In an appraisal, the "current value" of a Claremont home is an opinion of market value as of a stated effective date, the date the opinion of value applies to, and for a current assignment that date is usually the day of the inspection. The opinion describes the house and the market on that day. It does not stay current on its own: a later decision needs either a reader who accepts the earlier date or a new assignment with a new one.
This article is part of Claremont home values, measured. What is my Claremont house worth, and how an appraiser answers it explains the method; this piece is about the date that method is anchored to.
What does "current" mean on an appraisal report?
It means the effective date is the present, not the past or the future. Market value, the most probable price a property would bring in an open, competitive sale between informed parties acting without pressure, always belongs to a date, because buyers and sales on one day are not the buyers and sales on another. A report states the date in so many words, and every comparable sale, every adjustment and every observation about the house is tied to it.
That is the main difference between a current appraisal and the number on a property portal. An online estimate is not an appraisal: it is a statistical figure from records and nearby sales, it changes when the model reruns, and no one inspected the house on the day it shows. What an online estimate cannot see covers that side.
The dates printed on a report
An appraisal carries more than one date, and owners often read the wrong one.
Date on the reportWhat it means
Effective date
The date the opinion of value applies to. For a current assignment, usually the inspection date.
Date of the report
The day the report was signed and delivered, a few days after the inspection. It is not the date of the value.
Inspection date
When the appraiser measured and photographed the house. In a current assignment it normally matches the effective date.
Sale dates of the comparables
When each comparable sale closed, all on or before the effective date, with any market change between a sale date and the effective date addressed in the analysis.
If someone asks "how current is this value?", the answer is the effective date, not the signing date.
Current, retrospective and prospective
Most appraisals ordered "to know what the house is worth now" are current. Other purposes set a different date, and the question asked at the scope call is always the same: as of when?
- Current. The effective date is the inspection date. Pre-listing, refinance and most private decisions.
- Retrospective. A retrospective appraisal is an appraisal whose effective date is in the past: a date of death for an estate, a separation date in a divorce, or the lien date for a property tax appeal. See what a date-of-death appraisal is and why a tax appeal's effective date is the lien date.
- Prospective. A prospective appraisal is one whose effective date is in the future, such as when proposed construction is expected to be complete. It rests on stated assumptions about what will exist on that date.
The same house can carry a different opinion on each date. That is not inconsistency; it is the definition of market value working as intended.
What changes between two dates on a Claremont house
Two things move, and a report has to keep them apart.
The market. Sales near the effective date are the evidence. A sale that closed well before it may need a market-conditions adjustment, an amount that accounts for a change in prices between the sale date and the effective date, and that adjustment has to come from sales data in the same pocket, not from a regional headline. Claremont is several markets inside ZIP 91711, so the pocket matters: tract plans north of Foothill repeat, while a Padua Hills custom home has few truly similar sales near any date.
The house. The report describes the property as it was on the effective date. These are the kinds of situations that come in:
- A Village bungalow whose rear addition was finished after the effective date. A current report written later describes the addition; the earlier report did not, and should not.
- A ranch house north of Foothill with a kitchen redone, a roof replaced or a garage converted since the last appraisal. The old report is now describing a different house.
- A house with an ADU permitted and completed after the effective date. Whether and how the unit counts depends on its permit status on the date in question.
How long does a current value stay current?
An appraisal does not expire, because it never claimed to be about any day except its effective date. What changes is whether a reader will accept that date for a new decision, and each reader sets its own rule.
Lenders write theirs down. Fannie Mae's Selling Guide, for the loans it buys, says the property must be appraised within the 12 months before the date of the note and mortgage, and when the effective date of the original report is more than four months but less than 12 months before the note, the appraiser must perform an appraisal update that includes inspecting the exterior of the property and reviewing current market data to determine whether value has declined. The same Guide topic points lenders reporting under UAD 3.6 to a separate policy supplement, so the lender confirms which rule applies to its loan. A court, a CPA or an appeals board each looks at the date its own question requires. Your attorney or CPA decides whether an existing report fits a new use.
Bringing a value forward to a new date is a new assignment, with its own effective date, its own sales and, usually, a new look at the house.
Questions to settle before ordering a current appraisal
- What is the decision? The intended use, what the report will be used for, shapes everything else.
- Who will read it? The intended users, the people entitled to rely on the report, are named on it.
- Is "now" really the right date? If the question is about a death, a separation or a lien date, a current appraisal answers the wrong question.
- What has changed at the house? Permits, plans and dates for additions, remodels and an ADU help the appraiser describe the house as it stands on the effective date.
If you are still deciding whether a report is worth it at all, should I order an appraisal just to know what my Claremont house is worth? takes that question on directly, and why the ZIP code median cannot say explains why a city figure has no effective date for your house at all.
Next step
For a current value ahead of a sale, a pre-listing appraisal sets the effective date at the inspection; the seller and their agent still choose the price. To order one, request an appraisal or call (909) 324-6122. The fee is set by the scope of the assignment and quoted before work begins, it does not depend on the value, and the report is typically three to five business days from the inspection. The Claremont area page describes the pockets the comparable sales come from.
Sources
- Fannie Mae Selling Guide B4-1.2-04, Appraisal Age and Use Requirements, accessed November 6, 2026
- The Appraisal Foundation, Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP), accessed November 6, 2026
- California Bureau of Real Estate Appraisers, license lookup, accessed November 6, 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 does current value mean on a home appraisal?
It means the effective date, the date the opinion of value applies to, is the present, usually the day of the inspection. The opinion describes the house and the market on that date, using comparable sales that closed on or before it.
Is the date of the report the same as the effective date?
No. The date of the report is when the appraiser signed and delivered it, usually a few days after the inspection. The effective date is the date the value applies to, and it is the date to quote when someone asks how current a value is.
How long is a Claremont appraisal good for?
An appraisal does not expire; it always speaks as of its effective date. Each reader decides whether that date fits a new decision. For loans it buys, Fannie Mae's Selling Guide requires the property to be appraised within the 12 months before the note date and requires an appraisal update when the effective date is more than four months before the note; the lender confirms which rule applies to its loan.
Can I use a current appraisal for an estate or a tax appeal?
Usually not. An estate generally needs a value as of the date of death, and a property tax appeal needs a value as of the lien date. Those are retrospective appraisals, appraisals whose effective date is in the past, and a current value answers a different question. Your CPA or attorney decides how a value is used.
