For otherwise comparable proposed residential sites with adequate drainage, engineering review identifies extensive grading and retaining work only on a 25% slope site. Which listed characteristic flags that documented development-cost concern?
Correct Answer
B) A 25% slope requiring extensive grading
The specified 25% slope site is the one with documented extensive grading and retaining requirements. Investigate their actual costs, legal restrictions and market effect. A 25% grade means 25 units of rise per 100 horizontal units; it does not mean 25 times the cost or an automatic value discount. No single slope range guarantees good drainage or feasibility for every project.
Why This Is the Correct Answer
Option B is correct because the 25% slope site is the one the engineering review identified as needing extensive grading and retaining work. Grading and retaining walls are site improvements that add development cost. The appraiser would then investigate the actual costs, legal restrictions and market effect rather than assume a fixed discount.
Why the Other Options Are Wrong
Option A: Level terrain with no slope at all
Option A, level terrain with no slope at all, is wrong because the engineering review did not identify extensive grading or retaining work for a level site, and the sites are stated to have adequate drainage.
Option C: A slight elevation above nearby lots
Option C, a slight elevation above nearby lots, is wrong because the documented grading and retaining concern applies only to the 25% slope site, not to a site that is merely slightly higher than its neighbors.
Option D: A gentle 3% slope toward the street
Option D, a gentle 3% slope toward the street, is wrong because a gentle slope was not flagged for extensive grading or retaining work in the engineering review.
Steep slope, more site work
A steep grade often means more earthmoving and retaining walls, but the actual cost and value effect come from evidence, not the percentage.
How to use: Use this to connect slope descriptions with possible development-cost issues in site questions.
Exam Tip
Match the answer to the fact the stem documents; do not read a 25% slope as 25 times the cost or as an automatic value discount.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- -Reading a 25% slope as a 25% value reduction
- -Assuming level land has no drainage or site concerns
- -Applying a fixed discount for slope without cost or market evidence
Concept Deep Dive
Analysis
This question tests reading a site fact pattern to identify which characteristic is tied to a documented development-cost concern. The stem says the sites are otherwise comparable with adequate drainage and that engineering review found extensive grading and retaining work only on the 25% slope site. The answer follows directly from matching the documented concern to the site that has it.
Background Knowledge
Topography affects development cost because steep sites may need grading, retaining walls and special drainage work. Slope is expressed as rise over horizontal run, so a 25% slope means 25 units of rise per 100 units of horizontal distance. The value effect of slope depends on actual costs, legal requirements and market reaction, not on the percentage alone.
Real-World Application
An appraiser valuing several residential lots in a hillside subdivision receives an engineer's report showing that one steep lot needs substantial retaining walls before a house can be built. The appraiser obtains cost estimates and looks for sales of similar steep lots to measure the market's reaction.
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