other properties nearby, your local tax assessor may have your house overvalued. This only means you are paying higher taxes than you should be paying. Since your property assessment may likely go up again in the next period, the quicker you take care of things like this, the better off you'll be. Getting an expert appraisal from Koestner & Associates is your #1 weapon when contesting your property tax assessment.

Was your HELOC recently frozen?

If your property is in or near a declining area, your lender might make the decision to automatically freeze your home equity line of credit (HELOC) - even if your specific property has not declined in value. This can this be troublesome from a cash flow angle, and harmful to your credit score since it may appear as though that credit line is maxed out. Koestner & Associates can help you reinstate your home equity line of credit with an expert appraisal.

Need Field and Desktop Appraisal Review Services?

Do you need a veteran appraiser to double-check your appraisal for preciseness, or do you need a second opinion without the added expense and delay of waiting for a whole new appraisal? Koestner & Associates offers field reviews where we'll go out and check the subject and comparables in question. If you need it ASAP, we'll provide you with a desk review and verify as many facts as we can using online data sources as well as our own files.

We can also provide you with a a retrospective review of any appraisal report you may have had in the past. While usually requested by banks, you may want to employ this service if you suspect mortgage fraud related to your property.