The Louisiana Road Home Program is using the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight website to estimate the value of homes. From my understanding, this is the form of valuation being used for applicants furnishing outdated appraisals or other inferior forms of valuation dated as far back as January 1, 2000. I visited the website and tested the House Price Calculator by using information on a property that was purchased in 2003 in the Lakeview Subdivision. I appraised the same property in July, 2006 for a Pre-Katrina Fair Market Value for the owner. In my appraisal report, the estimated Fair Market Value was $65,400 higher than the appreciation adjusted OFHEO House Price Calculator’s value.

Here is the website. Give it a try.

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gov/Landing. asp

John W. Murden, Jr.
Louisiana Certified Residential
Real Estate Appraiser #R0716
Email:

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Our estimated value from Road Home came in way low. We had two appraisals done for other purposes. The Road Home value came in $150,000 lower than one appraisal and about 105,000 lower than the other.

As a result, the amount we are to receive will do nothing to help us rebuild in Lakeview.

We just received our letter and valuation was low...I scanned a sheet of comp sales from April thru June '05..A realtor had sent it to me..I emailed them with my figures to see what will happen. My neighbor who has a very similar size, etc house next door had an appraisal done two weeks prior to Katrina. I am going to use her appraisal also to fight these people and hope we get some sort of re evaluation of more realistic Pre K value..It seems if you accept any elevation money they may offer me, might opt me out of an appeal process..So be careful of accepting anything..I feel this is still a very fluid, politically influenced process..Good luck..

I received our road home offer and it was about what I expected. When I met with our evaluator, I had a pre-K appraisal of my home ready to show him, but it was not even looked at. Even though the road home plan says it takes the pre-K value of the home it really doesn't - this is how the evaluator explained it to me ---- The government is not going to rebuild (or compensate) you for wood floors, granite counters, etc. The program that your info is entered into is already a set formula developed by the gov on an average cost per square foot (low end finishes - he told me it is something like 80% carpet, 20% laminate, don't know the exact #) to rebuild a basic, livable house. Therefore, your square footage is entered and the variable - this is where the evaluator's discrestion comes into play - the percent damage and that calculates your eligible funds less your insurance and/or FEMA.

As I stated in my earlier post, I think this is still a fluid, politically driven situation and I will continue to try and get an increased PRE K valuation. The info you posted may be 100% correct, but my experience with these people conducting this project, has shown me how little they know for sure about most everything. Although I understand the lower of the two figures is what they will give me..after insurance etc deducts..(PRE K vs rebuild costs), but they estimate my rebuild cost to be about 100% higher than my PRE K valuation. To me this does not make sense, just some numbers they dreamed up. Thanks for your input and good luck getting back home..