This is for veterans, service members, and surviving spouses who are under contract, or about to be, with a VA loan. It will not promise a closing date. Your lender and your purchase contract set those, and every market moves at its own pace.
Step 1: The lender orders the appraisal
Your lender orders a VA appraisal through VA's online system. Under the VA Lenders Handbook, an appraisal can be requested only after a Certificate of Eligibility (COE) has been requested. In most cases VA then assigns an appraiser from its fee panel on its own. You and your lender do not pick the appraiser.
So the first thing that can slow the timeline happens before any appraiser is involved. If your COE request has not gone in, the order waits. Ask your lender on day one whether the COE is requested and whether the appraisal is ordered.
Step 2: The appraiser schedules a visit
Once assigned, the appraiser has two business days to reach out and set up an appointment. The lender is expected to give the appraiser contact details for the person who will let them into the home, so the appraiser does not have to chase anyone.
This is where small gaps turn into lost days. A listing agent who is out of town, a tenant who has not been told, or a lockbox code no one shared can each push the visit back.
Step 3: The appraiser completes the report
VA sets a timeliness standard for each area, based on how long similar conventional appraisals usually take there. VA posts those standards on its appraisal fees and timeliness page. The count starts the first business day after the assignment. Weekends and federal holidays do not count.
Two things can stretch this step. First, VA can temporarily extend the timeliness standard in markets where demand for appraisals is high. Second, if the appraiser cannot get inside the home and notes that delay in VA's system, the report is due no later than three business days after the appointment, even if that runs past the area standard.
Step 4: A possible pause if value looks low
Before finishing a purchase appraisal, the appraiser must tell the requester if the value looks like it will come in below the sales price. Under VA's appraisal policy bulletin, the appraiser then allows two business days for the requester, or people they reach out to, to send more sales data. VA calls this the Tidewater procedure.
This pause can add a couple of days, but it is also your best chance to support the price before the report is final. Ask your agent to have recent nearby sales ready. We cover what to send in VA Tidewater appraisal checks.
Step 5: Review and the Notice of Value
The finished report is uploaded to VA's system and scored electronically. Then a Staff Appraisal Reviewer at the lender, or VA staff, reviews it and issues the Notice of Value (NOV) to you. VA's reviewer training sets the expectation that the reviewer issues the NOV within five business days, again not counting weekends or holidays.
The NOV tells you the value and lists any conditions that must be met for VA to guarantee the loan. It also explains that an appraisal is not a home inspection and suggests you may want one.
What tends to slow a VA appraisal down
These are the common places a VA appraisal can lose time:
- The COE has not been requested, so the order cannot be placed.
- No one gave the appraiser a working contact for access to the home.
- The home is vacant, tenant-occupied, or the seller is hard to reach.
- The area has an extended timeliness standard because demand is high.
- The value looks low and the Tidewater window opens.
- The NOV lists repairs that have to be handled before closing.
- A request to reconsider the value is filed after the NOV.
Only a few of these are in your hands, but you can ask about each one early.
Repairs on the Notice of Value
If the appraiser notes repairs needed for the home to meet VA's Minimum Property Requirements, they show on the NOV as conditions. Conditions on the NOV have to be met for VA to guarantee the loan, so repairs can add more time than the appraisal itself.
There is another path. The same VA bulletin says a veteran may ask to waive repairs listed on the NOV, with the lender's agreement, as long as the home is still livable from a safety, structural soundness, and sanitation standpoint. Ask your lender early whether a waiver is even an option on your file, and whether a repair inspection would be needed if the seller makes the fixes.
If you ask VA to reconsider the value
After the NOV is issued, you can ask for a reconsideration of value in writing. VA staff review the request within five business days. In some cases VA does a field review, which the handbook says is completed within 20 business days. If VA agrees the value should go up, it issues an amended NOV.
That means a reconsideration can add up to several weeks in the slower case. Check your contract dates before you file, and talk with your agent about whether an extension is needed. If the value stays low, your contract's protections matter. See VA escape clause checks for how that works.
What to ask your lender
Bring these to your next call:
- Has my COE been requested, and has the appraisal been ordered?
- Who did you list as the contact for access to the home?
- What is the timeliness standard for this area right now?
- If value looks low, who on our side will send sales data, and how fast?
- If the NOV lists repairs, who handles them and is a repair inspection needed?
- How do the appraisal steps line up with the dates in my purchase contract?
If you are still deciding between loan types, start with VA loan vs FHA loan. For the bigger picture on appraisals and deals, see do VA appraisals kill deals?
FAQ
Does a VA appraisal take longer than a conventional one?
Not by design. VA bases its timeliness standards on how long similar conventional appraisals take in the same area, and it watches those times closely. When a VA appraisal runs long, look first at access, a low value, or repairs.
Can I pick my own VA appraiser?
Generally, no. In most cases VA assigns an appraiser from its fee panel when the lender places the order.
Do weekends count toward the deadlines?
No. The appraiser's timeliness count and the five-business-day NOV expectation both leave out weekends and federal holidays.
Is the NOV the same as a home inspection?
No. The NOV reports the appraised value and any conditions for the loan guaranty. It does not replace a home inspection, and the NOV itself suggests you may want one.
One thing to do
Today, ask your lender to confirm the COE request and the appraisal order, and send them the name and phone number of the person who will give the appraiser access. If you are starting a VA purchase, get in touch here.
Disclaimer: Jeff Shin, Mortgage Loan Originator, NMLS #1041652. Chicago. Equal Housing Lender. Not a commitment to lend.
Sources: VA, Lenders Handbook (VA Pamphlet 26-7), Chapter 10, Appraisal Process; VA, "VA Appraisal Fee Schedules and Timeliness Requirements"; VA Veterans Benefits Administration, "VA Appraisal Policies" bulletin; VA, 2023 Loan Guaranty Conference SAR Training; BankPricer, "VA Tidewater appraisal checks"; BankPricer, "VA escape clause checks"; BankPricer, "VA loan vs FHA loan"; BankPricer, "Do VA appraisals kill deals?"