Manufactured Homes
A new and vital segment of the appraisal profession has evolved with the emergence of the major expansion of the manufactured housing industry. FLORIDA CERTIFIED APPRAISERS, INC. possesses the special training and experience to appraise manufactured homes in Duval, Nassau, St. Johns and Clay counties. Our staff of trained manufactured housing appraisal professionals utilizes the special techniques needed for all types of manufactured housing.
Many appraisers have indicated they decline assignments to appraise manufactured housing because they lack the knowledge and experience to perform the assignment competently.
The term “Manufactured Home” is not to be confused with other types of factory built housing such as Modular Homes, Panelized Homes, and Pre-Cut Homes. Today, all manufactured homes are built entirely under the federal building code administered by the U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Generally speaking, a manufactured home is one that is structurally complete before leaving the factory and is transported in one or more sections on an attached undercarriage. Manufactured homes are built on steel frames (“I” beams) with a tongue and are mounted on axles and wheels for transport.
On June15, 1976 the Federal Mobile Home Safety and Construction Standards Act was enacted by Congress to ensure that minimum standards of construction established by the federal government were applied across the industry. All mobile or manufactured home units constructed after June15, 1976 must have the red metal HUD label certifying that it has been inspected in accordance with the requirements of HUD and constructed in conformance with the Federal Mobile Home Safety and Construction Standards Act. On October 8,1980 public law 96-399 was enacted by the U. S. Congress officially changing the name from “mobile home” to “manufactured home”.
When appraising a manufactured home property, it is imperative that the appraiser makes every effort to identify the ultimate user of the appraisal because there are a multitude of Supplemental Standards imposed by conventional lenders, Fannie Mae, and HUD. Appraisers must comply with these supplemental standards in addition to the applicable standards set out in Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP).
In a manufactured home appraisal, the most critical factor to be determined is whether the manufactured home is to be appraised as personal property or real property. Manufactured housing, which by nature is personal property, must therefore be permanently affixed to the land in order to be appraised as real estate (or real property). Manufactured homes not permanently affixed to the land or when the land is not owned, must be appraised as personal property.
If the appraiser determines that the manufactured home is permanently affixed to the land, the appraisal can be developed and reported on the Form URAR 1004 in compliance with Standards 1 and 2 of USPAP and any Supplemental Standards that may be imposed by the client. If the appraisal assignment involves a manufactured home that has yet to be sited but is to be permanently affixed as real property, the appraisal should be developed in conformance with USPAP for proposed construction. The Cost Approach should be developed using data from generally accepted cost data sources such as Marshall & Swift or NADA that provide cost data for the manufactured housing unit.
When the manufactured home being appraised is not (existing) or will not be (proposed) permanently affixed to the site, the manufactured home unit must be appraised as personal property in accordance with USPAP and any Supplemental Standards imposed by the client. For personal property loans insured through HUD, the appraiser must be a qualified user of the National Appraisal System (NAS), and the appraisal must be based on the current edition of the National edition of the NADA. Manufactured Housing Appraisal Guide.
The ultimate responsibility rests with the appraiser to make sure that he or she is competent to perform the appraisal when accepting an appraisal assignment involving manufactured housing.
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