4-car Tandem Garage

[NachoPerito]

There is no standard.

But, in general, a 4-car tandem should be superior to a two-car garage and it should be reflected as such or there should be a comment describing why not.

The new roof and new HVAC would go in the line item 'condition' for our appraisals not energy efficiency. By replacing these things they reduced the effective age of the property making it superior to other properties. It gets lumped into the overall condition rating.

 

[glenn walker]

The question has nothing to do with the sales price .. Does the oversized garage have additional value ? Of course it does especially for men because we love places to store our toys or that car we have promised to restore for the last 30 years and who wants to leave that 3rd car out in the snow .

 

[The Warrior Monk]

Hi all,
I really need some help here. The home I’m purchasing as a 4 car garage. It is two stalls wide and two stalls deep. It was built as such and advertised in the listing as such.

The appraiser listed it as a two car garage and that’s it. No other notes or anything else. In researching, I’ve found things that state it should be listed as a 4 car tandem because there are four stalls or spots. So in the comps we didn’t get any vaue add when comped with other 2 car garages. There has to be value in this huge 4 car garage!

It's difficult to make specific comments, value is market specific. In many areas, this would be worth more than a two-car garage. Hew much more depends on the setup, utility, market demand for extra garage/workshop/storage space.

Last quick question, no value added in the energy efficient items section for the brand new roof and brand new (2017) hvac system. All together $15,000 worth of new... and for comps in the section it just shows “none”. So no value added for that either. Is that correct?

When it comes to items like this, many appraisers simply adjust this in the "Condition" section. I'm assuming that these are upgrades (i.e., not a new home), and thus are maintenance items. Even if the comparable sales don't have these upgraded items, it is possible they have other upgraded items as an offsetting factor, resulting in a net zero adjustment.

 

[djd09]

"Garage spaces:

Guidelines for garage spaces run at about $3000-$5000 per space. So a 3 car garage is worth a $3000-$5000 adjustment over a 2 car garage.

A tandem garage space is worth about half that value.

Covered carport space runs at about $1000-$2000."

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/real-estate-appraisal-whats-all-worth-jeff-hierath

Everyone is an expert.

 

[Damon]

Of course they do, they all stand to gain if the appraisal was higher.

Not sure why you want to pay more for the house than it appraised for?
Time to quit arguing over the appraisal and start negotiating.

Because there is another buyer willing to pay full ask. Being from the area, we all know it’s worth more (which is why the other buyer will pay more). Apparently this particular appraiser is known for under valuing homes, according to many people in the real estate industry. There was also potentially illegal communication with the sellers prior to me receiving the appraisal.

 

[Meandering]

"Garage spaces:

Guidelines for garage spaces run at about $3000-$5000 per space. So a 3 car garage is worth a $3000-$5000 adjustment over a 2 car garage.

A tandem garage space is worth about half that value.

Covered carport space runs at about $1000-$2000."

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/real-estate-appraisal-whats-all-worth-jeff-hierath

Everyone is an expert.

If you had the latest copy of the Big Book of Adjustments, you too could quote value differences on the internet.



Whatever happened to the cost to build the carport, EI/EP and the time value of money in the adjustment consideration???



Where is the regression analysis that proves these adjustments are what the market adjusts for these differences??



..

 

[CindyR]

Everyone please remember those locational differences. Your location may not care about a 4 car tandem garage. Mine sure does and they are popular and worth more than only a 2 car garage. And you can't believe how much buyers are willing to pay for those air-conditioned RV garages!

But, the appraiser should report and appraise what is there - not just what he can find comps for. The appraiser should describe the 4 car tandem garage and accurately reflect the additional size in the description, sketch, sales grid, cost approach, etc. If the appraiser does not care believe in the existence of tandem garages then he should at least say it is a 2 car garage with a lot of extra space for storage or workshop or whatever.

If the appraiser does not believe the extra garage space adds value then he needs to explain that. I would explain that the MLS listing shows a 4 car tandem garage but based on the 'kittens in the oven' argument it is really only a 2 car garage and there is no market evidence that the typical buyer would pay any more for the additional space. And i would be sure i had data in my file to support that. So if there really are no 4-car tandem garage sales available and no 2 car garages with an additional 400 SF of snowless space somewhere than perhaps no adjustment is warranted. But the property should be properly described and the 4 car tandem garage reported and explained and analyzed. Not just ignored.

To the original poster, you might position this as an accidental error the appraiser could fix in a reconsideration of value request. You question is not 'why didn't you add an adjustment for the big garage?' Your question is 'why isn't the 4 car garage discussed in the appraisal?' Why is it not reported and analyzed? Why are there no comps with oversized garages or extra garages or extra workshops or something? And your realtors might be able to find some comps with 4 car garages or 3 car garages or something to use to open the discussion with the appraiser.

 

[Meandering]

Because there is another buyer willing to pay full ask. Being from the area, we all know it’s worth more (which is why the other buyer will pay more). Apparently this particular appraiser is known for under valuing homes, according to many people in the real estate industry. There was also potentially illegal communication with the sellers prior to me receiving the appraisal.

I'm sorry your deal isn't going as planned.
There aren't any communications between appraisers and interested parties that are "illegal" unless the appraiser's independence, including continued workflow, or direction in value, is directly threatened. You can read the Truth in Lending Act 12 CFR 34.45
So if everyone "knows" it is worth more, where are the cash buyers?
If it's "worth more" investors should be in there out bidding with cash.


.

 

[Damon]

I'm sorry your deal isn't going as planned.
There aren't any communications between appraisers and interested parties that are "illegal" unless the appraiser's independence, including continued workflow, or direction in value, is directly threatened. You can read the Truth in Lending Act 12 CFR 34.45
So if everyone "knows" it is worth more, where are the cash buyers?
If it's "worth more" investors should be in there out bidding with cash.


.

My lender was furious when they found communications occurred between the appraiser and the sellers prior to report. They stated to me there could be unlawful communications and they contacted the sellers immediately. So when I say illegal, I’m just going off of what my bank stated to me.

 

[EddieB]

So your bank feels the appraiser and seller conspired to come in below the sales price. That doesn't make sense.

Your lender should know what options remain including a "reconsideration of value". My suggestion is to leave this in your Realtor and lenders hands