Slippery Slope: As-repaired And The Appraiser's Assumption

[residentialguy]

I'll skip all the Q&As and tell you that NO, it's not USPAP compliant. The deal will fall dead and you are now a target for suing because YOU tried to dictate and/or assume how they would fix the problem.

As I stated in the beginning ...I would rather not have a report out there that reflects an assumption and proved to be false. It is better to stop, get the plans and specs of how they are going to cure the problem, then finish the report that reflects the subject as it is to be repaired. Last thing you want to do is get a call from the state board or summoned to court with claims that your report is mis-leading or you tried to dictate something that you don't have the power to do. We have the power to report a problem and make the report subject to repair so that problem no longer exists.

 

[J Grant]

I'll skip all the Q&As and tell you that NO, it's not USPAP compliant. The deal will fall dead and you are now a target for suing because YOU tried to dictate and/or assume how they would fix the problem.

Oh please, the deal would be dead because owner did not comply with the subject to repair portion- if that made lender deny loan, so be it. Of course lender could opt to order a new appraisal based on house having no deck- but you did not give the lender that option, instead you "fudged " things ( whatever that means)

And yes, an assumption of repair or specification of how to repair in broad, terms is part of the assignment. All you had to say was replace the unsafe deck boards with boards in a workmanlike manner. That is not playing contractor which would mean specifying grade of lumber or type of nails used, it is common sense, logical to the assignment and assignment results.

 

[J Grant]

Ok...is that new appraisal USPAP compliant just by using that form standing alone?

When you do a 1004 D form, it erased the 1004 form appraisal and replaces it. Your conclusion is USPAP compliant by the work file and you analysis, including the work done on the effective date original appraisal- you developed an opinion then that the deck was worth 5k adjusted for ( for example), now deck is gone, what impact on the opinion of market value did that result in on eff 1004 inspection date? Is a deck still worth 5k, or not?

 

[residentialguy]

All you had to say was replace the unsafe deck boards with boards in a workmanlike manner. That is not playing contractor which would mean specifying grade of lumber or type of nails used, it is common sense, logical to the assignment and assignment results.

Really??? Have you ever done that to an old deck? Seeing brand new boards mixed with old weathered boards? You can do that in a workmanlike manner...to look nice you'd have to either replace the deck, or paint it so that it covers it. Now it'll cost you more than the contributory value of the deck, since the deck is on it's last legs anyway. Is that your idea of common sense??? I'd hate to be you in court defending that position.

 

[J Grant]

Res -Guy -I've struggled with making the report subject to repair without knowing how they are going to repair it, which can affect value. I had a sale where the deck had some unsafe boards that needed to be replaced. I made the deck subject to curing the safety hazard. I assumed a few bad decking boards would be replaced. I come back for a final and the safety hazard was cured all right, except instead of replacing 1/2 doz boards

( I assumed ) the logical assumption for deck repair, the problem is you failed to state your assumption. " Subject to repair by replacing the rotted boards with new boards in a workmanlike manner." .

You failed to adequately describe how to cure the repair, even though you based the value on your very own assumption of how that cure would be done to retain the value the subject to is based on....State your assumption next time to avoid the problem.

 

[J Grant]

Really??? Have you ever done that to an old deck? Seeing brand new boards mixed with old weathered boards? You can do that in a workmanlike manner...to look nice you'd have to either replace the deck, or paint it so that it covers it. Now it'll cost you more than the contributory value of the deck, since the deck is on it's last legs anyway. Is that your idea of common sense??? I'd hate to be you in court defending that position.

I'd rather be in court defending the position that the owner added new boards and all it needed was a cosmetic fix of painting or letting the new boards be exposed to weather a season to blend in, which is still cosmetic...vs what you did, "fudging" things so removing an entire deck which affects value is the "cure"...that the appraisal based on house having a deck is the same value as house having no deck, I can't imagine what gibberish you wrote but a "court" could have a field day with it!

I have seen older decks with boards replaced; they look okay. A more upscale house would sand and re finish or repaint, the deck, a less upscale house might not. A new owner would appreciate the deck is in good repair and functional.

 

[residentialguy]

I'd rather be in court defending the position that the owner added new boards and all it needed was a cosmetic fix of painting or letting the new boards be exposed to weather a season to blend in, bhwihc is still cosmetic...vs what you did, "fudging" things so removing an entire deck which affects value is the "cure"...that the appraisal based on house having a deck is the same value as house having no deck, I can't imagine what gibberish you wrote but a "court" could have a field day with it!

LOL....I'm writing this tread because I learned that was not the best way to handle it. Maybe you should try to learn. Luckily the contributory value of that old deck was not significant and did not affect the market value. The buyers were going to replace the deck anyway...so razing it was a bonus.

 

[J Grant]

LOL....I'm writing this tread because I learned that was not the best way to handle it. Maybe you should try to learn. Luckily the contributory value of that old deck was not significant and did not affect the market value. The buyers were going to replace the deck anyway...so razing it was a bonus.

Then you handled it wrong originally. If the deck was in such bad shape, then YOU should have recommended razing it, or giving it no value due to poor condition. Instead you called for repair and adjusted for value of the deck, even though you say the contributory value of that old deck was not "significant". How much was the deck adjusted for?

Whatever, you worked around it to get the deal closed but imo not great advice to follow...

 

[residentialguy]

Then you handled it wrong originally. If the deck was in such bad shape, then YOU should have recommended razing it, or giving it no value due to poor condition.

There you go assuming again and making an *** out of yourself. It wasn't that bad. But this is not about this situation. Stay focused, JG

Subject to repair by replacing the rotted boards

Where do you get that kind of authority to tell them how to construct their house?

 

[residentialguy]

Let's change gears so you side trackers don't get sided tracked

Let's use the common peeling paint repair. One way to cure it is to re-paint, which is typically how it's done. But what if the guy works with a siding company and they put new siding on the house because that was less expensive than painting and will have a higher return for his money. Makes sense! But you, the appraiser assumed that they would re-paint. Now he has an appraisal reflecting a house with old repainted hardboard and the house has brand new siding on it. That's on you for assuming. You'll have to now re-do that appraisal...but they're closing today and they don't have the time to re-process a new appraisal. The deal falls thru and now the seller is suing you!

Whereas, had you simply said that that there is a hazard with the paint peeling and that issue needs to be cured. I'll put this on hold and once I get the plans on how that issue will be cured, I will then complete the appraisal reflecting the actual work completed and when it's finished, I'll do a final to make sure the house is done as planned. Now your report reflects the completed work and have eliminated any issues like this.