How to make a "new house" look not so good for mortgage appraisal

Our 2nd mortgage company is coming out for a visual inspection of the house interior since we sent them packet with short sale offers - this IS different than appraisal right? Should we make a bad appearance either way?
I have one estimate for replacing the air conditioning unit - do I need more?
Any dirty tips appreciated :evil

Anything you do to “dirty” the house will need to be repaired. So do a cost benefit analysis of your dirty deeds. Include the costs of getting caught.

There’s no real tricks other than turning the place into a real dump. Stop cutting the grass and shrubs, pull up the carpets, yank the gutters off, graffiti adds a nice touch, break windows, haul off the a/c unit and leave the wires bear, etc.

Now what do you have?
Is it really worth it?

I truly doubt it. I’ve always gotten a lot farther with an honest approach to appraisals.

That’s me. You do what you think is right.

I really did not intend for that to come off as I wanted to trash the house :shocked sorry!
We do have a SS pending and any “damage” would have to be repaired.
The AC unit has been slowly breaking down, so we were given an estimate last summer on replacing it.
We are not ripping out anything.
Just thought some minor cosmetic things might make it look not so nice - we did not mow the lawn (not a biggie since we are in a drought, the only green in our lawn is weeds).
I won’t be doing any dishes that day (after cooking fish), or scooping the litterbox - just little things like that. :help
Other houses have been totally stripped in our neighborhood - that is not my style at all. I would rather go to foreclosure and be able to sleep at night :biggrin

remove a trap from under a sink and let the sewer gases come in. It will smell like rotten eggs and if the inspector asks what it is you could will tell him you have a cracked building sewer. probably good for 20k off.

Get a handyman or repair service to go through and give you a quote on fixing everything to bring the house to tip top shape. Include EVERYTHING you can think of. You may want to show it to the appraiser to show him how many items need to be looked at.

It’s also more important to point out the other houses on the block that went to foreclosure or recently sold. Have your realtor run the latest comps and give them to the appraiser too.

I also agree with that smelliness goes a long way towards impressions - and you don’t have to do anything to purposely trash your house. I think frying some fish is a good idea. Interesting smell and a yummy dinner to boot.

Bring some comps with you that support your offer to the bank. Also have a repair estimate done that includes anything and everything that would have to be done to the property… paint, carpet, plumbing, EVERYTHING that you can find. I like the fish idea too. Repair estimates and comps go a long way. You can also bring the p&s agreement that you sent to the lender and a copy of the seller’s hardship letter. Good luck!