FHA Review

[Lee SW IL]

I recd a request to do a review that had FHA financing. I advised the lender I am not FHA approved and do not appraise FHA or VA.

They said that was ok, they only want the value of appraisal to be reviewed.

What do you think.

If I was an HUD appraiser and getting reviewed, then received a call from the reviewer that would be my 1st question.

In this case, every thing looks fine with the report.


Thanks

 

[Mountain Man]

You are on the right track. There are a lot of weird ins and outs about a FHA that do not make sense when compared to conventional. Come to think of it, they don't make sense anyway! If you do not know them, don't do the review.

However, it sounds like to me that they need someone to verify the value, not a review. Maybe get the client to agree to a 2055 with comp photos?
Mell.

 

[Don Clark]

8)

They have not asked you to do an FHA review. Only the REAC center in DC can do that, and it is assigned through a contractor who has bid on the job and has hired appraisers to do such reciews. However, every lender has the right to have reviews done of a certain percentage of the appraisals their company has completed. This is simply an in house loss mitigation program and good business practice. You are not being asked if it FHA compliant but if it is USPAP compliant, and is it a relible report. I have done many of these types of reviews on FHA, VA as well as Conventional. As a former AQAS FHA Field Review Appraiser I can certainly understand why a lending institution would want an outside review. The FHA Review(AQAS) process is not a very good review, and limits the review appraiser to only certain key issues. In my 7 months of doing such reviews I did over 100 FHA reviews. No appraiser ever came in below the sales price. Actually, out of all of the review, the average was almost 17% above the sales price and 15% above actual market value. Some were as high as 100% above market value. Also, regardless of the new handbook, and HUD's new initiative, many, and I mean many appraisers are ignoring obvious damage, deferred maintenance, and many other very important items. I completed some exterior reviews where I could see flaking paint as large as dinner plates, obvious from the street, as well as worn out roof, broken windows, etc, etc, ad infinitum, ad nauseum. Do the review, do it right. You may be the lenders last line of defense against obvious fraud that is still going on.
:evil:

Don

 

[Henry E. Deecke]

I was wondering why you are a former AQAS FHA Field Review Appraiser of, 7 months.

 

[Brad Pack]

Henry,

All of us FHA AQA Reviewers are former AQA Reviewers. This is because the AQA program was discontinued last month due to politics and some other reasons. Currently, the HOC's are conducting the reviews. However, they lack sufficient staff to do an adequate number of reviews. What the future holds would be pure speculation, though I do have a fairly good idea of what might happen. There's a big power play going on right now and the rumors are running rampant.

 

[Francois K. Gregoire]

Henry,

All of us FHA AQA Reviewers are former AQA Reviewers. This is because the AQA program was discontinued last month due to politics and some other reasons. Currently, the HOC's are conducting the reviews. However, they lack sufficient staff to do an adequate number of reviews. What the future holds would be pure speculation, though I do have a fairly good idea of what might happen. There's a big power play going on right now and the rumors are running rampant.

Brad,

Think "Andersen Consulting". Not a rumor.

Frank

 

[Brad Pack]

Thanks, Frank!

Yes, I am aware of the Anderson situation. It appears that it is back to Multi-Family for the REAC. I have some tidbits (nothing earth shattering, but interesting) that I will share over at the NAIFA, once Tom reports his findings.

 

[Don Clark]

8)

To answer the question---why are you a former AQA Review Appraiser? In addition to what Brad and others have so aptly stated:

1. It took me almost a year to get paid by contractor for required training I had to attend in Atlanta(I live in Virginia).
2. I was asked by contractor to write my Congressman so they could get paid so I could get paid.
3. The contractor knew little or nothing about appraisals.

But-----The big reason:

1. I saw blatant, fraudulent, criminal disregard for FHA requirements and no one ever responded to my reviews in regard to that.
2. I saw over valuation of properties by as much as 100% by local appraisers.
3. I did not want to see more examples of terrible appraisal practice by appraisers I had previously felt highly of.

And finally------Low pay for work done.

Hope that answers the question.

IMHO, the solution to the problem will be when HUD hires local appraisers who report directly to REAC or the HOC's. Not some huge organization that cover 20 states and all the way to the Mariana Islands, knows nothing about appraisal, and is slow paying to the point of frustration. There were some good contractors. I speak only about the one I worked with from Northern Virginia.

Don

 

[Dick Hemry GAA]

Don: You are quite right and guess what??? The bad, accomodating, appraisers are still busy meeting lenders requests. The HOC, it appers, could care less.

Dick Hemry, GAA
former AQA Review Appraiser, too.