Have you noticed someone taking pictures of your house or maybe your neighbors? Don’t be alarmed. What most people don’t know is that it is probably an appraiser. Many appraisers work for themselves and look like a regular person in front of your house, in a regular car, taking a photo. When appraising a residential property, one of the main ways appraisers develop an opinion of value is by comparing to other homes that have recently sold or are currently listed for sale. In a typical refinance or purchase transaction, the form we use states that we have inspected the neighborhood and each of the comparable sales from at least the street. The best way we can prove we have examined a comparable sale is by taking a photograph of the home. More importantly, banks require original photographs of comparable sales. So if you have bought your home within the last year and someone is taking a photo of it, you can bet it is just an appraiser.