We're back on THAT again - same deal, another ridiculous REALLY??!?!? moment...
Yesterday as I was running from listing to listing, removing signs and lockboxes and checking occupancy statuses at new REO listings, I got an email on my Blackberry. It was from the lender for the bank-owned home in Reno where I am representing the buyers.
The long and short of it is that unless there is a microwave placed in the hole in the cabinets where the microwave belongs, the bank won't approve the loan. REALLY??!?!? I asked the loan officer "Did you tell underwriting that the microwave is just a countertop PORTABLE model that sits inside a prefabricated cabinet opening? The screw holes around the edges were just for the trim kit which makes it LOOK built-in? He says 'Yes but the bank isn't budging."
REALLY??!?!? So let me get this straight...The bank won't lend on a home without a (PORTABLE) microwave in place. So the buyer is supposed to go out and buy a microwave FOR A HOME HE DOESN'T OWN YET and PUT IT IN THE HOUSE HE DOESN'T OWN, so the appraiser can come BACK OUT (for another fee, might I add) and VERIFY that the PORTABLE microwave is in place? REALLY??!?!
Well, not only do I think that's ridiculous, I wonder how the bank would feel considering the fact that THEY OWN THE HOUSE??? How about the fact that the buyers might loathe microwaves and never plan to use it and would put something else there in that opening? Since when can the lender dictate WHAT appliances the buyer has to have in order to fund a loan? Just for the record, there are two ovens, a gas cooktop, a dishwasher, a double basin sink, and a disposal. If this was 1975 we wouldn't be having this discussion.
By the way, I am grateful that the lender didn't require the buyers to replace the wine chiller either. That was missing but apparently appraisers don't look down.
So tomorrow morning, first thing, I am writing a brief discertation for the loan officer to forward to the underwriter explaining that the microwave IS NOT BUILT IN, but rather a PORTABLE countertop unit set inside a cabinet. It's not vented, it's not even mounted!
I can't believe that THIS is what I will be spending my Sunday morning doing. REALLY???!!?!
Posted By: Christianne Gordon - Northern Nevada Real Estate Agent - Realtor with RE/MAX Realty Affiliates, specializing in Carson Valley Real Estate and Northern Nevada Real Estate .
Banks and their appraisers are the bane of our existence.
This appraisal business has really gone over the cliff.
You might mention, if it's true, that there is NO MICROWAVE in the conveyances.
Besides, if anyone has to put anything in a home, it would be the seller.
This is insane.
Good luck.
If all else fails, put a small vase of fake flowers in the damn hole in the wall and tell them it's a decorating niche.
That is one of the stranger requests I have ever heard. Good luck with this one!
A strange request indeed. I love Lenn's comment about a vase..LOL
Nothing surprises me any more!
Featured in the Group "Whacked!!!
Christianne - I want you to look on the bright side. If you weren't busy out there selling and listing homes , you wouldn't have such wonderful wacky stories to share with us !!!!!.
I know you will get this little problem resolved , settle and move on we all do !!!!!
Christianne, I am surprised they didn't want a television in the empty t.v. shelf, or shaving cream in the empty medicine cabinet. They seem to be inventing ways to stop fundings. Since when does personal property become a factor in their loan process? Good luck.
Wow Christianne that is RIDICULOUS!!! Amazing. Does the contract say microwave included??? That appears to be the only way the bank should be able to have a say in it...
Hi everybody - Yes this is really ludricous isn't it??!?! Just so you all know, there was no Seller's Real Property Disclosure since it's a foreclosure, so there was no way for the bank doing the lending to know that a microwave was missing or whatever, because there was no list of appliances being conveyed.
I just wrote my nastygram to the loan officer (very nicely of course) asking why the bank is requiring the buyers to pre-install personal property in a home they don't even own. Is the bank going to require a refrigerator too?
I really do appreciate all your comments. I definitely incorporated the 'could have been an art niche or cookbook nook' from Lenn, and the personal property angle from Jim.
I'll let you know how it's goes!
This stuff is really bordering on the ridiculous. Good luck getting through to the underwriters. Keep us posted on how it goes.
I once had a buyer threatened not to close on his purchase because the seller removed the garden hoses from the property. I couldn't make the buyer understand that these were not part of the real estate, but he insisted that because they WERE ATTACHED to the hose bib at the time we fashioned our seal, they should have been included. The sellers were not amused by his antics. To shut him up, I provided replacements.
Christianne,
In my experience, As-Is in the listing covers most such nonsense. When there are abandoned appliances, I includes "no guarantees that they are in working condition." Have NEVER had the problem you're experiencing!
Oh another reason I love owner financing, no underwriters!
Was this an FHA loan? Some of those appraisers and underwriters are getting a little bit extreme. I'm pretty sure that I wrote a rant (I mean blog) about the same thing a few months ago--not a microwave, I think it was an unnecessary mold test?
Christianne! SO Hard to believe --I hear something new everyday - totally ridiculous!
Melissa - This was NOT an FHA loan. Just a conventional loan with 20% down. Silly huh?