The form you've seen a hundred times is going away
If you've bought, sold, or refinanced a house in Connecticut anytime in the last twenty years, you've seen the same appraisal paperwork. Form 1004 for single-family homes. Form 1073 for condos. Form 2055 for the drive-by exterior-only version. Different forms, same basic skeleton, for about two decades.
That ends November 2, 2026. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are replacing those separate forms with one dynamic Uniform Residential Appraisal Report - a single report that adjusts itself based on the property type instead of forcing the appraiser to pick which form applies. It's built on a new data standard called UAD 3.6, and it's the biggest change to appraisal paperwork in roughly two decades.
I want to be straight with you about this one because there's a lot of noise online right now making it sound scarier than it is. The number on the appraisal - the actual valuation - isn't changing. What's changing is how that number gets documented and reported. That is the whole story.
What actually changes on the report itself
The biggest practical change is how condition gets rated. The old forms gave a home one overall condition rating. The new report splits that into separate interior and exterior condition ratings.
Think about what that fixes. Under the old system, a house with a totally renovated kitchen and bathrooms but an aging roof and peeling exterior paint got squeezed into one rating that didn't really describe either situation well. Now the appraiser can score the inside and outside independently, which gives a much more accurate picture of where the value is actually coming from.
The new report also captures more granular detail on things that used to get glossed over:
- Accessory dwelling units (ADUs) - increasingly relevant with CT towns opting in or out of the state's ADU law
- Renovations and when they happened
- Energy features - solar, heat pumps, efficient windows and insulation
What doesn't change, and why that matters more
Here's the thing most people get wrong when they hear about a huge appraisal overhaul: they assume the valuation process itself is changing. It isn't. The appraiser still pulls comps, still walks the property, still applies the same fundamental approach to arriving at a value. UAD 3.6 is a data and reporting standard, not a new valuation methodology.
I would say this is closer to switching from a paper map to a GPS. You're still driving to the same place. The tool describing the route just got more detailed.
So if you're a seller in Southington or Berlin worried that this new format is somehow going to tank your number, that's just not how it works. What it will do is capture the things you've actually done to the house - the finished attic, the new furnace, the owned solar panels - with more specificity than before. That's good for sellers who've prepped their disclosures properly. But it's a bad time to have unpermitted work hiding somewhere, because a more detailed report means more detailed scrutiny.
The one detail that trips everyone up
This is the part I really want CT buyers and sellers to understand, because I guarantee it's going to confuse people this fall.
The November 2 mandate is keyed to the date the appraisal is submitted to the lender's system - the Uniform Collateral Data Portal, or UCDP. It is not based on the appraisal's effective date. It is not based on when the appraiser walked through the house. And it is definitely not based on your contract date.
Long story short: a home appraised in late October could still land on the new format if the lender doesn't submit it to UCDP until after November 2. So if your appraisal happens in the final week of October but your lender is a little backed up, don't be surprised if what comes back looks like the new report instead of the old one. The submission date is the only date that matters.
Lenders have actually had the option to use either format since broad production began on January 26, 2026. So some CT appraisals have already been coming back on the new report for months. After November 2, there's no more choice - submissions on the old UAD 2.6 standard get rejected outright instead of just flagged.
This only applies to conventional loans - for now
One more detail that matters: this mandate applies specifically to conventional loans sold to Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. If you're financing with FHA, VA, or USDA, this deadline doesn't apply to you yet. FHA has opened the door to optional adoption, but neither FHA, VA, nor USDA has announced a mandatory timeline of their own.
So a first-time buyer in Newington using an FHA loan might see the old format for a while longer, while their neighbor closing with a conventional loan through the same lender sees the new one. That's not an error. That's just where each program is in the rollout.
It's a little messy having two systems running in parallel for a stretch, but that's how these transitions go. The underlying valuation work is the same regardless of which form it lands on. Same job, different paperwork.
What I'd actually tell my clients right now
If you're selling in Southington, Berlin, Newington, Glastonbury, or anywhere else in our market and you're closing between now and early 2027, here's what I'd tell you directly.
Get your documentation in order before the appraisal, not after. If you finished a basement, added an ADU, put in a heat pump, or did any renovation with permits, have that paperwork ready for the appraiser. The new report is built to capture that detail - make it easy for them to find it. This is especially true if you're in one of the towns where ADU rules have shifted. A documented, permitted ADU is going to show up far more clearly on the new report than it ever did on the old 1004.
And if you're a buyer, don't panic if the appraisal report you get back this fall looks unfamiliar. It's not a sign something went wrong. It's not a sign the value is being questioned more aggressively. It's a different-looking document doing the same job it's always done.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will the new appraisal format change my home's value?
No. UAD 3.6 changes how the appraisal is documented and reported, not the underlying valuation process. The appraiser still uses comps and property condition the same way - the report just describes the home in more detail.
Does the November 2 deadline apply to my FHA or VA loan?
Not yet. The mandatory November 2, 2026 date applies specifically to conventional loans sold to Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. FHA has allowed optional adoption, and VA and USDA haven't set mandatory timelines.
My contract closes in late October. Will I get the old or new appraisal form?
It depends on when your lender submits the appraisal to the Uniform Collateral Data Portal (UCDP), not your contract date or the appraisal's effective date. A home appraised in late October could still end up on the new format if submission happens after November 2.
Should I disclose my ADU or renovation differently because of this change?
Disclose it the same way you always should - accurately and with documentation. The new report format simply captures those details, like ADUs and energy features, with more precision than the old forms did.
Can lenders still use the old appraisal forms after November 2, 2026?
No. After that date, submissions on the old UAD 2.6 standard are rejected by the system rather than just flagged for review. Lenders have had the option to use either format since broad production began in January 2026, but the old format goes away entirely on November 2.
