After Getting Property Appraised The Water Well Dried Up Along With Everyone Else

[Terrel L. Shields]

Is the appraisal invalid or does it need to be adjusted with cost basis of bringing in water?

Yes, Yes

In your professional experience will the Appraisal have to be redone since the appraiser failed to mention anything even though he knew there were properties all over us that were running out of water

If on the day of appraisal there was water, then the appraiser is not at fault. They are not professional hydrologists. The cost to cure should be included in the value of the home. The cheapest certain cost is a cistern / hauled water system. A percentage allowance is no better than a guess. This is NOT an adjustment that should be figured on paired sales because it varies from home to home. And I can get an oil well drilled for $81/ft. In fact, a 4,000' horizontal well in the Fayetteville Shale costs no more than that. Geez.

 

[Webbed Feet]

The Orchards I mentioned have pumps down at 1,200 but can go further if the water table drops down more. Personally I am totally frustrated with everything, at one point when we ran out of water for two weeks the while the other owner moved off the property. One Christmas Eve they called me and said "I am willing to take a 5% discount or 10% but want to sell it quickly". If a property with two houses does not have a proven water source is the value based on delivery of water only? Is this a qualitative and quantitative factor, the appraiser who did our home knew all the adjacent properties were running out of water but failed to mention anything.


In your professional experience will the Appraisal have to be redone since the appraiser failed to mention anything even though he knew there were properties all over us that were running out of water and while neighbors trucked in water at $.10 per gallon ($250 min). <...snip....>

How is it that you know that the appraiser knew? I find your posts to be quite confusing. Your "One Christmas Eve" comment seems to imply one or more years in the past. Your comments about what "They" said they would sell for seems to imply a proposed sale between you and "they." We have no idea what the appraisal report was created for, what was the intended use of obtaining a real estate appraisal and who obtained it? Who hired the appraiser and why do you have a copy of the appraisal report?

Regardless of your answers to my questions I tend to lean strongly towards total incompetency of the appraiser involved. This does NOT sound like some sudden problem that literally nobody in the market area knew about and it suddenly just popped up out of nowhere a week before the appraiser was hired. If I am correct, and this was a known problem in the general market area going back for many months, or even years, then this appraiser has created, intentionally or not, a seriously misleading appraisal report. So seriously misleading that if the appraiser knew, or should have known, the appraisal board of that state should be having a sit down coming of the Lord with this appraiser. So yes, the appraisal report should have had an entire section of it dedicated to addendum discussing the market reaction to water sources and how any and all of that was considered by the appraiser. Unless, of course, this all just happened last week, there was no news media coverage of it, and the appraisal report was based upon no site inspection or property owner lies or omissions to the appraiser.

The appraisal problem, properly labeled, is one of "burden of ownership." In someways similar to a house too large for its market place, the extra costs of maintenance, insurance, heating, etc., become measurements of discounts that must be considered due to the not needed extra space. In your case, the burden(s) are not only the costs involved in having to pay for a substitute for a market acceptable steady water source, but also the life inconveniences and fear (insecurity) that represents. Not an easy appraisal assignment when the property is located in an area where the market has always (recent decades) demanded an easy and steady water source.

 

[Terrel L. Shields]

Over the years as a geologist I consulted over several wells that went dry; and, small lakes or ponds that went dry. The geology controls it all. Too many straws sucking on the soda is a big reason in drier climates. If agriculture is irrigation driven (which Californians do have that issue) then they might be the culprit. If the water table is dropping then drilling deep might only be a temporary fix. And go too deep and you risk encountering salt water. Homes drawing water from higher in the aquifer may cut off your supply while wells belong can drain it. It may or may not recharge depending on climate at the recharge area and the capacity of the aquifer v. the drawdown (straws in the soda.)

 

[JesseFrank]

How is it that you know that the appraiser knew? I find your posts to be quite confusing. Your "One Christmas Eve" comment seems to imply one or more years in the past. Your comments about what "They" said they would sell for seems to imply a proposed sale between you and "they." We have no idea what the appraisal report was created for, what was the intended use of obtaining a real estate appraisal and who obtained it? Who hired the appraiser and why do you have a copy of the appraisal report?

Regardless of your answers to my questions I tend to lean strongly towards total incompetency of the appraiser involved. This does NOT sound like some sudden problem that literally nobody in the market area knew about and it suddenly just popped up out of nowhere a week before the appraiser was hired. If I am correct, and this was a known problem in the general market area going back for many months, or even years, then this appraiser has created, intentionally or not, a seriously misleading appraisal report. So seriously misleading that if the appraiser knew, or should have known, the appraisal board of that state should be having a sit down coming of the Lord with this appraiser. So yes, the appraisal report should have had an entire section of it dedicated to addendum discussing the market reaction to water sources and how any and all of that was considered by the appraiser. Unless, of course, this all just happened last week, there was no news media coverage of it, and the appraisal report was based upon no site inspection or property owner lies or omissions to the appraiser.

The appraisal problem, properly labeled, is one of "burden of ownership." In someways similar to a house too large for its market place, the extra costs of maintenance, insurance, heating, etc., become measurements of discounts that must be considered due to the not needed extra space. In your case, the burden(s) are not only the costs involved in having to pay for a substitute for a market acceptable steady water source, but also the life inconveniences and fear (insecurity) that represents. Not an easy appraisal assignment when the property is located in an area where the market has always (recent decades) demanded an easy and steady water source.

Dear Webb, the appraiser's neighbors were all running out of water with drilling trucks coming back and forth because there was a one year waiting period for reputable drillers to get to water-less homes. Don't you think he had a incentive because his house had been sitting on the market for almost five years? If he mentioned on my appraisal(I live next door to him, our five neighbors on the well system were warning about the impending doom about one year ago) this could have badly hurt the price he recently got on his house in November(finally sold it after marking it down $400k) just my theory? I appreciate your answer very well thought out and logic. If he did not know what all the newspapers and local publications stated our aquafier was almost dead and most of the home owners interviewed about low water output after spending $50k to $85k+ how good is he?



City will not put water where I live, there are not enough houses and their view is its the fault of people who decide to move outside their zone. I got letters from a co-owner stating "We absolutely will not put another penny in the property, sell as is"!!! What kind of value will a property get where the new buyer must secure the water?

 

[Riick]

What kind of value will a property get where the new buyer must secure the water?

You've effectively answered your own question.....
Was it 5 years on the market, and
a $400,000 drop from the initial "ask" to get a Sale?
That should tell you *something* about the amount (or percentage) discount.
Eh?

 

[JesseFrank]

Over the years as a geologist I consulted over several wells that went dry; and, small lakes or ponds that went dry. The geology controls it all. Too many straws sucking on the soda is a big reason in drier climates. If agriculture is irrigation driven (which Californians do have that issue) then they might be the culprit. If the water table is dropping then drilling deep might only be a temporary fix. And go too deep and you risk encountering salt water. Homes drawing water from higher in the aquifer may cut off your supply while wells belong can drain it. It may or may not recharge depending on climate at the recharge area and the capacity of the aquifer v. the drawdown (straws in the soda.)

You truly understand the situation we are battling in California, three major cities are suing my city because their claiming my city is ruining the aquifer leaving their residents with high concentrations of salt. The realtors will not list properties without a secure source of water. Our water well group has decided to allow the party to dissolve as each land owner works to drill their own well or bring water in by the truck load. The County will not allow trucked in water as a "cure" but only to help land owners get by the extremely dry conditions. The water aquifer will go dry, commercial drilling is all around these expensive homes. You truly understand the situation, according to the realtors who were showing the appraiser's house I mentioned he put down "unlimited water resources" on his personal appraisal. He house is across the street from mine, his neighbors are all running out of water so how come he has access "unlimited water". If I posted a map of his house, you would see all the houses in a 360 degree angle all ran out. Will he get sued once the rich people who bought his house run out?