Hurrican Ike - Appraisal Recertifications

If you are in an area effected by Hurricane Ike and recently closed on either a purchase, or refinance transaction you may be contacted by your current lender for a “Re-certification of value”. The fastest way to see if you are in a FEMA effected area is to visit FEMA’s affected area list located by clicking here.

This is a simple process whereby the Appraiser will simply check the condition of your home to make sure that there is no storm damage that will effect the habitability of the home.

Here are a couple of tips to make this process go smoother:

If you have closed on a transaction with  the past couple of weeks contact your Insurance Agent and current Lender immediately to find out of a re-certification is required.

If you are in the process of closing in the next few weeks and your appraisal has not been ordered, a statement will be made by the Appraiser that there are not any habitability issues.

If your appraisal has been ordered, contact the current lender to ensure that a re-inspection has been ordered.  In some situations, pictures from the Listing Agent and a statement that the home was not damaged will be sufficient provided that pictures are available.

Most Lenders with loans in process of being closed on the Gulf Coast of Texas and Louisiana should be on top of ordering re-certifications but it certainly doesn’t hurt to ask them if they have made arrangements for the re-certification to be ordered.

As a result of the re-certification process your closing may be delayed.  There are still approximately 1.5 million people in the greater Houston area that are with out power.  Among those with out power are appraisers, title companies, and some lenders.

 

September 17, 2008