Quit claims carry no inherent warranty of good title. Grant deeds do.

My point is that CoreLogic is infamous for picking these up as new ‘sales’ and showing them as such. Experienced appraisers recognize there is something wrong with these transaction and usually will check for doc stamps paid (shown on recorded deed).

Another point – CL often translates stamps paid incorrectly. There are half a dozen (always increasing) cities that charge a transfer fee in addition to the country transfer fee. Some calculate this fee based on $500 increments of new money in a  sale and others at $1,000 increments and the fees can range from $1.10 per thousand to $1.10 per $500; or $2.20 per thousand up to a high of around $4.40 per thousand PLUS the County fee of $1.10 and the deed MAY show an additional $22.50 / $23.80 ‘filing’ fee above and beyond the so called ‘recording fee’ which is technically a documentary transfer tax fee.

CoreLogic has never been able to reliably figure all these out. Even the nominal filing fee if miscalculated could equal a difference of $20,000 in purported sale price. This is just Los Angeles County. Other counties have their own peculiarities. 30 years ago we memorized the exceptions and their rates. Now an appraiser needs to look them up every single time they are using doc stamps to verify price.

CoreLogic simply cannot be trusted to get it right. They collect and ‘aggregate’ data. I think that’s a euphemism for selling compiled data that may or may not be misinterpreted and misreported as a result.

Some of my markets the builder does not include open space like a cathedral ceiling, but the assessor does, others the assessor gives GBA on residential and another assessor does not give out information at all they consider it personal information and give it only to the homeowner or to others like appraisers that sign up to be able to look (not print/download) the info.

In the case were the GBA is given they do not publish it the GBA it’s called living area. So consider this an AVM sees it as a GLA on one house at 3,000 sf above grade with unfinished basement and another house that it thinks is similar at 3,500 sf above grade but it in all actuality it only 2,500 sf above grade plus 1,000 sf finished below grade (3,500 sf living area). And with both houses they were cash transactions with no appraisal (UAD) completed.

What do you think is going to happen?!

I’ve seen Realtors measure rooms, say 11.2″ X 14.1″ and then add all rooms up and that’s the GLA.

But the Tax records in Most markets is interior SF. While we measure Exterior. That’s just the easy explanation.

Now, add the Vaulted area’s, “Open To Below”, some Towns add this in the GLA, and then the Old Raised Ranch argument regarding “Above Ground”, how much is USABLE SF? Above grade????

It can’t be done, not in my career (6-8 more years), to have every one on the same page. Automated can go flush it self.

Assessor’s records are so easily accessible in my area that I print the assessor’s sketch of the subject property before I go to the property. I use their sketch as a template while measuring the property myself. It is so important to do your own measurements. I cross out the wrong dimensions and put in the real dimensions. I add a comment in the report stating that the property was physically measured by the appraiser and may differ from public records.

This prevents the follow up question: “why doesn’t your GLA coincide with public records?”

I started keeping track of how often these discrepancies occurred. My estimate was 75 to 80 percent of the public records were incorrect (and that’s just square footage).

How is it possible to create an automated valuation model when it is absolutely impossible to collect accurate data unless a human being looks at the property. As far as Zillow goes, I’m sure they mean well but c’mon, they’re deceiving a lot of people that are making life changing decisions based on misinformation. Maybe Congress should focus on that economy breaking fiasco and let us do our jobs.

Common sense without personal gain would go a long way to make this crap right again.

And no I’m not a believer in the sky is falling tactics, but that’s the only time we are listened to is after the fact!