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FHA appraisal
An FHA appraisal does two jobs at once. It gives the lender an opinion of value, like any appraisal, and it also checks the property against HUD's Minimum Property Requirements. The second job is the one that surprises people, and it is where most FHA deals run into trouble in Florida.
What are the FHA appraisal guidelines?
HUD requires the property to be safe, sound and secure. In practice the appraiser is looking at whether:
- Heating, electrical and plumbing systems are present and functioning
- The roof has at least two more years of remaining life
- There is safe access to the property by road
- Utilities are connected and working — electricity, potable water, sewage or septic
- The foundation is sound and the lot drains away from the house
- There is no peeling or defective paint, inside, outside, or on a shed or fence
- Windows and doors operate and are not broken
- There is no active infestation
- Stairs have handrails where required and there are no open safety hazards
Anything failing those tests gets noted, and the lender then requires it corrected and re-checked before closing.
What trips up Florida houses specifically
Roof life. This is the single most common FHA problem in South Florida. A roof that insures fine and sheds water fine can still fail the two-year test on age alone, and older tile and shingle roofs in Palm Beach, Martin, St. Lucie and Broward counties reach that point constantly.
Peeling exterior paint on older houses. Sun and salt do this quickly here. On a home built before 1978 the lead-based paint rules make it stricter still, and the fix is not a touch-up — the surface has to be scraped and repainted properly.
Screen enclosures, docks and additions. Work done without permits is common and shows up at inspection. So does a Florida room enclosed at some point by someone who did not pull a permit.
Elevation and drainage. Lots that pond after a storm draw attention, and in low-lying neighbourhoods the grading question comes up often.
Wind mitigation is not the same thing. A wind mitigation inspection is for your insurer. A four-point inspection is for your insurer. Neither is an FHA appraisal, and passing one has no bearing on the other. People conflate all three constantly, and it costs them time.
Is an FHA appraisal an inspection?
No, and the distinction matters. The appraiser is not examining the property for your benefit — the client is the lender. An FHA appraisal will catch a hole in the roof; it will not tell you the air handler is at the end of its life or that the water heater is installed badly. Get a home inspection as well. See appraisal vs home inspection for what each one actually covers.
Can I choose my own FHA appraiser?
No, and we would rather tell you that than take an order we cannot fill. For an FHA purchase or refinance the appraiser is assigned through the lender, usually via an appraisal management company, from the FHA roster. Appraiser independence rules exist to keep the borrower, the agent and the loan officer out of that selection. Anyone offering to be "your" FHA appraiser on a purchase is describing something that is not how the process works.
What we can do is take the assignment when a lender or AMC sends it to us, and we are on those panels.
What if you are selling and worried about it?
This is where an appraisal you can order directly is worth having. A pre-listing appraisal looks at your property the way an appraiser will, before a buyer's FHA appraisal turns a fixable roof or paint issue into a renegotiation two weeks before closing. If your likely buyer is using FHA financing — and in much of Palm Beach County they are — knowing in advance what will be flagged is worth considerably more than finding out under contract.
How long is an FHA appraisal good for?
An FHA appraisal is generally valid for 180 days. If the loan does not close in that window the lender will need it updated or redone.
Our experience
Appraising South Florida since 1992. 34,000+ appraisals in Palm Beach, Martin, St. Lucie and Broward counties, including 6,474 exterior-only assignments and 2,486 completion certificates — the re-inspection that confirms required work was actually finished, which is exactly the step an FHA file so often turns on.
Our staff includes an MAI and SRA designated appraiser.
Questions about an FHA condition on a property you are buying or selling, call 561-853-2129.
Questions we hear about this work
What fails an FHA appraisal most often?
In this market, roof remaining life and peeling exterior paint. Both are age-driven, both are common on older South Florida houses, and both are fixable — but they have to be fixed and re-inspected before the loan closes, which costs time nobody planned for.
Does the appraiser order the repairs?
No. The appraiser reports the condition against HUD's requirements. The lender decides what must be corrected and what evidence it needs before closing. Anything about your loan itself is a question for your lender.
Is an FHA appraisal stricter than a conventional one?
On property condition, yes. A conventional appraisal is chiefly a valuation. An FHA appraisal is a valuation plus a check against minimum property requirements, so conditions a conventional appraisal would simply note can stop an FHA loan.
Refinance appraisals · Pre-listing and FSBO appraisals · Appraisal vs home inspection
561-853-2129 · Residential only.