Appraisal: Incompetence/Recourse

[Terry Russell]

I may be banned from the industry for this, but nonetheless it happened.

First of all, I am still a student working towards my license.
A year or so ago I sought to refinance my home. Found a lender, got some pretty good numbers contingent on the appraisal. The appraisal came in and I got a copy from the underwriter. The valuation was near what I expected, but not near enough to make the loan feasible. That was not the problem. The report was the sloppiest work I had ever seen in 15 years of dealing in real estate. The subject property is custom built, the comps were mobile homes. The square footage was off by 20%. A photo of the rear of the home (no door) was captioned "Front of Subject". Nearly all the HVAC data was incorrect. The area was designated Urban. I suppose if you included coyotes and rattlesnakes the population density would rise to 15 creatures per section.
Most of the costly improvements were absent. It was trash.
The lender refused it d/t the mobile home comps (so I was told) and I told my underwriter that the report was unacceptable and it should be redone. The underwriter called the appraiser and he agreed to do it again. What I did not know is that he doubled his fee.
The second report came back nearly the same other than different comps. The value was now at a level to make the loan work. One problem, the lender would not accept it without a field review. The initial appraisals were $275 x 2, the field is $250, $800 for a little house on 20 acres. The field review came back and put the numbers back to their previous level. I reviewed a preliminary closing statement, more errors were discovered. I told the underwriter to forget it. I refused to pay for the appraisal work. I still believe today that my refusal to compensate incompetence was correct. What do you think?

 

[Dee Dee]

Wow.
I don't blame you for refusing to pay the appraiser's fee. It sounds as if this 'appraiser' is grossly incompetant. I'd tell the lender to eat the fees, after all, they're the ones who hired this idiot, not you.

 

[Mountain Man]

If it was really that bad, I would do them an even bigger favor and turn the appraisal into the state for an investigation. I would not pay for incompetent garbage either.

Mell.

 

[Ray Ohler]

ditto to the above posts with EMPHASIS on sending it in to the state.

 

[Terry Russell]

Thanks to all that replied. And yes it was truly that bad. The underwriter tried to pressure me to pay some $1600 in fees he incurred on my behalf. But when I kindly reminded him of some critical requirements he failed to meet before arranging a closing, he went silent. I am not sure what happened to the appraiser in question. I sincerely hope he gained some insight from my refusal to accept his report. I really think he would fair better if he got out of his vehicle to take photos. (And no he is not handicapped) Enough said. Terry

 

[jtrotta]

arc services;
you note that you are a student working towards your license; what are you studying??

you state; "the report was the sloppiest work I had ever seen in 15 years of dealing in Real Estate" and what was the Real Estate you've been dealing with??

you state; "the square footage was off by 20%" how do we know your accurate ? - what type of "license" if any, do you hold ?

you state; "most of the costly improvements were absent" in who's eye's - yours?? we have know idea of what you percieve as "costly" - it could be a $2.99 entrance door matt or a $15 we have know idea.

Your closing argument; "initial fee-$550 + review total $800 for a little house on 20 acres" ***

My opinion;
the review appears to support the original "number" - now we have not seen anything, but you present your "opinion" as to how YOU see it, and other than your highlighting some area's to make your case, we have nothing more than "a little house on 20 acres" and your claim to not pay for services. I will not support your claim of "competancy" without further proof :!:
Secondly; if the original "number" is supported by the "review" and that particular figure would not get you the loan - it sounds to me like your scamming the Lender and comming here for support, which you will not get from me :!:

Thats my opinion & I'm sticking to it 8)

 

[Pamela Crowley (Florida)]

Do what you know is right. It sounds like you need to send both the reports and the review in to your State Board. You say you've had a number of years involved in Real Estate and are now working toward your license. Do you mean your Appraisers license? I assume so. Now that you are studying appraisal, I'm also am assuming that you now recognise how really bad the appraisals that were done for your property actually are.

Send them in to your state board to review. We are a dying profession because of those that are incompetent and unethical. We need those with the courage to do what is right.

Welcome aboard!

 

[Austin]

I like that idea about not paying the appraiser. If I ever get an appraisal and it is not what I need, I just won’t pay the fee either. I also don’t think I will not pay the light bill because the bulbs keep burning out in my lamp, or the grocery bill because I get indigestion. People of little character will always find a justification not to pay their bills. If the shoe fits, wear it.

 

[Dee Dee]

Austin & Jtrotta,
She said that the first appraisal was comparing her stick built with mobile homes. That, all by itself, is incompetence in my book.

 

[Pamela Crowley (Florida)]

Oops, I forgot to add the part about payment. Yes, you should pay for the appraisals. If they are proven to be that incompetent, hopefully, your state board or a court after the state board has also decided they are incompetent, will get your money back for you.

Also, be very wary of the a loan officer that uses an appraiser that's bad.

The appraiser ALWAYS needs to be paid!