I ran across the attached, recorded in 1952. I was a bit surprised to find that "Mortgage Surveys" are that old of a service. Does anyone know when these things crept up out of the slime?
I think the earliest I've seen around here were post-WWII. Makes me wonder if federal VA financing had anything to do with their "spawning".
I left the midwest (and MIRs, spots, whatever you name them) in the 90s. They are a horrific practice and a fraud on the public. At one office we would get sent out with a dozen with the expectation of finishing in a regular day. I've never signed one and never will. And I never say never...
Pricey little piece of real estate there Peter.
Hack, post: 452725, member: 708 wrote: Pricey little piece of real estate there Peter.
Yeah. These days, Weston is one of those towns where they buy a house and land for $5 - 600,000 then knock the house down and build something 3x the size.
Interesting...I didn't know they went back that far either. Also didn't know that they were recorded in some jurisdictions. Here (AK) they just support closing and are not a part of the permanent record. Not my line of work these days, but I guess I can't quite carry the hate that some do. When I did do them from time to time, I found that most of them could serve the legitimate purpose of identifying encroachments. On the rare occasion where a boundary line was ambiguous, I would just call the client to let them know that a mortgage survey couldn't be done until a boundary survey was completed and recorded. Of course, then they went shopping for someone else to do the mortgage survey on a cocktail napkin...
[USER=8136]@thebionicman[/USER]: 12 a day!! Holy smokes.
It's very rare to find them recorded in Mass.
On my first surveying job in the mid-1980's the company I worked for had 1 full-time mortgage inspection crew, and 2 crews doing real surveying. The mortgage crew could knock off 10-15 inspections per day, including stops at two registry of deeds to pick up plans. Usually 1 - 3 were "drive-by" inspections - ones that had been measured up before, and had no visible changes to the the improvements on the lot.
Wow, that gives me some perspective. If these are being done at the rate of 10, 12, 15 per day, I really get why they would be so loathed. I think I only ever managed two in a day.
Have not done one since 1979.
That Engineering Co did them with a rag tape and eyeballed the rest for $90 a pop and a pencil sketch on legal sized paper.
They would save them up to do as many as possible in a day, usually 8 or 10 depending how close together they were.
I think Paden is on to something -- the first thing I ever saw like a Mortgage Loan Inspection was something we did at a former employer's office in the late '70's & very early '80's -- we called them "VA Surveys" back then, and I think they were required to get VA funding. I still do MLI's and did a ton of them in the '90's -- they are much less common nowadays. Here in Central Maine, that is.
Cee Gee, post: 452808, member: 451 wrote: I think Paden is on to something -- the first thing I ever saw like a Mortgage Loan Inspection was something we did at a former employer's office in the late '70's & very early '80's -- we called them "VA Surveys" back then, and I think they were required to get VA funding. I still do MLI's and did a ton of them in the '90's -- they are much less common nowadays. Here in Central Maine, that is.
What would you say caused them to become less common in your area?
FrozenNorth, post: 452760, member: 10219 wrote: Wow, that gives me some perspective. If these are being done at the rate of 10, 12, 15 per day, I really get why they would be so loathed. I think I only ever managed two in a day.
That's the problem...
There is Mortgage Survey "A" where the surveyor goes into a recently platted subdivision, finds half a dozen corners that all work within a couple of tenths of record, actually locates the improvements, best fits the corners to the plat, and provides something that's less than a boundary survey in a situation where something less than a boundary survey can be useful.
Then there is Mortgage Survey "B" where the "surveyor" makes a few pulls off some fences and the curb to the house, sketches in the improvements, and provides something that's worse than useless.
And anyone getting a mortgage survey is taking a crap-shoot on which they will receive.
FWIW - in Maryland the owner has to sign a release that explains the purpose, and limitations, of a mortgage survey that includes an explanation of the difference between the location drawing (the local term of art for a mortgage survey) and a boundary survey and includes an estimated fee for a boundary survey on the property.
Structural Pest Inspection $135 with an estimate for the repairs. Wife wants to move.
Dave Karoly, post: 452857, member: 94 wrote: Structural Pest Inspection $135 with an estimate for the repairs. Wife wants to move.
I can do you up one of those closing survey plats for less
Had a former employee who picked up the Craigslist ad. He would spend 0.5 to 0 75 hours in the field and 0.5 hours in the office and get $50 cash on the mainland, $400 on an island. Very little oversight by the PLS. Volume and E.O. insurance... money money.
FrozenNorth, post: 452810, member: 10219 wrote: What would you say caused them to become less common in your area?
The lawyers and title companies realized they could close without one and face fairly few insurance claims. Though the MLI's I've done over the years have turned up a number of serious problems.
If the fence is off 5' but no one gets a survey then no one notices or cares or if the house is in the easement but the utility company just runs their lines and doesn't notice then nothing happens but if the floor joists are rotting eventually the floor will cave in so it's inevitable that it will be noticed. Besides most residential property turns over often enough that the lender's exposure to risk is low.
If the property is in an older neighborhood desired by rich people who can afford to build their palatial monstrosities then get a Survey because eventually some rich guy is going to have his $200 surveyor stake the property line in order to make his ugly palace as large as possible, but poor neighborhood? Don't waste your money.