You can waive a mortgage appraisal if your conventional loan qualifies for what Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac call value acceptance, an automated decision that lets the lender confirm the home’s value from existing property data instead of sending an appraiser to the house. Fannie Mae retired the older term “appraisal waiver” in September 2025, but the concept is the same, and lenders and borrowers still use both names.1Fannie Mae. FAQs: Property Valuation Whether you get the offer depends on the loan type, the property, your equity, and how much historical data exists for the address.
How the Decision Gets Made
You do not apply for a waiver. When your lender submits your file through an automated underwriting system, Fannie Mae’s Desktop Underwriter or Freddie Mac’s Loan Product Advisor, the system compares the property address, sales price or estimated value, and your financial details against historical valuation records and risk variables.2Federal Housing Finance Agency Office of Inspector General. An Overview of Enterprise Appraisal Waivers Within moments, a findings report either offers value acceptance or requires a traditional appraisal.
The system generally needs to find a prior appraisal for the property in Fannie Mae’s Collateral Underwriter database. If the address has never been appraised, or has not been appraised recently, the system will require a new in-person appraisal no matter how strong the rest of your application looks.3Fannie Mae. Value Acceptance
When You Can Qualify
Value acceptance is only available on conventional loans sold to Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. Beyond that, the main gates are your equity position and the type of home.
Loan-to-Value Limits
For a purchase, Fannie Mae offers value acceptance on principal residences and second homes with a loan-to-value ratio up to 90%, meaning a down payment as low as 10%. Limited cash-out refinances, often called rate-and-term refinances, also qualify up to 90% LTV for principal residences and second homes. Investment properties are eligible for limited cash-out refinances up to 75% LTV but cannot receive value acceptance on purchase transactions.4Fannie Mae. Value Acceptance
A strong credit profile improves your odds, though neither Fannie Mae nor Freddie Mac publishes a specific credit-score cutoff. The system weighs your full picture: credit history, debt-to-income ratio, reserves, and the property’s data history.
Property Rules
Only single-unit properties qualify. For purchases, the home must be a principal residence or a second home. The property must be valued below $1,000,000 based on the purchase price or the estimated value submitted to the system.3Fannie Mae. Value Acceptance
When You Can’t Skip It
A long list of loans and properties is excluded outright, no matter how much equity you have or how good your credit is:
- Duplexes, triplexes, and four-unit buildings
- Manufactured homes and co-op units
- Construction and construction-to-permanent loans
- HomeStyle Renovation and HomeStyle Refresh loans
- Leasehold properties and community land trusts with resale price restrictions
- Homes valued at $1,000,000 or more
- Transactions that involve a gift of equity from a family member
Standard cash-out refinances are also ineligible for value acceptance on Fannie Mae loans.4Fannie Mae. Value Acceptance
Government-Backed Loans
FHA, VA, and USDA loans almost always require a full in-person appraisal. These agencies use the appraisal to verify not just market value but also that the home meets minimum safety and habitability standards. USDA guidelines, for example, require an appraiser to use standard residential appraisal forms and the lender to verify the property is free of health and safety hazards.5Rural Development – USDA. HB-1-3555, Chapters 12 and 13 – Property and Appraisal Requirements If you are using an FHA, VA, or USDA loan, plan on a traditional appraisal.
The Middle Option: Value Acceptance Plus Property Data
If your loan does not receive a straight waiver, there is a hybrid alternative. Fannie Mae calls it value acceptance + property data; Freddie Mac calls it ACE + PDR. Both skip the licensed appraiser but require a trained data collector to visit the home.6Fannie Mae. Value Acceptance + Property Data7Freddie Mac Single-Family. ACE+ PDR
The collector observes the interior and exterior, takes photos, and produces a floor plan meeting ANSI measurement standards. The data goes to Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac before closing. The collector does not give a value opinion; the automated system still does that. The visit just confirms the home’s physical condition and layout match what the database expects.6Fannie Mae. Value Acceptance + Property Data
Eligibility runs broader than the straight waiver. On Fannie Mae loans, purchase transactions qualify at LTV ratios up to 97%, and up to 105% combined LTV with Community Seconds.4Fannie Mae. Value Acceptance Freddie Mac’s version allows cash-out refinances on primary residences up to 70% LTV and second homes up to 60% LTV.7Freddie Mac Single-Family. ACE+ PDR Collectors need not be licensed appraisers, but they must complete Uniform Property Dataset training, pass an annual background check, and have no financial interest in the transaction.8Freddie Mac Single-Family. Property Data Collection: An Overview The visit typically costs less than half the price of a full appraisal.
What You Give Up
Waiving the appraisal saves time and money, but it strips away a layer of protection worth understanding before you take the offer.
You Could Overpay
A traditional appraisal gives you an independent professional opinion of market value based on a physical inspection and comparable sales. Without one, you are relying on an algorithm that cannot see deferred maintenance, poor-quality renovations, or neighborhood changes. If the model overshoots, you could borrow more than the home is actually worth, which turns painful if prices dip or you need to sell quickly.
Nobody Looks at the House
An appraiser’s on-site visit is not a home inspection, but it does catch obvious issues like cracked foundations, water damage, or a failing roof. With value acceptance, no one with real estate valuation training sets foot inside unless you separately hire a home inspector. Fannie Mae’s guidelines still require the lender to represent that the property has no safety, soundness, or structural integrity problems, but in practice that warranty rests on data rather than observation.6Fannie Mae. Value Acceptance + Property Data
You Lose Negotiating Leverage
When a traditional appraisal comes in below the agreed price, you have concrete grounds to renegotiate with the seller. Without one, that leverage is gone. If you have also waived the appraisal contingency in your purchase contract, which is a separate decision from the lender’s value acceptance, you may be on the hook for any gap between the loan amount and the purchase price.
You Can Turn It Down
A value acceptance offer is just an offer. You are not required to accept it, and neither is your lender. If you want the added protection, ask your lender to decline the offer and order a traditional appraisal. Lenders also apply their own overlays and may order an appraisal even when the system does not require one, particularly on higher-value homes or in fast-moving markets.
In a competitive market, skipping the appraisal can shave one to three weeks off closing. Weigh that against the protective value of having a professional inspect and value the property before you commit.
How Long the Offer Lasts
A value acceptance offer expires if it is more than four months old on the date of the note and mortgage.3Fannie Mae. Value Acceptance If closing gets delayed past that window, the lender has to resubmit the loan, and the second run may not produce the same result. Market conditions, updated comparable sales, or shifts in your finances could cause the system to require a traditional appraisal the second time around.
For the hybrid option, the property data collection visit is valid for 12 months from the date it was performed, but must take place before the note date.6Fannie Mae. Value Acceptance + Property Data Any change to the loan amount, property type, or occupancy status after submission can also void the offer, so tell your lender if anything about the transaction shifts.
Waiving the Appraisal Won’t Help You Drop PMI
One boundary worth flagging: if you put less than 20% down, waiving the appraisal at closing does nothing to speed up canceling private mortgage insurance later. When you request early PMI cancellation based on current value, Fannie Mae requires a property valuation with an interior and exterior inspection, obtained through its servicing solutions system, to confirm your equity has reached the required level.9Fannie Mae. Termination of Conventional Mortgage Insurance The automatic termination at 78% of the original value uses the original value on the books, not any new valuation, so the waiver at origination has no effect there either. To cancel PMI early on the basis of appreciation, expect a physical inspection.