Sacramento Appraisal Blog

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FHA Appraisal Articles

Does FHA Require the Air Conditioner to Work?

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ac1Yes. If there is an air conditioner at the subject property, it must be in working order for HUD to guarantee the loan. What if the air conditioner was stolen (that happens quite a bit with bank-owned properties)? If there is clearly supposed to be an air conditioner at the house, then it must be installed and working. Often times the owner or bank will install a new one before the close of escrow to meet this requirement. The gist is that FHA does not require an air conditioner in a house, but if one is there (or should be there), then it must work properly. Does that make sense?

If you have any questions, let me know. I am an FHA approved appraiser in the Sacramento Region and I can be reached at 916-595-3735 or www.LundquistCompany.com.

www.SacramentoAppraisalBlog.com Does FHA Require the Air Conditioner to Work?

What does FHA say about water heaters?

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water-heaterWhat does HUD say about water heaters? First and foremost, the water heater must work and must be able to do its job. This is not a revolutionary concept, but if there is no hot water coming out the faucet when there should be, then clearly there is an issue to be solved. Testing the water temperature and water pressure is something that appraisers do during an FHA property inspection. Secondly, if local code states that the water heater must be strapped, then HUD requires a strap. 

If you have any questions about FHA standards or FHA real estate appraisals in the Sacramento Region, give me a call at 916-595-3735 or shoot me an email at info@LundquistCompany.com.

www.SacramentoAppraisalBlog.com What does FHA say about water heaters?

Does FHA Allow Bare Wood? – A Tidbit for FHA Appraisal Inspections in the Sacramento Area

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Here is one quick tid-bit for FHA appraisal inspections:

Does FHA allow bare wood on the exterior of a house?  No. Regardless of the age of the house (pre-1978 or newer), wood must not be bare and exposed directly to the elements. This goes for both the house and any structure on the property (outbuilding, shed, barn…). 

Regarding required repairs, it is common for HUD to require repairs when there is bare wood, a defective paint surface (chipping, flaking, cracking or peeling paint) or evidence of active infestation by wood destroying insects. In these instances, the first step is to cure the defective paint surface or replace the damaged wood if applicable and make sure to properly seal the structure (sealant or paint). 

Please let me know if you have any questions. I am experienced with FHA appraisals and I am doing quite a few of them these days. Lenders, banks, loan officers, brokers and home owners can still choose their own appraiser for FHA deals and I would be very glad to be selected by you.

www.SacramentoAppraisalBlog.com Does FHA Allow Bare Wood? – A Tidbit for FHA Appraisal Inspections in the Sacramento Area

What are FHA guidelines for Removing Lead-Base Paint? (question from search engine)

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Website statistics show that someone found this site today when searching for the answer to the following question: What are FHA guidelines for removing lead-base paint? I’d like to shed some light on the answer and hopefully help any future readers too.

chipping-paintJPGAs indicated on the HUD website in tremendous detail, whether you are in Sacramento or anywhere in the United States, there is a very specific methodology for the abatement of lead-base paint. To learn more than you probably ever wanted to know about lead-base paint removal, you can DOWNLOAD a PDF document from HUD (50+ pages). In short though, the answer to the question is that a defective paint surface (chipping, cracking, flaking, peeling) on a property built prior to 1978 must be cured by a proper method of scraping and then painting afterward. Careful attention must also be given to flakes of paint falling on the soil during removal. Thus you can see that it doesn’t jive well with HUD to simply slop on some new paint over a cracked or flaking surface and then call it cured. The defective portion of paint actually has to be properly removed and then the bare wood must be painted. Does that make sense?

Why do you think they HUD is so concerned about lead-base paint anyway?   

If you have any questions, feel free to contact me at 916-595-3735 or www.lundquistcompany.com or LundquistCompany@gmail.com

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