owner change request post effective date

[MRB]

back in may i appraised the sale of a property where the current owner did not match seller. seller was the listing agent and the owner appears to have been nearing forclosure. today my client faxed a deed and asked that i change the owner's name in the report to the seller's name. i refused as the deed had not been recorded and therefore no legal refernce. well apparently closing attorney had someone rush out and record the deed and i was re-faxed the recorded deed. any feedback on changing the legal reference and owner's name while disclosing in the addendum, because as of the effective date of the appraisal, the seller was not the owner.

 

[RSW]

Don't do it. The appraisal states: Owner of public record. I would assume you have a copy of the tax records in your workfile, don't you?

 

[AnonApprsr]

Write a separate letter/email/addendum, sign it, and tell them to add it to their file or to have them manually attach it to the appraisal themselves (or I guess you can easily enough), but don't change the original appraisal. Effective Date is the stop line, don't run a red light, and risk your license.

 

[Webbed Feet]

back in may i appraised the sale of a property where the current owner did not match seller. seller was the listing agent and the owner appears to have been nearing forclosure. today my client faxed a deed and asked that i change the owner's name in the report to the seller's name. i refused as the deed had not been recorded and therefore no legal refernce. well apparently closing attorney had someone rush out and record the deed and i was re-faxed the recorded deed. any feedback on changing the legal reference and owner's name while disclosing in the addendum, because as of the effective date of the appraisal, the seller was not the owner.

I'm going out on a duck pond and am going to take a quack at this...

Your "listing agent" took an option to purchase out on the property under this money making semi-scam that has been around for a long time to make people in foreclosure think somebody can rescue them. The option holder then "Lists" the property for sale as if they are the owner of record with the intention of finding a buyer, then simultaniously at closing exercising their option to purchase and selling to the buyer. This way, if they can find any equity in the real estate in the market place, they walk off with it with a small payment to the real owner, and then pay off that owner's mortgage stopping the foreclosure.... That's the gist, if not all the details anyway.

All you need to know is what you already know... At the time of your effective date the public records showed who you identied as the owner.. end of story. Tell these people that their lending issues are not your appraisal issues. You completed your job, altering a report to be misleading wasn't in the assignment contract....

P.S. You should have had what was the last recorded deed at the time you did the assignment and it should be in your work file. Your point should not have been that the other one wasn't recorded... but that you are only responsible for what WAS recorded at the time you did your work. Unrecorded (hidden) deeds have no public notice and are not your responsibility to try and use to determine a chain of title.... Tell them they need a title company and lawyer to solve their legal issues on this one, you don't do that.

 

[Francois K. Gregoire]

HUD has an anti-flipping rule. DU underwriter will kick the loan anyway.

 

[Jerry Bone Jr]

Think like you actually want to help them. If you tell them "no" that's no help. Tell them "yes I can, but it will need to be a new analysis & new report". We are in a service business.

 

[MRB]

after thinking this through last night, particularly regarding 3 year transfer history, all i can do is talk about yesterday's transfer in the addendum or a new assignment with new effective date to show the recent grantee as owner of public record and include it in the 3 year transfer history. thanks for your feedback.

 

[Webbed Feet]

MRB.

Correctomundo! They are attempting to sanitize a real estate appraisal report so it matches their other hinked up paperwork on this one. Something that would leave you on the hook due to certification 25.

I got involved in one of these schemes when I was representing a potential buyer as a real estate broker. I was aware who the real property owner was and my duck feathers went up when I started receiving counteroffers signed by the investor (That I had confirmed was not a legal real estate agent, but even we can't sign in place of the real property owner without a power of attorney) that held a first right of refusal option to purchase the property. I think it was the same setup you've just run into, if I am guessing correctly. The real owner was headed into foreclosure in my case too. After a fast chat with my directing broker I demanded, in writing, that this "investor" produce a legally documented power of attorney showing authority to reject real estate purchase offers and to counter. Take a guess what did not exist? No real estate license, no power of attorney, signing documents as if the investor had a legal right to represent the owner with the authority to reject offers and make counters on real estate the investor did not yet own. Only had a contract for first right of refusal.

I had other people whining to me with... "aaaaaahhhh.. He's only trying to make a living!" ... Can you hear "All our other appraisers do this!" in that one? This kind of crap gets pulled on other real estate professionals, not just appraisers. Sometimes it is our duty to send everyone involved a wake up call.

 

[Hacienda]

I recently had such a request.... the mtg. co. screwed up and got an incorrect case # (FHA reverse mtg) & wanted me to change inspection date
to match a new case # === i refused citing it would be fraudulent for me alter
the inspection date----they relented and it passed without condition... MORAL OF THE STORY -- FEAR NOT, GOD AND USPAP ARE WITH YOU.