What is Multi-family

[David Dietz]

This definition pertains to loan pricing and applicability not property definition. This is to differentiate between 2-4 unit properties, multi family and mixed use properties not to differentiate between SFR attached and MF.

You may be correct but until someone can provide documented prof from Fannie Mae it is speculation and assumptions.

 

[Mr Rex]

You may be correct but until someone can provide documented prof from Fannie Mae it is speculation and assumptions.

This is as good as it gets from Fannie:


XI, 403.06: Present Land Use (11/01/05)
Our appraisal report forms provide an area for the appraiser to report the relative percentages of the developed land in the neighborhood when discussing the present land use, rather than simply referring to the zoning classifications. The appraiser should report separately the percentage of developed one-family sites, developed two-family to four-family sites, etc. Undeveloped land should be reported as vacant. In addition, if there is a significant amount of vacant or undeveloped land in the neighborhood, the appraiser should include comments to that effect to ensure that he or she adequately describes the neighborhood. If the present land use in the neighborhood is not one of those listed on the appraisal report form—such as parkland—the appraiser also must indicate the type of land use and its related percentage. The total of the types of land uses must equal 100 percent.

 

[James E. Manning]

When I was performing appraisals in some areas of San Mateo County, I would come across situations where there was more than one family living in the house.

One SFR had 4-5 family's living in 1200 sq ft. To make matters worse, they had a large nine foot sectional couch in front of a giant big screen TV. I had to turn sideways to get through the living room.

Before you jump on me, all members of the 4-5 family's were related. For example, there was grandma and grandpa, the grandchildren and their spouses with their kids, their siblings with their kids, their parents, etc.

Does the fact that they were related make them one family? What if there was a cousin or two involved?

By the way, the front yard was a parking lot.

:Eyecrazy:

 

[David Dietz]

Rex, by that section of Fannie Mae I would be inclined to believe they see anything over four family units to be multi family. Is this how you read it? They specifically say one-family sites as you highlighted and move on. So condo's with over five units on one site or plot of land would be multi-family.

 

[David Beasley]

Case Closed. I've always included condo complexes as multi-family, more than one family living on one lot. It's about density.

Count me as a "me too" on this. Yes, condos represent SFR ownership, BUT, and that's a big but, they are typically situated in multi-family (multi-condo) buildings. Here in the South anyway...Very very few condos here are 2-3-4 unit buldings, most are glorified apartments that were sold off as individual units. The typical condo development here has buildings with 8-12-18-24 condo units in each building.

I used to count and show them as "SFR" in that area of the condo form, but have come to believe (arguably, as you all have said) that condos in those above situations are indeed multi-family density since each unit has an implied ownership stake in the common area and the buildings themselves house multiple families.

If any appraiser ever got really rung up by an appraisal board over this argument, then someone somewhere has way too much time on their hands. No, the sticker wicket when it comes to condo appraising, in my experience anyway, is the ratio of owners to renters. We have a couple of condo places here that only have 10-20% ownership and the rest are tenants. THAT is important to report and not get wrong...but single vs multi? Choose a side, adequately support it, and you'll likely be just fine either way.