Can VA Appraiser adjust for lot size?

[treski]

Hello, all.

So, we got an offer accepted on a home and we have been going through various steps of paperwork and waiting in the meantime.  I am using my VA loan.

Everything was going quite smoothly until our appraiser initiated the Tidewater Initiative on Friday, which clearly means our home did not appraise.  We won't know how low it was until maybe tomorrow, as our realtor was given 2 business days to provide comps within a 1 mile radius.  From what I understand, this step is basically a formality as appraisers have the same MLS access realtors have...so no new information will actually be provided.

According to my realtor, the appraiser communicated to her that if my lender (Veteran's United) would allow him to adjust for lot size (our lot is 2X-3X as large as ALL of the comps), our house would likely appraise.

My question:  Is this really the case?  Can a lender really determine which aspects of a property a VA Appraiser is allowed to consider?

I have doubts only because my realtor has been encouraging/pushing me to use a lender in town, but I have resisted because I like VU and because I have become a little bit suspicious of my realtor's enthusiasm for the in-town lender.  

Are there lenders who would let a VA Appraiser account for lot size.

If so, do you know any? 

[Anonymous]

If you haven't already, go check out a post in this forum by Glenn_S titled 'Interesting reading-Appraisers Forum'. The link he posted is full of information you'll surely find useful. I'm sorry you're having to deal with this. Best of luck, treski!

[StartingOver10]

Yes banks can tell an appraiser which comps to use. This is newly in effect. I have seen banks reject comps from an appraisal especially if they feel the value is too high. After the mortgage meltdown the lenders were suppose to not influence the appraisers at all but that really was rhetoric. It's a long story, but the short version is this, now the banks have more control over valuation models, comps used, and appraisers than they ever had in the past. iME they are using the control to hold appraisal valuations down though to mitigate their risk. Getting the valuation higher is difficult unless an obvious error was made by the appraiser.

In your case the land value should have been addressed in the appraisal already. Do you have a copy of the appraisal to see it?

last week one of my buyers properties didn't appraise. We went back to the seller and had them reduce the purchase price to the new appraised value. They did. We are closing on time. Have you talked with the seller about reducing the purchase price to meet the actual appraisal value?

[frugalQ]

so now banks have control over how much a home appraises?  wow...isn't that a conflict of interest?

[StartingOver10]

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@frugalQ wrote:

so now banks have control over how much a home appraises?  wow...isn't that a conflict of interest?

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I would think there is a conflict, but apparently Fannie Mae doesn't think so. Here is the actual Fannie Mae letter https://www.fanniemae.com/content/announcement/ll1502.pdf

What I have been seeing from some appraisers (when the borrower has a high LTV loan) is large adjustments off comparable sales reducing the appraised value considerably. Naturally, this is on a case by case type basis, but it happens often enough that a pattern begins to emerge. And it seems to happen in only one direction - lower valuations on only higher LTV type loans.

[frugalQ]

wow...