Subject Property

Subject Property

Address, legal description, ownership. The basics, right? Mostly. But on the new URAR, your answers here shape the rest of the report. We'll cover addresses, the checkboxes, counting units, and ownership rights.

One address for the property

The Physical Address follows USPS Publication 28. Include a unit number only for a condo, co-op, or condop, and only if the USPS address has one. A two to four unit property gets one address for the whole property. Two dwellings at 214 and 216 Elm share one address: 214 to 216 Elm Street. Units are named in Unit Interior. Other valid addresses, like a corner lot's second street, go in Alternate Physical Address.

Yes or no, and it matters

Next comes a block of yes-or-no checkboxes that always display, from Planned Unit Development down to New Construction. Each one steers what comes later. If the homeowner maintains the whole exterior, Dwelling Exterior adds quality and condition details. If not, it doesn't. Say yes to Property on Native American Lands, and you'll also name the type of land. And New Construction is a high bar: every dwelling fully new, foundation included, finished in the last twelve months, never occupied, and no sign of wear.

PUD, or project?

PUD is a Yes only when every owner must belong to the HOA. Voluntary membership doesn't count. A condo, co-op, or condop is never a PUD. It checks its own legal structure instead. A condop mixes both: say, shops that are condo units, under homes that are co-op units. Subject Site Owned in Common asks who owns the land. Yes when an association owns it, no when the owner owns or leases it separately.

Units, ADUs, dwellings

Three counts describe what's on the lot. Units Excluding ADUs counts living units, so a single-family home is one, ADU or not. Two to four here makes it a two to four unit property. Accessory Dwelling Units counts the ADUs, and zero is a real answer. A home with an ADU is one plus one: two units, so two Unit Interior sections, one for the home and one for the ADU. Dwellings Containing Units only shows when there's more than one unit. Two units under one roof is one dwelling; two buildings is two.

Dwelling, outbuilding, or amenity?

A dwelling is built as a residence, with one or more living units, and gets its own Dwelling Exterior section. Other buildings are outbuildings: a barn, a shed, a guest house, or a standalone ADU. A detached garage with an ADU is an outbuilding too. It isn't counted as a dwelling, but its ADU still counts as a unit. Two things that aren't outbuildings: a detached garage used only for parking, which goes in Vehicle Storage, and a gazebo or deck, which is an amenity.

Attached or detached

Attachment Type asks whether the property touches a neighbor with a different legal description. Townhouses, twins, and units in low, mid, or high-rise buildings are attached. With several dwellings, one attached dwelling makes the whole property attached. A single-family home on its own lot is detached. So is a condo that shares no walls, floor, or ceiling with another unit.

What's being appraised

Next, Ownership Rights. Co-ops skip this subsection. Property Rights Appraised is Fee Simple, Leasehold, or Other. Leasehold or Other adds a Community Land Trust question. A leasehold on land not owned in common adds Ground Rent: the amount, renewal, expiration, and impact. Project ground rent goes in Project Information. And if any rights are left out, like mineral, water, timber, or air rights, name them and describe the impact on value.

Taxes, legal, comments

Special Tax Assessments is always answered. That's for local infrastructure, like a new sewer. A yes needs the amount, purpose, and impact. A project's special assessments go in Project Information instead. The Legal Description covers every parcel, as text, or as an image when it runs long. Anything else, like fractional or timeshare ownership, goes in Subject Property Commentary.

Five things to remember

Quick recap. One. One address for the whole property. Unit numbers only for condos, co-ops, and condops. Two. The checkboxes steer what the rest of the report shows. Three. Count units without ADUs, then ADUs, then dwellings. Four. Dwellings, outbuildings, and amenities are three different things. Five. Report the rights you appraised, and the ones you didn't. Next up: the Site section.