Sunroom With Unpermitted Woodstove

[Valueseeker]

Hey again,

Hoping to hear what you folks would do. I read a prior thread regarding sun rooms but I wanted to add to some of the responses and see if it's sensible to do.

The subject on the field card is 1600sf. They town counts the sunroom in the sf. (it was an addition thats on concrete pillars where the rest of the home is concrete mason block foundation. You also take a step down from the home to get into the room but it has good finish inside(electrical, walls, windows are all similar). It's heated with a wood stove that isn't on the field card and this whole addition is connected to the home by a typical interior door.

So I feel that this 200 sf sunroom isn't a part of the GLA. I'm going with 1400gla with a sunroom. As some members on the prior thread suggested, I am also going to give it it's own line item.

The problem I see is that I have comps with sunrooms but the field card is counting that sf in GLA. I don't want to account for the space twice so would you deduct the space from the field card and comment on the discrepancy and reasoning?
Your constructive input is always helpful.

Thanks

 

[J Grant]

Treat the comps as you do the subject for consistency, and explain why, note the difference betweeen sf on the property card and what is reported on appraisal and that it is credited as a line item amenity (sun room/eclsd porch)

 

[Meandering]

Does the sun room have heat other than the wood stove?

 

[Michigan CG]

I don't want to account for the space twice so would you deduct the space from the field card and comment on the discrepancy and reasoning?

What does this mean?

Why would you account for the space twice? What does the field card have to do with anything?

 

[Terrel L. Shields]

Is the stove unpermitted or simply absent from the field card? Our field cards do not include wood stoves, space heaters, pellet stoves, appliances, etc. Yes, I would treat a sunroom separately. I would also check those comps carefully and separately parse out the sun rooms on them as well. Our assessor has the bad habit of lumping same into GLA. But the assessor is not the final arbiter of what is or is not GLA. They don't even define GLA, simply heated SF here.

 

[Valueseeker]

What does this mean?

Why would you account for the space twice? What does the field card have to do with anything?

Meaning on the field card I can see the floor plan and total square feet. What I would be considering a sunroom is added to that square ft value. I don't want to say the comparable is 2000 with a sunroom when after looking at the field card it's really 1800 square feet if you take out the sunroom.

The Woodstove is the only heat source in that room. The rest of the house is baseboard

Thanks Terrel, I'll be checking the stove with the Building dept today. They always have the best hours when you need to get a hold of someone. Especially being around the holidays

 

[Restrain]

We have that down here with Florida Rooms, etc. we look at the quality (MLS photos), use tax data to decide if the sun room should be GLA, or separate, then adjust as necessary. As to the stove, this is a 'does it really matter' item. Don't over think the issue.

 

[KHS445]

It is always dangerous to offer an opinion without seeing the improvement, but with that said I would separate house and sun room when calculating the GLA. Based on your reported location this sounds more like a three season room with an alternate heat source, is a step down from the original living area, is on piers vs. a continuous foundation wall, etc. Is the underside of this area adequately insulated and protected from the elements?

Obviously I don't know your area and the market reaction to this type of improvement. It may be one of those things like a finished basement, where it isn't included in the GLA but it does add value. Just an example you may value the GLA at $50 SF and value the generic sun room area at $20 SF and add $15 SF for the level of finish. As suggested eariler get familiar with your comps (with and without sun rooms) and see what the market tells you.

 

[Meandering]

If the only source of heat is a wood stove, and is in the snowy north, and it does not have a continuous foundation, it sounds like it is of lower quality than the dwelling it is attached to, per your description. I would call it a porch room and not include it in GLA

 

[Mark K]

The problem I see is that I have comps with sunrooms but the field card is counting that sf in GLA.

Thanks

if your comps have similar sunrooms you should either break them out and put them on a separate line item also or go ahead and include your sunroom in the subject's GLA and explain in the discussion. I'd treat all of the sunrooms the same way for the sake of consistency. Apples to apples thing.

We have a lot of bonus rooms over garages (BOG) in this area and the assessor lumps them into the overall GLA. I always break them out separately and put them all on a separate line item. The sloped ceiling BOG does not have the same value as the main floor. Problem comes in when the BOGs range from 350 s.f. to 800 s.f. I want to adjust them against each other, not the main floor.