will FHA accept an MLS photo?

[Indiana Jones]

I had one where there were kids playing in the front yard. I drove by the property 3 times within an hour and they were still there.

I didn't take a photo, and put an MLS photo in the report and explained it. Never heard a word about it.

 

[johnjoslin]

greg, i like your idea. this is the most logical next step. i'm in the process of asking my client if this is OK. else, if i drive back, i definitely won't be making this mistake again!

 

[CANative]

Right you are Rex. But it's a stupid and IMO short sighted rule especially for rural property appraisals. You never know what the property is going to be like, everything is miles and miles away, sometimes you can't find the comp or you can't see it from the street. You can't appraise many rural properties while you're still in the subject's driveway.

It sounds like the OP did some really good due diligence in finding a better comp after getting into the report back at the office. I think the photo and inspect from the street obsession harkens back to days when MLS technology was primitive. Now days you can view a dozen pictures of the outside and inside. If I know the area and have been on the street the comp is on a dozen times, what sense does it make to spend a half day just to get a picture?

I'm not going to be judgmental about the OP on this one. Been there, done that.

 

[Stone]

i thought if i disclosed where the photo came from, it was OK. the VA allows you to do this. they don't consider this a degradation in the appraisal quality.

You seem to be missing Rex's point. Your certification says you personally inspected the comparables from the street. If you use an MLS photo, that doesn't mean it is ok to skip driving to the property.

FWIW - this is why so many are against using MLS photos at all. I don't agree with that, but I also don't agree with signing a certification that says I did something while not actually doing it.

Really read your pre-printed certs.



Edited to put the correct quote in the post

 

[Mr Rex]

I don't disagree too much Greg, but it sure seems like there is a high level of comfort with an MLS photo from 1.5 hours away...

and what Stone said.

and yes, I have made those long lonely drives back to take a single MLS photo, costs a ton of money and time, but as the saying goes, Say what you do, do what you say.

 

[Stone]

If I know the area and have been on the street the comp is on a dozen times, what sense does it make to spend a half day just to get a picture?

Because you said you did? If the OP wrote that he didn't do an exterior inspection on it, that is a different thing. But, if the original certs stand, that is what he needs to do.

I've had to spend an entire day (more than once:Eyecrazy: ) going back out to look at a tract because I didn't look at it the first time out and it was appropriate for the report. It sucks, but it happens.

 

[CANative]

Most of the time I analyze dozens of sales and they all might be comparable in some way or another and have relevance in the development of the appraisal. Even though I only presented 3 or 4 on a grid in the report, I'm still thinking of the others and sometimes I'll even scan a spreadsheet of them into an addendum.

Do I have to drive by each of those and take a picture?

What about comps on roads I KNOW you can't see any improvements or roads which don't have addresses posted? Just take a generic road picture?

The OP's comp is a dated sale and was added in the interest of making a report even more credible than required. Adequately explained, I would bet that the appraisers at the HOC would let it pass. If not, then I don't think they are being as reasonable as they claim to be.

 

[CANative]

Your certification says you personally inspected the comparables from the street.

Which comparables? The pool of sales or just the ones in the grid?

I'm not disagreeing too much either. I've had to go back out...

Like yesterday. Even though the agent said you can't see the house from the road I was determined to give it a try. The comp is in Hopland. I decided to get my car washed (it's been 6 months). On the way back I went to take a look. The address is 8000 Feliz Creek and it's up in the hills. The black top ran out at 2400 Feliz Creek. I said screw it... Wasn't going to put 2 inches of powdered dust on my 15 minute old wash and wax just for a picture of trees.

 

[Mike Garrett RAA]

I have used MLS photos...with an explanation as to why. Mostly situating of locks gate, people in the yard, snowing so hard you couldn't see the house, etc.

 

[Lee Lansford]

i did submit the appraisal. do you know where it states in the manual exactly what the rules are about this? i'm contacting the FHA santa ana office to see if i can just delete this comp. i'll let you know what they say.

aj

Read the SOW in Fannie's form. It states that you viewed the sold comparison when in fact you did not. That's what we call a "no-no".