Mary Cummins, Real Estate Appraiser, Real Estate Appraisal, Los Angeles, California, Mary Cummins.

Mary Cummins is a real estate appraiser in Los Angeles, California with 38+ years of experience. Cummins provides real estate appraisals for banks, lenders, mortgage brokers, Appraisal Management Companies (AMCs), lawyers, Courts, factors and private parties for lending, lawsuits, probate, estate planning, divorce and all types of litigation. Cummins provides 1004, 1073, 1025 and other form reports, narrative reports and historical appraisals besides real estate research and appraisal advice.

Showing posts with label fema. Show all posts

Sunday, May 4, 2025

Study Shows High Levels of Lead, Arsenic, Mercury Post Los Angeles Fires by Mary Cummins

High levels of lead, arsenic and mercury have been found in the soil after post fire soil removal in Los Angeles, California. Previously FEMA and USACE would remove six inches of topsoil, test then remove more if the tests revealed toxic materials. After the January 2025 Los Angeles fires they decided to only remove the top six inches and not test. That's when the LA Times sent out their researchers to test the soil. They found toxic materials in fully destroyed and nearby intact properties. This is why I've been telling people to do their own testing.

https://www.latimes.com/environment/story/2025-05-04/the-government-wont-test-soil-on-properties-burned-in-the-la-fires-so-we-did-it-ourselves

"In the wake of the recent L.A. area fires, federal officials have broken with their decades-long tradition of testing soil to determine whether and when it is safe for people to come home.

The federal agencies typically tasked with this work — the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers — decided not to conduct comprehensive soil testing, stating that removing 6 inches of topsoil from properties that burned in the fires is enough to meet health-based cleanup goals.

An investigation by The Times uncovers government failures to ensure comprehensive cleanup of fire-related contamination in Altadena and Pacific Palisades left toxic substances buried in the soil of L.A.’s burn zones.

Times reporters conducted soil testing on 40 properties across both the Altadena and Pacific Palisades burn zones. The testing followed strict protocol with samples carefully collected, stored and transported to a state-certified lab in Fresno to be analyzed for 17 toxic metals.

The results confirm that some properties deemed safe are in fact still contaminated: Two of 10 properties remediated by the Army Corps in the Eaton fire burn area are still imbued with heavy metals above California’s health protective standards, the results show.

The Times’ tests also revealed elevated levels of arsenic, lead and mercury in the yards of three homes out of 10 homes that survived the Eaton fire.

The findings underscore the risk lurking just beneath the surface for nearly all residents in California — and for millions of Americans who will rely on future federal support in the wake of worsening climate disasters."

Mary Cummins of Cummins Real Estate is a certified residential licensed appraiser in Los Angeles, California. Mary Cummins is licensed by the California Bureau of Real Estate appraisers and has over 35 years of experience.

Mary Cummins, Mary K. Cummins, Mary Katherine Cummins, Mary, Cummins, #marycummins #animaladvocates #losangeles #california #wildlife #wildliferehabilitation #wildliferehabilitator #realestate #realestateappraiser #realestateappraisal #lawsuit real estate, appraiser, appraisal, instructor, teacher, Los Angeles, Santa Monica, Beverly Hills, Pasadena, Brentwood, Bel Air, California, licensed, permitted, certified, single family, condo, condominium, pud, hud, fannie mae, freddie mac, fha, uspap, certified, residential, certified resident, apartment building, multi-family, commercial, industrial, expert witness, civil, criminal, orea, dre, brea insurance, bonded, experienced, bilingual, spanish, english, form, 1004, 2055, 1073, land, raw, acreage, vacant, insurance, cost, income approach, market analysis, comparative, theory, appraisal theory, cost approach, sales, matched pairs, plot, plat, map, diagram, photo, photographs, photography, rear, front, street, subject, comparable, sold, listed, active, pending, expired, cancelled, listing, mls, multiple listing service, claw, themls, historical appraisal, facebook, linkedin

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Mary Cummins

Mary Cummins of Cummins Real Estate Services has been in real estate since 1983, over 35 years. She is licensed by the Bureau of Real Estate Appraisers. Mary Cummins was an agent and broker licensed with the California Department of Real Estate selling residential income, commercial buildings, raw land and homes for Merrill Lynch Realty in Beverly Hills and Westside Properties in Los Angeles before concentrating on appraisals. Mary Cummins currently provides real estate appraisals, expert witness testimony, historical research, legal real estate research for mortgage brokers, banks, lawyers, factors, insurance companies, financial consultants and private individuals. Mary Cummins was born and raised in Southern California. Cummins attended Beverly Hills Good Shepherd Catholic School and Beverly Hills High School. Besides being on the Dean's list, Mary Cummins was a top ten national swimmer and competed on the men's water polo team. Mary Cummins began college at the age of 15 attending the University of Southern California on scholarship, majoring in Psychology/Sociology. http://www.animaladvocates.us http://www.facebook.com/AnimalAdvocatesUSA

Thursday, September 3, 2020

Catastrophic Disaster Area Inspection Report CDAIR, DAIR, 1004D real estate appraisal form, sample by Mary Cummins

disaster inspection report, disaster certification, report, fema, 1004d, dair, cdair, form, mary cummins, real estate, uad, los angeles, california, wildfire, flood, hurricane, earthquake, tornado, appraisal update and/or completion report, catastrophic disaster area inspection report, disaster area inspection report

After every natural disaster such as wildfire, hurricane, flood, tornado, earthquake ... homes that are in the process of getting a loan must be reinspected if they are anywhere near the disaster area. The purpose is to make sure the homes still exist and were not damaged, destroyed or affected by the natural disaster.

Appraisers can use the DAIR (Disaster Area Inspection Report), CDAIR (Catastrophic Disaster Area Inspection Report) or the 1004D form report. Some clients insist on the1004D form report i.e. "Appraisal Update and/or Completion Report" (Fannie Mae 1004D, Freddie Mac 442). Filling it out normally is pretty straight forward. Sometimes the original appraiser is too busy to reinspect the property. In that situation another appraiser is hired to inspect the property. They generally charge $150 or so to inspect the property and take photos from the street.

Below is a sample disaster inspection report, certification report that I have used when they insist on the 1004D form and when I'm not the original appraiser. I use the basic 1004D form then add an addendum, other form, photos (generally only front and street though they may request interior), copy of my license and my insurance.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1vKETg6rL-UikriWlrNAy6UIKofiiSfAu/view?usp=sharing

Below is the actual text I put in the first page of the form in the Summary Appraisal Update Report" section.

"Post Disaster Inspection Report. Current appraiser has no knowledge of previous appraisal. See attached Property Condition Report and photo page for observed information about the property."

Below is the actual text I put in the first page of the form in the "Certificate of Completion" section. Don't check either box because neither apply. The important text is on the next page.

"This section does not apply. See addendum."

Below is sample text I add in the addendum. All of this is in the form above.

"1004D Disaster Certification

Property Condition Report

FEMA Declaration

California Bobcat Fire (FM-5374-CA) PA-B PA-H Los Angeles County

https://www.fema.gov/disaster/5374

https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7152/

Appraiser inspected subject property (date) at 12:00 pm. Subject is over 15 miles south west of the location of the Bobcat fire. The location of the Bobcat fire was 34° 14' 27.6? N, 117° 52' 4.8? W. The Bobcat fire started September 6, 2020 and was fully contained December 18, 2020. Subject structure, neighborhood, supporting facilities, transportation systems were not affected in any way by the Bobcat fire."

Some say the use the CDAIR form by itself which is made specifically for disaster inspections. Here are the CDAIR and DAIR forms in one file. The CDAIR is three pages and DAIR is one page. If the client insists on the 1004D form, you can add the CDAIR or DAIR to the 1004D. You could even do the report on a blank piece of paper if you add the proper text and data needed. The forms make it much easier and standardized for underwriters, lenders and others to view. I added this because some appraisers say they only use the CDAIR or DAIR form. Laws vary by state and type of loan.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Wz8sJV3JQpTKQTO-ZT_F5VnWUkH7IW2a/view?usp=sharing

Here's a jpg of the first page.

Second page is photos. Here is the third page.

Here is the one page DAIR report.

Obviously if the home has been damaged, destroyed or negatively affected, don't order the report because it won't pass and you'll waste $150. You'll need to repair the property first if possible. Sometimes your property may be okay but the streets, power, supporting facilities such as transportation, government service buildings, gas stations ... were wiped out. You won't pass the inspection because the home can't really be lived in at the moment. You will have to wait until the home and neighborhood is fully functional before you can sell or refinance your home.

Mary Cummins

Mary Cummins, Real Estate Appraiser, Animal Advocates, Los Angeles, California

Sunday, May 4, 2025

Study Shows High Levels of Lead, Arsenic, Mercury Post Los Angeles Fires by Mary Cummins

Thursday, September 3, 2020

Catastrophic Disaster Area Inspection Report CDAIR, DAIR, 1004D real estate appraisal form, sample by Mary Cummins