Appraisal Ace Blog

Checking Utilites
August 15th, 2008 11:54 AM
Just a heads up, everyone.
 
Lately I have been running into a situation when appraising REOs that the lenders are requiring all utilites to be on and checked.
 
FHA has always required utilities to be on and checked, but in the past it didn't seem to be a requirement for other loan programs, at least not on the ones I have been doing.
 
Last month I had to make a return trip to Plumas Lake to verify utilites were on a month after I submitted the original report. Since I asked before I did the initial visit if the utilities were on and the client said it didn't matter, I charged a return trip charge to verify utilites. It was not convenient for the client, the borrower or me.
 
Right now I am in the process of appraising a home (non-FHA) in El Dorado Hills where the electricity and water are on, but the gas is not. I asked the loan officer about the gas on Wednesday morning. The answer came back after two days that ALL utilities need to be on and verified. PG&E won't be turning on the gas until next Tuesday, delaying my report by 4 business days. That is a significant delay in my mind.
 
The earlier in the process that someone checks the loan program to find out whether or not all utilities need to be on, the more likely that it will not become an issue or a delay. It seems that PG&E is a big culprit in not being able to get things turned on in a timely manner, but any of the utilities could conceivably cause a delay. Especially if no checking is done until after the appraisal is ordered.
 
I hope this helps smooth a few reports for you.
Posted in:General
Posted by William McKnight on August 15th, 2008 11:54 AMPost a Comment

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