Hi David,

I have not heard of that either. If they are doing just a pre-qualification, asking for a depoisit does not make sense. They should be doing a pre-approval and even with that banks don't ask for an appraisal deposit.
We can help you with your pre approval process if you want to call us at 510-279-9580 and ask for Jasbir.

Meena Gujral
Help-U-Sell Achievers Realty
510-279-9580

David:

You hear something new every day. A bank asking for an Appraisal Fee Deposit. This is something new to me. The now defunct Sub-prime mortgage mills maybe, but a bank?

Per my lenders, processing pre-qualifications for serious buyers is part of their marketing. Not one of them asks for a penny up front when pre-qualifying buyers. Although I am located in So Cal, if you would like a lender referral from this area or for my wonderful lender in Sacramento (who I use even down here), please contact me directly. You should be able to shop your loan, if you feel the need, and not have to pay up front for it. Dare to Dream.

Shel-lee Davis
Real Estate Consultant
RE/MAX Palos Verdes Realty

David:

I am not a loan expert but my husband is so I asked him. His answer was NO, ITS NOT SOMETHING YOU NORMALLY SEE UNLESS - the property is highly unusal the lender wants to make sure it will appraise at a value necessary for the loan.

Typically you would receive a Pre-Qualification which has a condition requiring any subject property to appraise to value.

If you'd like to direct your questions to an expert - I would like to refer to this website: http://www.LDavisHomeLoans.com

Good Luck