When reconciling adjusted comparable-sale indications, which consideration best supports assigning weight?
Correct Answer
A) Overall comparability, verification and market support for the adjustments.
Gross adjustment amount is not the controlling measure of reliability. Consider overall comparability, verification and market support. Fannie Mae expressly states that adjustment number or amount must not be the sole determinant of comparable acceptability; there is no automatic gross-adjustment cutoff.
Why This Is the Correct Answer
Option A is correct because overall comparability, verification and market support for the adjustments determine how reliable each adjusted indication is. Adjustments should be evaluated and the greatest weight given to the sales closest in comparability to the subject. The number or size of adjustments alone does not decide acceptability, and there is no automatic gross-adjustment cutoff.
Why the Other Options Are Wrong
Option B: The order in which the appraiser inspected the sales.
Option B, the order in which the appraiser inspected the sales, is wrong because inspection sequence has nothing to do with how comparable or well supported a sale is.
Option C: The number of adjustments made to each sale, without considering their market support.
Option C, the number of adjustments made to each sale without considering market support, is wrong because a count of adjustments ignores whether those adjustments are justified. A sale with several small, well-supported adjustments can be more reliable than one with a single large, unsupported adjustment.
Option D: The proximity of a sale’s result to the client’s target.
Option D, the proximity of a sale's result to the client's target, is wrong because weighting toward a client's desired figure compromises impartiality and credibility.
Support beats adjustment count
Judge an adjusted sale by how comparable and well supported it is, not by how many adjustments it needed.
How to use: Use this when a question asks what supports weighting adjusted comparable sales.
Exam Tip
Prefer answers that combine comparability, verification and adjustment support. Answers that rely on adjustment counts alone or on client goals are distractors.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- -Weighting sales by the number of adjustments alone
- -Applying a fixed gross-adjustment cutoff
- -Favoring the sale closest to the client's target
Concept Deep Dive
Analysis
This question tests how to assign weight among adjusted comparable sales. The reliable guide is the overall comparability of each sale, whether the sale was verified, and how well the adjustments are supported by the market. Counting adjustments or looking at inspection order does not measure reliability.
Background Knowledge
In sales comparison reconciliation, appraisers weigh indications by similarity to the subject, the reliability of the transaction data and the support for each adjustment. Adjustment totals are useful flags but are not controlling measures of reliability.
Real-World Application
An appraiser compares a sale needing four small, paired-sale-supported adjustments with another needing one large, poorly supported condition adjustment. The appraiser gives more weight to the first sale and explains that its adjustments are better supported by market evidence.
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