Judge Rules Appraiser/Lender Owe no duty of care

[Huds_Harm]

Bayou,

No one here has reviewed your appraisal, the purchase contract, counter offers if any, and or additional documentation such as inspection reports or the property profile.

All we have to go on is "the article" which you keep referring us to. Which is, by the way, a "one sided" story more like a campaign speech. That, and what you tell us based on our inquiries. Very much like a politician, when we ask a question, you don't answer the question and keep campaigning.

Instead of going round and round in circles again, what is it that you want from us?

And the funny thing is you don’t need to see any of those things you mentioned and this is the only place that uses those things to DEFLECT to the borrower.

 

[Carnivore]

With respect this particular issue is related to the SOW. FHA has specific sow requirements in 4000.1 Those requirements are part of the SOW. It is a simple walkaround visual inspection of the drain field. wet soggy areas are a possible indicator of a problem. Obviously after heavy rain it may be that way ...also you may smell the sewage ..... So the appraiser would condition that for an enviromental inspection from the county Health department.

bear with me....

If this new owner had complained to my state appraisal board and sent a copy of the report to the them they would have I opened an investigation and sent notice to the appraiser of the investigation and requested a true copy of the report and a complete copy of the workfile. This doe snot happen very often. They carefully look over the appraisal the complaintaint sent in and if they don't find anything significant they often just close the file as a citizen just complaining about the market value opinion was lower than value they needed to make their loan.

So to conclude this rant. We actually don't know a lot about this appraisal, other than what the OP has stated. So it's tough to be able to help. If we had the complete report to read over and digest , then there is little we can do or say without that report.

Rant Over

 

[Huds_Harm]

Because, in the final analysis, this is what we are engaged to do. And unfortunately, protecting the borrower's interests is not part of the FHA appraisal process.
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What about the valuation protocol on required repairs and what are required repairs? Those that affect the health and safety of the OCCUPANT aka borrower.

 

[Mike Ault]

What about the valuation protocol on required repairs and what are required repairs? Those that affect the health and safety of the OCCUPANT aka borrower.

Absolutely, you are correct about that. However the appraiser is "responsible to the client" to properly communicate the appraisal, not the borrower. The appraiser is not even allowed to "discuss the appraisal with the borrower" without client permission. That should tell you something about your rights to rely upon it. I'm not saying that I'm in agreement with that concept, I'm just saying that's the way it is.

 

[Surf Cat]

And the funny thing is you don’t need to see any of those things you mentioned and this is the only place that uses those things to DEFLECT to the borrower.

See? Side step, deflect, side step, deflect.

If we had the complete report to read over and digest , then there is little we can do or say without that report.

See Bayou? Yes, appraisers "do" want to see signed, certified, stamped, official, documentation to base our opinions on.....not just speculative, emotional, here say.

 

[George Hatch]

What about the valuation protocol on required repairs and what are required repairs? Those that affect the health and safety of the OCCUPANT aka borrower.

Whoa, whoa, whoa. Flag thrown on the play.

FHA requirements are their own internal requirements. Their underwriting policies aren't a matter of law or regulation. They do not establish the legal minimums for health/safety; they only establish the minimums for their lending program. And nobody else's lending program.

The legal health and safety minimums for septic location for existing structures are regulated by the local govt, and those vary. If the locals allow a non-conforming as of 2024 install to continue indefinitely then that is what it is. You cannot unilaterally declare it a health/safety violation within the context of the law just because it doesn't comply with FHA policies.

You can say the appraisal doesn't meet the FHA requirements. You cannot say the *location* of the septic meets the criteria for a threat to the health and safety within any other context. If the locals thought that existing installs with 5-ft setbacks were a threat to health and safety they'd be coming through and forcing every property owner with such conditions to remediate them - because the location itself is the threat.

You install was apparently operating when you took possession. The non-op didn't occur until afterwards by which I am not referring to the next 72 hours after taking possession.

 

[Surf Cat]

One more time Bayou,

You sidestepped my former post and did not answer....

What is it that you want from us?

 

[George Hatch]

It just occurred to me that - for all we know of this situation - that it might not have even been the tank or fittings that failed, but the leach field. If the tank was pumped and only part of the leach field was operable the install might initially look operable right after being pumped but get overwhelmed or clogged with conventional TP or grease from cooking at some point later.

I have no idea if that did or didn't happen, but it does seem like one of the possibilities. I dunno why it took me so long to realize that possibility. Many years ago I had a distant family member who lived in a house on septic and who didn't know to be careful about the TP and what they put down the sink. They killed the leach field and their landlord had to replace the septic.

 

[Mike Ault]

It just occurred to me that - for all we know of this situation - that it might not have even been the tank or fittings that failed, but the leach field. If the tank was pumped and only part of the leach field was operable the install might initially look operable right after being pumped but get overwhelmed or clogged with conventional TP sometime later.

I have no idea if that did or didn't happen, but it does seem like one of the possibilities. I dunno why it took me so long to realize that possibility. Many years ago I had a distant family member who lived in a house on septic and who didn't know to be careful about the TP and what they put down the sink. They killed the leach field and their landlord had to replace the septic.

"Tampons" are confirmed killers of leach fields as well…

 

[George Hatch]

Baby wipes, too. Not just for septic but also for sewers.

Ima smack my head for getting this far without even thinking of the possibility, however unlikely.