Julia Pickslay

Hi Ben. You should not be home when the appraiser comes. If you need to let him in, then just step away while he/she is working. They will need to take pictures of everything as well. If they have any questions to clarify anything they see, they can ask you but really you should not be home. I do highly recommend that your listing agent be onsite and available to the appraiser. It's ultimately their job to defend the purchase price. Best of luck to you!

Yes you need to sign a buyer rep agreement to see a home BUT you have so many options. You can sign it for a single day of the showing, or even a single property. You can sign it for just an area or neighborhood. You can also cancel it at any time. This is such a great question. I'm so happy you asked it as you have options. Ask to read it first then you can choose what you want to agree to. If the agent does a good job and you find them qualified and helpful then you can sign a new agreement for up to 3 months. Best of luck to you!

Yep but your spouse will have to sign a quit claim. There might be tax implications so definitely discuss with your accountant or tax professional. Best of luck!

You do not need a pre-approval to find an agent or even to start looking at homes but depending on your market, you might need to have it in hand to get an offer in quickly. Also, mortgage calculators don't tell the whole story and it would be helpful to at least have a pre-qualification to give you the best idea of your affordability.