By Eric Berman, REALTOR® | The Eric Berman Team at Compass
TL;DR:
You can't influence an appraiser, and you shouldn't try. What you can do is make sure the appraiser is working from complete and accurate facts, which in Manhasset matters more than in most markets. Three things do most of the work: a documented list of improvements with years attached, a clear answer on how much of the house is legally permitted living space, and comparable sales that reflect the specific part of Manhasset the home sits in. After that, a clean, accessible house and a seller who stays out of the way.
What the Appraiser Is Actually Doing
When a buyer finances a purchase, the lender orders an appraisal from an independent licensed appraiser to confirm the property supports the loan. The appraiser isn't working for the seller, the buyer, or either agent, and federal rules on appraiser independence exist specifically to keep it that way.
What the appraiser produces is an opinion of market value built from three things: recent comparable sales, the property's condition and features, and its gross living area. Most of that comes from records and from the site visit. Where the process goes wrong for sellers, it's usually because something relevant wasn't visible — an improvement the appraiser didn't know about, a comp that didn't reflect the home's actual sub-market, or square footage that turned out not to count.
That's the useful frame for preparation. The goal isn't a higher number. It's an accurate one, built on everything that's actually true about the house.
The Improvements List
This is the most valuable single thing a seller can prepare, and it takes an afternoon.
A one-page summary of meaningful work done on the home, each item with the year it was completed and, where it applies, whether it was permitted. A renovated kitchen or bath, a roof, windows, heating and cooling systems, electrical updates, an addition, a finished basement, drainage or foundation work. Appraisers see condition on the day of the visit; they can't see that a roof is four years old or that the electrical service was upgraded, and those facts affect how the home compares against others that look similar.
Receipts and permits behind the list help, and they serve a second purpose worth noting: capital improvements add to cost basis and reduce taxable gain, so the same records that support the appraisal support the seller's tax position. The full treatment of how gain is calculated covers that side.
The list typically goes to the appraiser through the listing agent. Keep it factual — what was done, when, and what it cost where you know. A list that argues for a value reads differently from one that simply documents.
Legal Square Footage in a Village Market
This is the Manhasset-specific issue, and it catches sellers who have added space over the years.
Appraisers measure gross living area, and space that isn't legally permitted — a finished basement without sign-off, an enclosed porch, an addition that never closed out — may be excluded from it or treated differently. A seller who thinks of the house as 3,400 square feet and an appraiser who counts 2,900 legally permitted feet will arrive at different values for reasons that have nothing to do with the market.
Manhasset makes this more involved than most places because the area spans several jurisdictions. Munsey Park, Plandome, Plandome Heights, Plandome Manor, Flower Hill, and North Hills are incorporated villages with their own building departments, alongside unincorporated areas under the Town of North Hempstead. Which office holds the record depends on the address.
The practical step is to call the governing building department well before listing and confirm what's on file. If something is open, resolving it takes weeks, and it helps the appraisal, the buyer's municipal search, and the negotiation all at once. The picture of how permit issues resolve covers what each type involves.
Comparable Sales in a Fragmented Market
Manhasset doesn't behave as one market. Village by village and street by street, lot sizes, housing stock, and price points differ enough that a comp from one part of the area can mislead when applied to another. At upper price points the pool of genuinely similar recent sales can also be thin, which means larger adjustments and more room for honest disagreement.
Appraisers select their own comps. What's appropriate is making sure relevant recent sales are known — the listing agent can provide factual information about comparable closed sales in the home's specific sub-market through the proper channel, and the appraiser decides what to use. What isn't appropriate is pressing for a particular value, describing bidding activity to push a number, or characterizing the neighborhood's desirability in an effort to move the result. The line is simple: facts are fine, pressure isn't.
Where the comp set is genuinely thin, some sellers commission their own appraisal before listing, which gives them an independent read on value and something documented to reference if the buyer's appraisal comes in differently. The treatment of pre-listing appraisals covers when that's worth the cost.
The Visit Itself
The practical preparation is modest. Make sure every area is accessible — basement, attic, utility rooms, garage — since an appraiser who can't see a space can't credit it. Turn on lights and open blinds. Secure pets. Address small visible maintenance items like a dripping faucet or a cracked tile, which don't change value much on their own but shape the overall impression of how the house has been cared for.
Then stay out of the way. Sellers are generally best not present during the visit, and if they are, the conversation should be limited to answering direct questions. The improvements list and comps have already said what needs saying.
Cosmetic work done specifically for the appraisal rarely moves the number much. Condition matters, but it's assessed against the comps, and a fresh coat of paint doesn't change which homes the property is compared with.
If It Comes In Low
It happens, particularly where comps are thin, and it doesn't automatically end a deal. The usual paths are a Reconsideration of Value supported by specific factual evidence the appraiser may have missed, renegotiation between buyer and seller, or the buyer covering some or all of the gap in cash. The full treatment of appraisal gaps walks through each, including how the contract's contingency language shapes what happens next.
Preparation is mostly about making that conversation unnecessary — or, if it happens, making sure the facts needed for a reconsideration are already assembled.
A Worked Example
Consider a composite case — a Manhasset seller under contract at $1,850,000 on a colonial expanded twice over thirty years.
Before listing, a call to the village building department showed that one of the two additions had never been signed off. Resolving it took about seven weeks. Had it stayed open, the appraiser could have excluded several hundred square feet from gross living area, which on its own would likely have produced a gap.
The seller also put together an improvements list — a 2019 roof, a 2016 kitchen, replaced windows, upgraded electrical service — with years and permit references. The listing agent provided it to the appraiser along with three recent closed sales from the same part of the village.
The appraisal came in at contract price. Nothing about it was argued; the facts were simply there.
Where to Start
Call the building department that governs the address and confirm what's on file, then resolve anything open before listing. Assemble the improvements list with years and permits. Gather the receipts behind it, which also help at tax time. Make sure every part of the house is accessible on the day. If the home sits at a price point where comparable sales are scarce, consider whether a pre-listing appraisal is worth the cost. Sellers wanting a starting read on value can begin with a quiet look at current figures.
The Honest Bottom Line
Appraisal preparation isn't about influence. It's about making sure an independent professional has the complete and accurate picture — every improvement documented, every square foot legally accounted for, and the right comparable sales in view.
In Manhasset the second of those does the most work, because the area's village jurisdictions and decades of additions mean legal and total square footage often differ. That's a phone call and a few weeks, done before listing. For anyone working through a specific property, with no pressure attached, that conversation is available whenever the timing suits.
This is general information, not appraisal or legal advice. Appraisal methods, gross living area standards, and permit requirements vary by property and jurisdiction. Consult the governing building department and a licensed New York real estate attorney about your circumstances.
FAQs
Can I influence my home's appraisal?
No, and you shouldn't try. The appraiser is independent and works for the lender's purposes, and federal appraiser independence rules exist to keep appraisals free of pressure from anyone with a stake in the outcome. What a seller can do is make sure the appraiser has accurate facts — a documented list of improvements, clarity on legally permitted square footage, and relevant comparable sales provided through the proper channel. Facts are appropriate; pressure toward a number isn't.
What should I give the appraiser?
Primarily a one-page list of meaningful improvements, each with the year completed and whether it was permitted — kitchen or bath work, roof, windows, heating and cooling, electrical, additions, a finished basement. Appraisers see condition on the day of the visit but can't see that a roof is four years old or that the electrical service was upgraded. The list typically goes through the listing agent. Keep it factual rather than argumentative.
Does unpermitted space count in an appraisal?
It may not. Appraisers measure gross living area, and space that isn't legally permitted — a finished basement without sign-off, an enclosed porch, an addition that never closed out — may be excluded or treated differently. That can produce a gap between what a seller considers the home's size and what the appraiser credits. In Manhasset, where several villages and the Town of North Hempstead each keep their own records, call the governing building department before listing and resolve anything open.
Does painting or updating help an appraisal?
Less than sellers expect. Condition matters, but it's assessed against comparable sales, and cosmetic work done specifically for the appraisal rarely changes which homes the property is compared with or moves the number much. Small visible maintenance items are worth fixing because they shape the overall impression of care. Documenting real improvements with years attached does considerably more than last-minute cosmetics.
What happens if the appraisal comes in low?
It doesn't automatically end the deal. The usual paths are a Reconsideration of Value supported by specific factual evidence the appraiser may have missed, renegotiation of price between buyer and seller, or the buyer covering some or all of the gap in cash. How it plays out depends partly on the contract's contingency language. Good preparation helps either way — it either prevents the gap or means the evidence for a reconsideration is already assembled.
By Eric Berman, REALTOR® | The Eric Berman Team at Compass
Eric Berman | Long Island & Queens Associate Broker | Compass
1468 Northern Blvd, Manhasset, NY 11030
(917) 225-8596 | eric@ericbermanre.com | theericbermanteam.com
