$2400 appraisal fee??!!

[Jennifer Petrillo]

Some input please...I have a 3/2 SFR on one acre in San Marcos TX under contract. Was getting a rehab loan for purchase price 170K plus 20K of rehab funds with plan to refi out once rented, planning to hold on to the property long term (a BRRR). Lender told me he was having trouble finding an appraiser in the area ("no one wants to go out there") so I made some calls. Was quoted $1000...higher than I am used to seeing from when we were flipping houses in central NJ a few years back. But wait--closing is in a few weeks, to "rush" the appraisal will cost me an additional $800 (otherwise I will have it at the end of October). But wait, there's more--after tacking on additional fees from the "Nationwide Appraisal Network" (which apparently reviews all appraisals? Never heard of this) the cost is now a whopping $2400!! I am going to make some more calls but I thought I might win some kind of a prize for posting the highest ever appraisal fee on BP. Oh, and as for "having trouble finding an appraiser in the area," San Marcos is in between Austin and San Antonio, two booming markets. It's not in the Arctic Circle. What is up with this??