I agree with Smitty (that happens once in a while).  An apartment building is going to be much more complex to search and the liability is greater than residential property.  We don't look so much at the zoning of the property as we do the entity that owns it and the type of transaction involved.  You can bet they didn't get a residential mortgage - it was a commercial loan, therefore it should be a commercial search.

Our commercial rates START at twice our residential rate, but they can get much higher.  We try to estimate the time involved and base our rate accordingly, but if we are asked to quote a price we always tell the client that it is subject to change depending on what we run in to.  Sometimes you just don't know until you are knee-deep in it.

Smitty - glad you are still around. 

Best,
Robert A. Franco
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