egut's Profile
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August 2, 2009
FHA Appraisal Results
-Wanted to follow up on my post from a week or so ago re: FHA appraisal. Ours was done last week. The appraiser was at the house for about 30 minutes and appraised it at the purchase price w/ no repairs needed. Phew. It was a very cut and dry experience. We'd been nervous as the house needs renovation, and we didn't want that to get in the way of closing. The review process was not as scary as we thought. You all were right. Thanks.
July 21, 2009
FHA Appraisal Process
We're looking at purchasing a 2-family home. The offer's been accepted, we've had the inspection done and negotiated issues, getting a little off price. We're going with a FHA loan so once the contract's signed the bank gets sends in an appraiser. The appraiser may require repairs before finalizing the loan. Like so many, the home is old. It needs typical updating but it's in livable shape--upgrading older but functioning plumbing, old but non-leaking roof, typical stuff like old tile, some missing window screens, etc. Does anyone have first hand experience with the FHA appraisal? What can one expect?
Author's Comments
Thank you so much. That sounds reasonable. -the whole process is anxiety producing.
Posted by: egut at July 22, 2009 3:53 PM in response to FHA Appraisal Process
Good questions. I'm not sure. I think they want to ensure a place is "livable," safe, and the buyer isn't going to be hit by a massive expense the day after closing. -Don't know how deep they'll go to determine that though. I wouldn't think they could require someone to provide information gotten through a specialist.
Posted by: egut at July 21, 2009 5:31 PM in response to FHA Appraisal Process
This is good to know. Thank you. I'm trying to remember if there's a stair rail in the basement...think so! We'll need to update the mechanicals at some point, but they work now. The house is in better shape than a lot of homes we've seen. If anyone else has also experience with the process, it would be great to hear it.
Posted by: egut at July 21, 2009 12:05 PM in response to FHA Appraisal Process
You may need at least $40k for closing, including the $19+ down payment. If you wanted to bring the interest payment down by purchasing points, you might be looking at around $50-55k altogether. If you put down 3.5%, pay a couple of points to get to 5%, the monthly payment might look like $3,100 including FHA's version of pmi but not including taxes or housing insurance. That could add another several hundred more. We've been doing similar calculations, and these were the numbers we came to for a house @ $550k using FHA. Your bank would be able to give you the best information though.
Posted by: egut at July 10, 2009 6:38 PM in response to Mortgage Approval Doable?
Might want to go w/ the renovated one as the other house seems to have an accepted offer already in place.
Posted by: egut at May 5, 2009 9:44 PM in response to Which house would you go for?
How did you go about testing the soil? I've seen test kits @ home depot for PH and such but not lead. -Would love to check out our soil as we've heard there was quite a bit of "stuff" back there for years.
Posted by: egut at May 3, 2009 4:28 PM in response to reality of city gardening
Responses to Author's Forum Comments
Lead from gas exhaust was a definite threat for many years. Community gardens near roads were not allowed to grow edibles (or were enjoined from eating them.)
Posted by: Arkady at May 4, 2009 3:28 PM in response to reality of city gardening
Leaded gasoline is hugely responsible for lead in the soil. Here's a pretty good write up about it: http://www.damninteresting.com/?p=932
Posted by: gracias at May 4, 2009 3:44 PM in response to reality of city gardening
Our neighbors just had their soil tested in Windsor Terrace and it came back 500 ppm for lead and cadmium. We have a 2 foot high raised bed with no barrier and are growing everything in there - and some tomatoes/strawberries in pots. Said neighbor has been growing berries and tomatoes in her ground for years, with 5 kids, and all the kids have low lead levels. I am generally a bit neurotic about chemicals and heavy metals with my kids, but I think a raised bed is enough of a precaution - and my kids play in the dirt all the time, we just wash hands after. Happy growing!
Posted by: WTbound at May 4, 2009 5:16 PM in response to reality of city gardening
i had the soil testing done by the Brooklyn College Environmental Sciences Analytical Center. the prices are great!
http://www.brooklyn.cuny.edu/pub/departments/esac/
wtbound, our lead levels are 3x your neighbors, unfortunately. 500 ppm is safe to grow most veggies, except lettuces.
thanks everyone for the input!
Posted by: lc at May 4, 2009 7:18 PM in response to reality of city gardening
You're very close. You may have enough to do it. If your credit score is over 750 and no debt then yes. But you're debt is very low, so probably. Also though with rent so low, maybe you can find a two family in the low 400s.
Posted by: mopar at July 11, 2009 10:56 PM in response to Mortgage Approval Doable?
Your situation is similar to ours, and we qualified for a loan slightly higher than this house price without counting the rental income. So probably yes you will be able to do this or very close.
Posted by: mopar at July 12, 2009 10:51 AM in response to Mortgage Approval Doable?
What if the boiler hasn't been turned on in years? What if the stoves aren't connected to the gas lines? Do they do asbestos testing? What if the buyer does asbestos testing on the side -- could they keep the results a secret?
Just curious.
Posted by: mopar at July 21, 2009 12:39 PM in response to FHA Appraisal Process
Good questions. I'm not sure. I think they want to ensure a place is "livable," safe, and the buyer isn't going to be hit by a massive expense the day after closing. -Don't know how deep they'll go to determine that though. I wouldn't think they could require someone to provide information gotten through a specialist.
Posted by: egut at July 21, 2009 5:31 PM in response to FHA Appraisal Process
I'm a FHA approved appraiser, we not as scary as you think, FHA is mainly concerned over safety issues, and that all utilities should be in good working condition. There are limits how far we can check, remember we are appraisers and not building inspectors. We do not check for asbestos, but we may recommend an additional inspection by a profecional, if a safety issue is identified.
Posted by: NYAppraiser at July 22, 2009 3:47 AM in response to FHA Appraisal Process
Thank you so much. That sounds reasonable. -the whole process is anxiety producing.
Posted by: egut at July 22, 2009 3:53 PM in response to FHA Appraisal Process
Mopar, I wish I knew the guy's name. The bank (Chase) hired him directly. We weren't able to get to the house for the appraisal so didn't meet the fellow in person. It happened very fast --appraiser looked at the house on a Tuesday and had the report to the bank by Friday. I'll see if I can find out who it was.
Posted by: egut at August 3, 2009 5:17 PM in response to FHA Appraisal Results