Aluminum wiring used to be the standard.
We learned later that aluminum wiring caused increased vibrational frequencies that often started fires when it interacted while charged, with other metals.
So as the materials of the industry changed, the aluminum wiring became more of a concern.
It can be remediated and still be safe with aluminium wiring in place, if they 'pigtail' the lines. That is something about a coupling or retrofit which hinders the heat effects created by 2 different metals passing off that continous flow of electricity.
FPE panels are the noted offenders, but I won't call a subject to fix for FPE panel. I will however, state that I'm not an expert, and I deferr to the opinion of a professional home inspector or qualified electrician regarding the safety of this issue. And then I wing it either way, if I call for the inspection or not, based on the larger homes setup and supposed electrical reliability. Usually if you don't see anything wrong, it's just not fair to call that based on something like FPE panels alone.
Girlee, your question is reflective of the common state of the industry. Everyone tries to push the loans through and puts that on process or the backs of the appraiser. A simple electrical inspection report is all that is needed to cert the condition, or supply to the appraiser to indicate passibility. Tell the salespersons to compell the buyer to fess up 200 bucks pronto, and get a simple electrical inspection going on. Specifically; you want the electrician to answer one question; Is the electrical system safe and functional, with the aluminum wiring in place? If not, what needs to be done to remediate that?
It's common hat for that to get put on the appraiser. We just state we're not experts and move on. People 'never know' if the appraiser will 'be cool with it' or not, because the whole industry is all backwards when it thinks this requirement should be the appraisers responsibility in the first place. Some appraisers play ball, others assume away the condition, and others call inspections.
If you want consistency, you'll have to find a way to provide credible documentation to the appraiser, before they ever get involved. You say; lookie here at this inspectors report from a qualified electrician. He says aluminium wiring is good to go and properly remediated or alternatively he says this is the cost to cure. Please include this information in your appraisal. Call it a day. It's that simple.
