Complaints

• Initial Complaint

  06/12/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Order Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Transaction date: 6/8. The service was done on 6/7 Amount charge: $350 Service type: personal property value appraisal Reason for dispute: Very poor quality of service in terms of criteria to evaluate the property value. The compare data is very narrow and not compatible with my property's specification. When I request to speak to someone who is in charge for concern, they restricted all the means of communication to only EMAIL with no timeline in response as "company policy". To me, it is just a way to avoid talking to their clients. I requested them to refund my fee and keep their unqualified report or re-do my appraisal with more accurate criteria/ data. So far, they kept silence on me. I don't want other clients to be experience the same thing we did. More importantly, we would like dispute resolution. *******************

  Business response

  06/12/2023

  Please note that at 9:48 am on Wednesday, June 7th, 2023, we received a request through a very reputable referral company by the name of ***** Leads, for a residential appraisal to establish fair market value (See attached). We followed up on this lead and were able to get hired by the client, ************************. We were able to setup an appointment to inspect her property the same day at 1:00 pm. We promised that she would be receiving the finalized appraisal report to her e-mail electronically in PDF format two days later (48-hours), and at 11:38 am of Friday, June 9th we delivered the finalized report as promised. At 12:11 am of the same day, we received a text from ************* stating: "Hi ****, can I have a minute to talk to you?". We answered her text at 12:13 am saying: "Good morning *************, Please remit all questions or concerns via email by replying to the email we sent to you, and we'll be sure to address them as soon as possible. Thank you again for giving us the opportunity to serve you!". At 12:16 of Friday, she sent another text saying: "I would like to talk to someone rather than email". At 12:19 pm we replied "Mam, it is best that you remit all your questions and concerns via email. It is company policy. Like I said, we'll be sure to address them as soon as we can in writing. Thank you in advance for your understanding." At 2:46 pm of the same day she sent a text stating: "Hi, I sent a response email". To which we replied diligently at 2:47 pm of the same day: "Thank you! We'll be sure to address your concerns as soon as we can. Have a great weekend!". We also replied to her email at 4:21 pm of the same day, saying: "Hello *************, Just wanted to inform you that we received your concerns. We'll be sure to address them as soon as possible. We would like to take this opportunity to thank you again for giving us the opportunity to serve you. Have a great weekend!" (See attached). Today, Monday, June 12th, we were about to address her concerns when we came across this complaint that she had filled against us. 

  Please note that we always intended to address her concerns and were diligent in answering to all of her communications. She is requesting that we return her money ($350) or re-type her 38-page appraisal report. We did this appraisal following all of USPAP standards and regulations. She is complaining because we did not make an adjustment in the appraisal report, dollar per dollar for the money she invested in the improvement of her patio of $130,000.  

  Please find attached appraisal request, complete and thorough appraisal report and all email communications with ************** 

  Please feel free to contact me directly by email to: ************************************ or by phone to ************* if you have any questions or concerns. 

  Truly yours,

  ***********************

  Customer response

  06/13/2023

   
  Complaint: 20167204
  
  I am rejecting this response because:
  Until now, they still cannot answer all the questions I submitted on 6/9/23 beside a generic response that my concerns will be addressed. I request another appraisal as the do not think the data they used in the previous appraisal is accurate and objective enough. Otherwise, we will ask for the refund as their appraisal is not accurate and satisfactory.

  Please see the third email they attached. They did not respond to any of my questions. 

  
  Sincerely,
  
  *******************

  Business response

  06/13/2023

  ANSWER TO APPEAL:
  
  I have some questions about my appraisal BASED ON 3 properties sold or active within 2 months.
  
  1. The home at ************* Bend is at $170/ sqf. It is 2 years old, smaller lot, and absolutely no upgrade.
  
  Answer: Please note that this property is 2 years, which is considered to have the same "effective age" as the subject property. Due to this fact, this comparable was deemed an excellent indicator of value to help us arrive at the final opinion for the subject property. Please note that adjustments were made where warranted: View,room count, gross living area, garage, entry and patio. 
  
  Please note that no site adjustments were deemed necessary due to the fact that sale #1 with a ***** sq.ft. lot sold for $490,000, sale #2 with a much larger lot of ***** sq.ft.sold lower at $472,000 and last, sale #3 with a smaller lot, when compared to sale #2, of ***** sq.ft sold for much higher at $540,817. Therefore, there is a clear indication that there is no significant market recognition for the differences in lot size.
  
  2. With the appraisal of $585,000 for my home, it is $177.865/ sq. That is $7.9 difference per square foot. If you multiply by ***** sqt, it is $25,870. It means my upgrade worth $25,870, compared to that home. I spent almost $130,000 upgrade. Even with depreciation in less than 2 months, your evaluation is not even 20% of my cost.Please explain to me the formula to calculate your value added with the home improvement.
  
  Answer: Please note that when an owner invests in their property an upgrade, such as your covered patio with summer kitchen, it is recommended that the home owner be sensitive to the market and the type of patios that the homes in the immediate vicinity have;otherwise, the upgrade/improvement can become an "Over improvement"that cannot be justified by the market. Please understand that an adjustment in and appraisal cannot be "Dollar per dollar" invested, as adjustments in an appraisal are derived using market data and are market derived. 
  
  3. The home at ************* Bend is at $193.21/ sqf. It is 2 years old, smaller house and sold a month ago.Based on this rate, my home should be at least $635,467. And again, without any upgrades.
  
  Answer: Please note that the final opinion of value in an appraisal report is reconciled by finding the arithmetic mean of the comparables adjusted prices provided in the appraisal report rounded off to the closest number or the price per square foot. In this case the price per square foot of comparables #1, #2 and #3 mentioned in your communication sold for $170.20, $193.21 and $166.25 respectively, for an average sales price per square foot of: $176.54. If you multiply this price per square foot with the total square footage/GLA of your home of ***** sf = $580,640.06. We arrived at a final opinion of value for your home of $585,000 which is only a difference of $4,359.94, which speaks to how accurate our valuation was.
  
  4. The home at ************* Bend is at $166.25/ sqf. This home has exactly the same base model with NO upgrades and sold 2 months ago. Our home is still considered brand new with a year old and with upgrades. With our upgrade cost of $130,000, we do not agree with the appraisal of $585,000 which is only $45,000 difference compared to this home.
  
  Answer: Please note that this comparable, as you state in your communication, is of exactly the same base model as your home that sold very recently, 2 months ago. This home is of a "Brand New" home, never lived in. This home is the best indicator of value for your home valuation it sold for $45,000 less or $540,817 than appraised value. As explained above "adjustment in and appraisal cannot be made "Dollar per dollar" invested, as adjustments in an appraisal are derived using market data and are market derived".
  
  Conclusion: Please note that;even though, you invested $130,000 in a covered patio with a summer kitchen with electric power blinds and stone floors, it does not mean that your home is worth $130,000 more due to this improvement. As concluded in the valuation of your home supported by eight comparable sales that closed within the past 6 months of the effective date of the appraisal report, clearly your home's fair market value is $585,000. Indicating, that the improvement that you made to your home was an "Over improvement" that is not supported by the market. 
  
  5. I feel that I am wasting my $350 fee for this appraisal. Please either take back your appraisal and return my fee or re-do my appraisal. I will not recommend your company to anyone and I will make sure they know that.
  
  Answer: We are sorry that you feel that you wasted your $350 in this appraisal report. You hired us to provide you with "Fair market value" of your home and we presented a thorough and complete appraisal report well documented by the commentary within the report as well as the comparables presented in the report. All the sales presented in the appraisal report were considered to be excellent indicators of the subject's current market value estimate. This was based on the certified appraiser's judgement that these sales are among the most comparable to the subject property considering factors of location, size, age, condition, style and features.
  
  We provided you with a service and a well-documented 38-page valuation of your home and for this reason we cannot refund your money. We would like to thank you again for giving us the opportunity to serve you.

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