Thursday, April 1, 2010

Tree Sitters Plagued by Low Appraisal; FHA Repairs


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Mark Thompson just wanted to get a fair deal for his tree house. After three and a half years of treetop living, soaking up the sun every day without a care in the word, the troubled economy finally found its way and left its mark all the way to the top of this lonely Northern California pine. Mr. Thompson's troubles began when he agreed to sell the treetop dwelling to an undisclosed buyer, after the two struck up a conversation at the local 7-11 while Mr. Thompson was re-stocking his weekly supplies of Kentucky cheroot cigars, moon pies, and grape flavored Cisco. After agreeing to the price of $375 and two 18-packs of Strohs, the two inked the deal on the back of a chili-dog takeout box & things couldn't have been better. But thats when the troubles started...


"I knew I shouldn't have taken an FHA loan!", complained Mr. Thompson a mere week and a half later. Things were going just as smooth as can be, until the FHA appraiser came over to take a look at the property. Even though the tree was the tallest and most beautiful in the forest, the appraiser reduced the value because there were not enough nice trees around to compare it with. Also, most of the nicer trees had been cut down along time ago, so they couldn't use those for comparison anyway because they were too old. The appraiser also reduced the value because there was only a ropeladder to get up, and what if someone had a hard time climbing? So when all was said and done, the appraiser put the value of the treetop dwelling at $170.00, WITHOUT the Strohs. To add insult to injury, if he wants to sell, he is also required to repair the leaky roof, patch the holes in the tarpolin on the side, bolt the foundation of the structure to the trunk and secure with 1/2" metal guards, and remove all of the peeling bark from the tree, as that could present a safety hazard to small children who might decide to snack on it.


"I don't know what else to do, the wood, nails and tarp cost me at least $200 bucks, not to mention the ropeladder. If I don't get a little help from the buyer on this one, I might end up having to do a short sale or just walk!!"


Unfortunately, this story has been told over and over again.... We wish the best of luck to Mr. Thompson in his unfortunate situation!


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