If the appraisal is low, the lender generally bases the loan on the appraised value rather than on the contract price or the figure you hoped for, so a gap opens that someone has to resolve. On a Claremont purchase, the usual options are to renegotiate the price, cover the difference in cash, ask the lender for a reconsideration of value, or step away if the contract allows it. On a refinance there is no price to renegotiate, so the options narrow to a reconsideration of value, a different loan amount, or waiting. The appraiser's part ends with the report; the lender, the buyer and the seller decide what happens next.
This article sets out those options in order, explains what changes between a purchase and a refinance, and covers why low reports in Claremont so often come back to comparable selection. Every route described here is collected in the low appraisals, reviews and second opinions hub.
What happens first?
You get the report. For a loan secured by a first lien on a dwelling, federal rules at 12 CFR 1002.14 require the lender to give the applicant a copy of every appraisal and written valuation developed for the application. For loans sold to Fannie Mae, the lender must also give the borrower a disclosure explaining its reconsideration of value process when the report is provided.
Read the whole report, not the summary page: the sketch, the photographs, the comparable sales grid and the addenda. Most of what matters later, whether you renegotiate, pay the difference or ask the lender to look again, depends on whether the report holds facts you can check. What a reviewer checks first on an appraisal report gives the order to read it in.
What are the options on a purchase?
- Renegotiate the price. The buyer and seller can agree on a new price. The appraisal is one input to that conversation, not a ruling on it.
- Cover the difference in cash. A buyer who can bring more funds to closing may choose to pay the gap between the price and the appraised value. Lender explanations such as Chase's describe this as one of the standard choices.
- Ask for a reconsideration of value. A reconsideration of value, or ROV, is a request from the lender to the appraiser to reassess the report based on potential deficiencies or other information that may affect the value conclusion. It fits when the report contains factual errors or missed closed sales, and it is explained step by step in how to challenge a home appraisal through the lender.
- Step away, if the contract allows it. An appraisal contingency, a contract term that lets a buyer cancel or renegotiate when the appraisal comes in below the price, may give you that choice. Whether your contract has one, and on what terms, is a question for your agent or attorney. Nothing here is legal advice.
Whether the lender orders a second appraisal is the lender's decision, not the buyer's.
What changes on a refinance?
A refinance has no contract price, so there is no seller to renegotiate with. The appraised value sets the loan-to-value ratio, the loan amount divided by the value, and a lower value raises that ratio. What that means for the terms, or for whether the refinance goes ahead, is the lender's decision, and lenders set their own rules.
The options are fewer. If the report has errors, the ROV route is the same as on a purchase. If it does not, a borrower can ask the lender about a different loan amount, or wait. A later appraisal carries a later effective date, the date the opinion of value applies to, so it reflects the house and the market as they are then, not as they were.
PurchaseRefinance
Contract price to compare
Yes
No
Who closes the gap
Buyer and seller, by price or cash
Borrower and lender, by loan amount or timing
Reconsideration of value
Through the lender, when there is evidence
Through the lender, when there is evidence
Contract contingency
Possibly; check the contract
Not applicable
Who decides the outcome
Lender, buyer and seller
Lender and borrower
Why do low appraisals in Claremont come back to comparables?
One ZIP code, 91711, holds several markets, and a low report here very often turns on which of them the comparable sales came from. These are the kinds of files that come in:
- A purchase near the Village. A pre-1940 Craftsman or Spanish Colonial Revival house along College Avenue or Indian Hill Boulevard, valued with postwar ranch houses from north of Foothill matched on bedroom count.
- A refinance north of Foothill. A postwar ranch house toward Base Line Road, valued with tract sales from across Mills Avenue in Montclair or Upland, in San Bernardino County, with no location adjustment.
- A hillside or preserve-edge home. A house in Claraboya, Padua Hills, or Northeast Claremont beside the Stone Canyon Preserve and the Wilderness Park, where homes sell on view, grade and setting, valued with flat lots below.
- A detached house compared with attached stock. Townhomes or condominiums south of the 10 used for a detached house elsewhere in the city.
Not every low appraisal has an error in it. A report can use the right sales, explain its adjustments and still come in below the price, and a disagreement with the number is not an error by itself. The Claremont area page describes these pockets in more detail.
Where does the appraiser's role end?
The appraiser delivers an independent opinion of market value as of the effective date and explains it. Appraiser independence, the rule that a valuation must rest on the appraiser's own judgment and not on pressure from anyone with an interest in the loan, is written into federal lending rules at 12 CFR 1026.42. That is why questions about a lender's appraisal go through the lender, and why what to put in a request is a matter of evidence, covered in what a lender considers in a reconsideration of value.
An automated estimate such as a Zestimate is not an appraisal, and neither is an agent's CMA or the county's assessed value; none of them counts as evidence that a report is wrong. Closed sales and corrected facts do.
Outside the loan file, two other assignments exist: an appraisal review, in which another appraiser examines the existing report for support and compliance, and a new appraisal, which develops its own opinion. The pillar, how to challenge a low appraisal: review vs. new appraisal, explains when each fits. Either can conclude the original report was supported.
If you want an independent look at the report before deciding between renegotiating, paying the difference or asking the lender to reconsider, send it through appraisal review and second opinion or call (909) 324-6122. The fee is set by the scope of the assignment and quoted before work begins, and it does not depend on the value.
Sources
- Chase, how to dispute a low home appraisal: https://www.chase.com/personal/mortgage/education/financing-a-home/how-to-dispute-a-low-home-appraisal (accessed October 30, 2026)
- Fannie Mae Selling Guide B4-1.3-12, Appraisal Quality Matters: https://selling-guide.fanniemae.com/sel/b4-1.3-12/appraisal-quality-matters (accessed October 30, 2026)
- Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, SR 24-3 / CA 24-4, Interagency Guidance on Reconsiderations of Value of Residential Real Estate Valuations: https://www.federalreserve.gov/supervisionreg/srletters/SR2403.htm (accessed October 30, 2026)
- Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Regulation B, 12 CFR 1002.14, Rules on providing appraisals and other valuations: https://www.consumerfinance.gov/rules-policy/regulations/1002/14/ (accessed October 30, 2026)
- Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Regulation Z, 12 CFR 1026.42, Valuation independence: https://www.consumerfinance.gov/rules-policy/regulations/1026/42/ (accessed October 30, 2026)
- Claremont, California (Los Angeles County; borders Upland and Montclair): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Claremont,_California (accessed October 30, 2026)
Gordon Hall, California Certified Residential Real Estate Appraiser, BREA No. AR003877 (lookup: https://www2.brea.ca.gov/breasearch/faces/party/view.xhtml?id=23601). Reports are prepared in conformity with the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP). Nothing here is legal or tax advice; admissibility is always the court's decision.
Frequently asked questions
What happens if the appraisal is lower than the purchase price?
The lender generally bases the loan on the appraised value, so a gap opens between the price and what the loan covers. The buyer and seller can renegotiate, the buyer can cover the difference in cash, the buyer can ask the lender for a reconsideration of value if the report has errors or missed sales, or the buyer may be able to cancel if the contract has an appraisal contingency.
What can I do if my refinance appraisal is low?
A refinance has no contract price, so the options are a reconsideration of value through the lender if the report contains errors or missed closed sales, a different loan amount, or waiting and ordering a later appraisal. How a lower value affects the loan terms is the lender's decision.
Can I ask the appraiser to change a low appraisal?
Not directly for a lender appraisal. Federal rules protect appraiser independence, so requests go through the lender as a reconsideration of value, which asks the appraiser to consider specific evidence, explain a conclusion or correct errors. It is not a request for a particular number.
Does a low appraisal mean the appraiser made a mistake?
No. A report can use appropriate comparable sales, support its adjustments and still come in below the contract price. A disagreement with the number is not an error by itself; an error is a specific fact, sale or adjustment the report cannot support.
