The Times, They Are A Changing.....

[Richard Carlsen]

For the second time in as many weeks I've run into an old mobile that was added to with a stick built addition. This one was a honey. I mean it was well done. If it had not been for the 1/2 basement and the 7-foot ceilings in the bedrooms, I might have missed it. The crawl space was sealed and there was not the least evidence of a mobile. Only upon questioning the 20-year-old son who was there did the truth come out; it started life as a mobile.

I called the lender and of course he canceled the order right away.

My problem is, even knowing that a house started life as a mobile, there is no way that I can get true comparables that also were mobiles. And with no data, I cannot measure what a knowledgeable buyer would discount for such a house given the inferior start in life and the trouble financing in order to use a site built house. Using mobile comps won't work either.

Therefore, I have made an executive decision that hence forth, if a house began as a mobile and has had site built additions other than entries and breezeways; I am declining the order. Too much liability with too little hard data in this market. Any number I come up with is just an educated guess and I don't like guessing games.

Anybody else having the same problem?

 

[Farm Gal]

yup.

Point by point inclusive of your solution to the problem... 8)

Given that no 'normal lender' will touch the loan anyway...
unless the unhappy homeowner gets an ignorant appriaser it is most likely to sell to a bank or S&L that olds the loan anyway, and in my noeck of the woods, those folk have in-house appraisers.

Why beat my head on the brick wall only to have everyone mad cause they can't use the appraisal anyway :?

 

[Jeff Horton]

Richard, I have run into the same thing here. Simply no comps to determine a value. I used to work for a bank that would loan on odd balls like that if they had good credit. Once had to do two singles wides pulled together and made into one unit. If that was not bad enough I had to also include acreage and an old low quality home on the site.

Needless to say I used a lot of Professional Opinion on that one and a lot of statements explaining what I did.

Which brings up the question "What about our Professional Opinion?" When my dad was training me (he retired a few years ago) that was something he taught me. Sometimes there is no data and you just have to use what data you have to create a Profesional Opinion and just clearly explain what you did.

The two single wides I mentioned were an excellent example. There was no data on similar sale anywhere that I could find. Obviously that is not an option for a Fannie Mae loan. But seems to me that this is lost art.

 

[Mountain Man]

Ditto, got 'em in my area too. I had the same thing two months ago, the only way I could tell it was a MH was 1, it had that funny slanted end that was nicely finished with vinyl, and 2, the tax card said so.

But we have enough appraiser in the area that ignore those clues, so I actually have some sales. :roll:

 

[Verne Hebert]

I am surprised you don't have a lot of these up there--we have a lot here; I call them a Montana Ranch style, and if the additions have no gable ends they are "typical". Just kidding, but not really.

You'd love working here. I would comp a manufactured,an average/fair quality home, and an average quality home. There is your range.

I am very traditional, I dont guess. And like Jeff I believe there are times your experience is going to have to be relied upon to reconcile a value, or run with a range; and like Jeff I would clearly state my reconciliation. Unlike Jeff, I never use the word art; I hang on the other end of the spectrum with quantified extracted adjustments. In your case you are lacking one or two lines of adjustment--it has been alot worse.

I appraised a converted railroad car as a part of a condemnation assignment for MDOT--lovely.

I just watched a single wide 5 miles from my office being "engulfed" and incorporated into a conventional framed house. From the road it is an SFR--absolutely can't tell. This is one of the nicer ones I have seen. Might even have a can crusher/beer tap combo.

Enjoy the weekend!

 

[Ken in Arkansas]

How would you have liked to have done a "drive-by" on that engulfed mobile home? Your disclaimers probably would have protected you, but it could have been embarrasing!

 

[Verne Hebert]

I don't know about you guys but I don't do drivebys here. I convert to a 1004ab.

 

[Frank Bertrand]

Luckily the assessment office has a "mobile home-converted" catagory so the problem is solved in looking for comps.

Had a buried mobile home converted to "earth home". There were 7 sales in 8 years. The AMC was desperate even after I told them I would have to go back so far.

Incredibly, there was on sale of a earth home (they built the basement first, ran out of money, converted to "earth home")earlier this year.

Subject never made the 'owner's estimate of value"

so it goes...