appraisal wrong!

Guest

We are wanting to refinance our house and have just recently had it appraised . The appraiser has quoted us a price at about 70,000 less than when we had it appraised a year ago. Is that typical in this market now? OUr house now is appraised at below what we owe on it. Nothing has changed on it and in fact we have recently added improvements such as painting and a new deck on the back by the hot tub. We have sent him comps that a realtor friend has sent us that HE compared our house to ( you would think HE would know what he was comapring) and the appraiser told us they do not compare .???!!! What can we do as we have already paid him his fee of about $600.00 . It sounds like something fishy is going on and we are not sure where to turn next...any ideas?Thanks!

Guest

Also now we cannot get approved on our house loan. He is also telling us that FHA will not count outbuildings if the floor is dirt is that correct? Thanks!

gmakerley · Posted: Fri May 08, 2009 1:22 pm Post subject:

i'm not certain about the outbuildings, but it doesn't surprise me to find that your home under-appraised. that's pretty typical in this current market, yes.

i agree that it's worth bringing other comparables to the appraiser's attention. if they can be used and they confirm a higher value, that's a reasonable thing.

apexoffice · Posted: Sun May 10, 2009 8:57 am Post subject:

I agree with George, depending on your market area, it may very well have declined to that extent. Some areas around my market of Atlanta were seen dropping as much as 10% in a quarter and up to 30% for the year.

For the appraiser to consider the additional comparables provided by your agent, the comparable sales must be more similar or more recent than the sales originally selected by the appraiser.

As far as the outbuilding is concerned, the appraiser is partially correct assuming those were his exact words. According to FHA, and Fannie Mae for that matter, unless it has a permanently attached structural foundation, it is considered personal property. Above-ground pools are also considered personal property for the same reason.

I hope this helps.

Guest

Thank you for your replys; the structure is a permanant structure and has gottena building permit in the past to build it ( it is posted on one of the poles inside). All of the other FHA appraisers in the past as well as the realtors we have had come out have included it. The comps that our realtor sent us were with in the past year with one bieing just a few months ago...where as the comps that the appraiser sent us were in 2007 and there is also one that he had on there for 230,000 which the realtor pulled us and told us sold for 260,000. The other house that the appraiser pulled was a repo. That is why we are questioning it and wondering what is up. Your comments on this would be appreciated as we are wondering if we are being taken or not. Thank you for your help and knowledge.

Guest

Could the realtor be that far off in telling us our house could sell for 260,000 easily and the appraiser say it is only worth 200,000?

gmakerley · Posted: Mon May 11, 2009 8:36 am Post subject:

there are always going to be areas of disagreement between realtors and appraisers, but to see such a wide divergence is (to you) painful and (to me) a little puzzling.

each is a professional who ought to have all the material needed close at hand in order to provide a valid analysis of your home's value. how they can be so far apart is peculiar.

apexoffice · Posted: Mon May 11, 2009 8:56 am Post subject:

As long as you have a copy of the appraisal, you can have it reviewed by another appraiser for validity or you could even have a new appraisal completed. I will disclose that the review will cost the same or more than the appraisal itself. The lender may or may not accept a new appraisal but at least you will have a third opinion in the mix, which if they lean on one side or the other, you will quickly know which one is most likely wrong. You will also have some peace of mind in knowing one way or the other.

Guest

Thank you for your information; we really can't afford to get another appraisel as they are requiring we pay them upfront not roll them into the loan unfortunity. Is there anyway to check out if others have had a problem with this particular appraiser and is there anything we can do about it besides what you suggested above? We honestly feel we are getting shafted; there has got to be something that we can do besides spend more money? thank you for all of your help!

jameshogg · Posted: Mon May 11, 2009 11:44 pm Post subject:

Hi countrydreams,

To know whether there are others who have faced problem with the same appraiser, you can contact his customers. If the lender has a website of his own, you can check out the testimonial section of his website. This will also give you a fair idea whether his customers are satisfied with his services or not. I would suggest you to try and negotiate with your lender so that he rolls the costs into the loan.

Thanks

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