Appraisers' Free Forum

Residential form reports are usually 15-20 pages. I believe that 30-50 pages is short for a commercial narrative. Especially when there are several pages of legal description, tax cards, certifications, qualifications, etc. I have done a few short narratives of about 5-10 pages. But frankly, that is VERY short.

Tell me, if you will, what all that stuff you put in there has to do with anlyzing and reporting market value?

Not one darn thing.

But...a certification page is required, a state disclosure form is required, and a legal description is required. Pictures are desired, maps are desired, What do they have to do with it?

My educators never liked it when I didn't "show my work" but I still had the right answers. They could ask me to solve problems and I would do it, ususally in my head. However, they wanted to "see" my work. I never let the educators bully me like that and I don't let clients bully me like that.

"It makes them feel better about paying $2,000 for a 30-50 page report."

What are you doing? Phoning in the results and sending them a table of contents for your file?

I'm not pickin' on you Doug, and I know that there is an accepted amount of material in a narraitve appraisal. Me, being the sacred cow killer that I am, have had a consultatin with myself and we have decided to challenge the length of these reports that seem to contain a bunch of irrelevant stuffer. I have also noticed that some in the profession has decided not to raise the issue of summary vs self-contained reports and just call everything self contained.

My narratives contain at least 12 pages of limiting conditions and assumptions. Written to true legal length and overkill and I wouldn't part with any of it until our leaders decide for sure what we really are supposed to be doing. The rest of the stuff I could probably cram into 4 or 5 more pages, but I haven't done that yet.

I will if you will, but golly I gotta keep the CYA.

My CYA is very limited. I am not an Otis. If I get sued, I get sued. I can't stop them anyway. That's why I have insurance. It will cost me the same either way, win or lose.

Mentor,
I have submitted more than a couple of restricted use reports. I like short reports. I'd write a one page letter if I could get by with it.

Are we now to believe Doug lives on the slightly dangerous and wild side while Otis is the conservative? Remember Mike Garrett. "Run like the wind."

Seriously, the key must be the relationship with the client and if you can get one of those with an AMC of a MB please tell us how.

Joker wrote:My CYA is very limited. I am not an Otis. If I get sued, I get sued. I can't stop them anyway. That's why I have insurance. It will cost me the same either way, win or lose.

Cut that out. I don't produce the addenda like I used to. However, I do still end up putting a bunch that is supposed to be on the form over to the addenda - Rural properties with no fire numbers, I give a description how to get to it (I learned years ago when I had to do an REO that only had part of a legal and the address was something like "6.5 miles SE of Moriarty").