Recourse for factual mistakes in an appraisal?

[aussie ken]

Home value is a highly emotional issue. From your post I fully expect and believe that your expectations of value far exceed those of the appraiser. However, before you start dragging an appraiser before his state board or kick a complaint up the management ladder please do the following: MEASURE YOUR HOUSE .............if its only ~1,500sqft then consider your options carefully. If its actually ~1,750sqft then you have a valid argument.

 

[mstar]

Thank you everyone for your comments and suggestions - always nice to see that at least some people take pride in their profession!

I will start by taking my own measurements, and go from there. It shouldn't be too confusing, since the whole house would count towards the square footage - no screened in porch, no finished basement, and the garage is detached.

Most of the issues I raised could be subjective, but the square footage of the house certainly isn't.

 

[Pamela Crowley (Florida)]

Is there a room that was/is enclosed but is not of same or very similar construction?

 

[JTip]

If it was an interior inspection then the s.f. should be accurate. If it was an exterior report the appraiser should have used public record data. Sounds like if the measurement was different from public records it must have been an interior inspection.

Did you meet the appraiser in person or did the appraisal magically appear? LOL

 

[mstar]

Yes, the appraiser did come and measure (or so my wife told me!). Its a 1920's house, there have been a number of additions over the years - all legal and properly permitted, and all of the space is covered by heating and a/c, so I assume all of the interior square footage should count.

Anyway, I just measured, and he was missing about 2 ½ feet on the length (or is it the width?) of my house on the first and second floors. I wasn’t sure how to measure the third floor (the attic was legally converted to a 4th bedroom with a full bath) since there is a dormer running along the front of the house that was squared off on the interior when the central air was installed - the space under the dormer now houses the a/c equipment behind a walk-in closet (well, it’s a walk-in if you are less than 6 feet tall in the front and 5 feet tall in the back). Would I measure only up until to the space before the dormer starts dropping or right up to where the dormer meets the exterior wall?

Putting aside the third floor, the 2 ½ feet on the first and second floors adds between 200 and 260 square feet depending on if you are rounding up or down. Based on comments above, would it be safe to assume that this 200+ square feet is significant enough to warrant my alerting the appraiser to my list of issues?

 

[Bearslide]

I am not advocating causing trouble for an appraiser - unless said appraiser did make factual errors. You do have recourse. As others have stated, if your measurements disagree with the appraisers, this needs to be resolved. Kick it further up the food chain - ask to speak to a manager or the head of the lenders appraisal department. If you get no co-operation, politely but firmly let them know that you will continue to pursue this AND will take your business elsewhere. If you end up going to another lender, ask them point blank if they are using an AMC to order their appraisals and if so, what is the criteria? Is the appraiser selected on fee and turn time or quality of work? Is the appraiser local? Is the appraiser experienced? Insist on getting local and experienced and not lowest fee and fastest turn time.

I rather like the suggestion made by one poster to complain - loud and long - to Andrew Coumo. This all lies on his doorstep - and you are a voter. If there are truly factual errors, you can report it to the state appraisal board. They often will take consumer complaints more seriously than complaints from other appraisers. But please be aware that this could result in a serious hardship for the appraiser involved. Please make sure of your facts and continue to try to get it resolved before you take that step.

Additionally, because you may be being ill-served by the HVCC (Home Valuation Code of Conduct) foisted on appraisers and lenders, most definitely contact the following folks and air your grievances. Be precise and factual, giving as much information as possible, including, if possible, a copy of the appraisal with errors noted. You may be a victim of the typical AMC business model - fastest, cheapest - and not necessarily the most qualified.



HVCC-complaints@comcast.net

James Lockhart at:
FHFAinfo@FHFA.gov

 

[mstar]

So as suggested, I emailed the appraiser after measuring my house. Following is the response I got back (Yes, he wrote all in caps):

THANK YOU FOR YOUR CONCERNS.

APPRAISALS ARE DETAIL IN NATURE BUT OBJECTIVE IN RELATION TO COMPARABLES. WITH ALL THAT YOU MENTIONED AND ASSUMING IT IS ACCURATE WE ARE ONLY TALKING ABOUT MAYBE $10-20,000 IN DIFFERENCE IN YOUR FAVOR.

IN SHORT, WE CAN GO BACK AND FORTH BUT THE BOTTOM LINE IS TRULY $10-20 MAYBE $30,000 IN DIFFERENCE WHEN CONSIDERING SQ. FOOTAGE DIFFERENCES AND OTHER LOCATIONAL DIFFERENCES.... NOT TO SAY THE NEW LISTINGS ON [my street - name redacted] THAT HAVE COME ON THE MARKET.

MORE OVER THERE ARE OTHER COMPS. NOT USED THAT CAN ALSO SUPPORT MY VALUE. I AM NOT IN BUSINESS TO COME IN LOW, JUST THE FAIR MARKET PRICE BASED ON FANIE MAE AND USPAP GUIDELINES.

I respect the opinions that you have all shared with me concerning this matter and I will take your advice about how I should proceed from here. I do not want to cause any trouble for anyone if I am being treated fairly, but to me this is an unacceptable response.

Just to respond to a few of the other suggestions I received: Yes, I plan on writing Cuomo about this and will share any response I receive. Also, I would talk to other banks, but I have a HELOC with my bank also, and I have heard horror stories about people trying to refinance their first loans with other banks in terms of getting the subornation on a timely basis.