Barry Shea and Associates

NH Shoreline Protection Act

A new Shoreline Protection Act went into effect in the State of New Hampshire recently.  The requirements of the act apply to properties within 250' of the tidal waters, rivers, lakes and ponds.  This will include some properties that are near the water, but are not necessarily waterfront.  Appraisers working in NH should be aware of the general requirements of this land use law.

1st Qtr 2009 Index is now available!

FHFA - House Price Index

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA).  FHFA was formed by a legislative merger of the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight (OFHEO), the Federal Housing Finance Board (FHFB) and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) government-sponsored enterprise (GSE) mission team

Soil Survey Maps

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) has made soil survey maps available online. 

Click here for some tips on navigating the NRCS soil survey site.

FEMA Flood Maps

If you have a valid physical street address enter it in the form near the top right corner of the page.  This pull up the appropriate panel.  Click on the green dot  to view.   Click on “Make a FIRMette” to generate a graphic file that you can print and or insert in your report.

If you do not have a valid street address you can click on the "Map Search" on the menu bar at the top of the page.  You will then get a map of North America.  Click on the map in the area you need to see and it will zoom in.  Continue to click and zoom in until you can locate the correct panel.  Next, click on the "Point" icon on the left (it's the target).   Then, click on the green dot as above.

HUD  info for Appraisers

Use the above link to access HUD's resources for appraisers. All of HUD's forms and publications can be found at the HUDClips website.

With Mortgagee Letter 2006-26, HUD revised the appraiser application form which now includes the test as part of the application.  This and all other Mortgagee Letters are available online.

Every FHA Appraiser should be familiar with the Homeownership Center (HOC) Reference Guide.

Census Tract Numbers

At this location you will find the FFIEC Geocoding System which is a search engine that will provide the Census Tract number or Block Number Area number for the address that you enter.

Once you have located the census tract number there are links to demographic data for that census tract.

If you are in an area where the tract number cannot be found by address, you may want to try this site where you can zoom in on a map to find the tract number.  

NH Septic System Info

The NH Department of Environmental Services has an online database with septic approval.  The database is far from complete, but it does have basic information on many properties.  For best search results, I suggest that you limit your search parameters to street name and city or town. 

NH Community Profiles

The NH Department of Employment Security publishes a "Community Profile" in PDF and HTML formats for every city and town in the state.  These profiles contain some very useful information.

Mortgage Fraud Blog

The Appraisal Foundation

Get to latest exposure drafts and other communications from the ASB and AQB.

The Appraisal Subcommittee

This is the home of the National Registry of licensed and certified appraisers.

National Association of Independent Fee Appraisers

NAIFA has a fine discussion area for appraisers.

NH Property Tax Rates

The NH Department of Revenue Administration posts the property tax rates for each community in the state.

Many communities also have precinct taxes; those rates are also available from the state at the website.