I am buying a house in NJ and i just found out from my appraiser report that there is 600 sq ft difference between appraiser report and the MLS listing. I am totally dissatified about it and feel its very wrong. Please can anyone tell me what options do i have now.we are very near to closing. Can i back out of the deal if i want to.?

It will depend on your contract, but I am assuming you bought what you saw in most states the Realtor sq ft is only considered estimated subject to appraisial and the value is normally in case of financing is by appraisial. Did the home appraise for the purchase price ? I am assuming the carport was taken in and appraiser did not use the footage are the home has an area that you have to go outsde the main structure in cases like this the additional footage is not included but is there and used. You did not make the situtation clear but I doublt you could not get a simple feel on that much sq ft I understand 100 or so but 600 sq ft is a hugh difference and I bet there is more to this story. You also normally have a 10 day inspection period did you not check into this during that time also . There are several times during a sale that issues can be discovered not a few days before closing.

This is EXACTLY why we do not quote square footage in our mls's in GA.

I agree it should not be in mls the buyer bought what they saw . The appraisial is where that footage should come from.

If the square footage is misrepresented by over 10%, you might have cause to terminate the contract, adjust the price offered or take legal action.
Who/what was the source of the square footage?

The reason for the inaccurate square footage is due to lazy agents.

The lazy agent either a)takes the homeowners word for the square footage or b)looks off the old MLS sheet prepared by the last lazy agent instead of breaking out the tape and doing the job right or c) looks at the property card at the county assessors office! Break out the tape and do the job Right!

I agree with coco1 that there is more to this story. 100 sq ft is easy overlook but not 600 sq ft especially if you have looked at other houses, 600 sq ft is a 20'x30' room!

want to hear from PK what did your Realtor say I really want to hear the entire story I am convinced people buy what they see and there is something here PK is not telling us. 600 ft !!!!!! My guess is that footage is there maybe room without duct . Did PK have inspection period ? I do know some states donot release square footage ( not right ) but is true fact.

read site posted would this be 2bedroom or 3 bedroom perfect example end result there you go

Wonder if they had added a sunroom to the total square footage? That is what happened to one of my buyers but we caught it in time and prior to making an offer. We in Indiana go by the appraisers square footage and very seldom do we do our own measuring.

I agree it should be the appraisier , and I bet there is something here 600 feet doesnt just dissappear buyer was HAPPY with what he saw , door open buyer want may want to renegotiate are good exit what do you think !!!!!. either way someone loses

Who supplied that square footage the agent or the tax record?

If the agent supplied it when they put it on the mls it was probably supplied by the seller in the listing paperwork.

Sometimes sellers include in square footage additions that were not permitted,or they tried to convert garage space into another room.

I don't know about anywhere else but in Ga the space has to have a window,a closet,and has to be a heated and cooled space to be included and considered a room for appraisal standards.

It could be they have 600 more sq ft and that it's just not appraised as liveable space so it's not counted.

no legal advice

I think we are all in agreement where is the space , buyer bought what he saw I think he wants out

If you liked the house and wanted it, what difference does it make about the numbers? You bought what you saw and that's it. As long as it appraises correctly, what earthly reason would you have for backing out? Unless perhaps you got cold feet, or are just looking for somebody to sue. It's easy to make a mistake, geez

"It's easy to make a mistake, geez"
You can make as many mistakes as you want, as long as you take responsibility for them and you understand, mistakes can cost you money.

pikes peak are you assuming the REaltor made a `mistake. I know I personally have had two appraisials same property one appraiser hads footage the other didn't . Could be enclosed carport, sunroom back porck NO a/c VENT . Maybe its buyer cold feet COME ON 600 ft think about it thats as big as some apt.

"It's easy to make a mistake, geez"
With the statement above, it sounded like the agent was trying to make an excuse for making a mistake. However, if the agent was making an excuse for someone else, were they complicit with that statement and covering for the person making the mistake?
I don't know, but I would encourage every agent to only speak for themselves.