The Issue The issue is whether the Respondent's Florida Appraisal License should be disciplined upon the charge that the Respondent performed appraisal services in a careless or negligent manner in violation of Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice, Rule 1-l(c), Florida Administrative Code, and in violation of Subsection 475.624(14), Florida Statutes.
Findings Of Fact The Petitioner is a state licensing and regulatory agency charged with the responsibility and duty to prosecute Administrative Complaints pursuant to Florida Statutes. The Respondent, Michael B. Limanti, is now and was at all times material to the Administrative Complaint, a State Certified General Real Estate Appraiser having been issued license number RZ000708, in accordance with Chapter 475, Florida Statutes. The last license issued to the Petitioner as a State Certified General Real Estate Appraiser listed his address as 807 St. Johns Avenue, Palatka, Florida 32177. On or about March 26, 1996, the Respondent conducted an appraisal of residential property owned by John and Carol Sherer for a fee of Three Hundred Dollars ($300.00), paid by the Sherers. The Respondent's residential appraisal report, which was received as Exhibit 1, indicated that the real property being appraised was located at 115 Shoreside Trail, in Crescent City, and estimated the market value of the real property at Fifty-Three Thousand Five Hundred Dollars ($53,500.00). The appraisal report contained the following factual assertions which were the subject of the controversy concerning the descriptions of the subject property: A private road adjoining the property was marked as being public on the appraisal form. There were no notes in the comments about the road. The road was a private road with a public easement. There was no clear evidence of the road's status. The appraisal form specifically referenced paragraph six of the form, which is a general disclaimer provision. The age of the house was stated as an effective age of twenty (20) years. The house was built in 1979. The appraisal was in 1996. The effective age of the house takes into consideration maintenance and other conditions. Another appraiser appraised the house subsequent to the Respondent's appraisal. The opinion of the Department's expert at hearing is that the age of the house was not inordinately different from the Respondent's opinion, and was not a major factor. The Petitioner's appraisal report contained several mix-statements regarding the characteristics of the house. The full bathroom was mix-characterized as .75 of a bathroom. The floors of the house were erroneously indicated as being carpeted, when in fact they were vinyl tile at the time of the appraisal. The walls were characterized as sheet rock, when in fact they were wooden paneling. The appraisal also referenced a scuttle hole, which does not exist. The Department's investigator interviewed the Respondent who stated that he had made a mistake in entering data from his notes regarding the property. However, the Respondent felt that the errors were inconsequential and did not affect the value of the property. The Department's expert opined that the aforementioned errors indicated carelessness; however, the Department's expert agreed that they did not impact the ultimate value of the property. The photographs, purportedly of the subject property, were identified by the owner and the Department's expert as not being of the lakefront on the subject property. The Department's expert opined that the difference in square footage of the Respondent's appraisal and the second appraisal was negligible and within limits. The principal objection of the Department's expert was to the location of the properties selected as comparables. One of the properties was on a smaller lake, another on a larger lake, and the third on a canal adjoining the St. Johns River. However, in each instance the price of the other properties has been adjusted by Respondent with regard to the site location. Upon cross-examination, the Department's expert indicated that there were few sales of property due to a depressed market at the time the appraisal was conducted and there were a limited number of "comparables" from which to select. The Department's expert was most concerned about the Respondent's choice of comparable sales which the expert felt were inappropriate.
Recommendation Based upon the foregoing Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law set forth herein, it is RECOMMENDED: That the Petitioner enter its Final Order finding Respondent in violation of Section 475.624(14), Florida Statutes, and fine him $1,000 and place him on probation for one(1) year. DONE AND ENTERED this 13th day of November, 1997, in Tallahassee, Leon County, Florida. STEPHEN F. DEAN Administrative Law Judge Division of Administrative Hearings The DeSoto Building 1230 Apalachee Parkway Tallahassee, Florida 32399-3060 (904) 488-9675 SUNCOM 278-9675 Fax Filing (904) 921-6847 Filed with the Clerk of the Division of Administrative Hearings this 13th day of November, 1997.
