A couple of weeks back, I published a blog post about excess rents. For that blog post, I interviewed Stephen Roach, MAI, SRA, AI-GRS, who recently wrote an article that appeared in The Appraisal Journal, the leading trade publication for commercial appraisers throughout the world. On the surface, the post appeared to be just another boring article … [Read more...]
Know your Rights | Fee Simple vs. Leased Fee
The metaphor used by almost every professor to introduce first year real estate students to explain property rights is a bundle of sticks. But that metaphor is tired - and old. So I decided to use a bundle of cigars. I explained in a previous post how ownership of commercial real estate is an illusion. In that post I stated... "...the … [Read more...]
Buying a Commercial Building? 4 Things to Consider
Are you facing the prospect of purchasing a commercial building? Growing your business is exciting. It's a bit scary too. We know because we're doing the same thing. Almost daily we face decisions that could have a long-term impact on our business. It's hard to imagine navigating the process of purchasing a commercial building without being … [Read more...]
Geographic Competence in Commercial Appraisals
Much has been made of geographic competence in the commercial appraisal world. Our firm covers a vast geographic region that includes several states. Maybe that's why this particular topic peaks my interest. It's not uncommon to receive calls from out of state for requests to appraise property in Kentucky or one of the other states where we provide … [Read more...]
City of Growth: Lexington
Lexington is a city filled with opportunity, experiencing robust growth in both the commercial and residential sectors. Proudly dubbed the 'horse capital of the world,' sprawling horse farms dot the beautiful terrain and add to its charm. On top of a rich history in the horse industry, Lexington has a lot of other amazing features worth exploring. … [Read more...]
Commercial Appraisals Aren’t Written in Stone; or at Least They Shouldn’t be.
As with beauty, value is often in the eyes of the beholder. Each party in a commercial appraisal transaction brings their own biases and opinions of value to the table. It might surprise you to know that they aren't always predictable. You would expect lenders and loan officers to be biased in favor of a higher value while appraisers tended to the … [Read more...]
2 Tips that could Save Your Bank Money on Commercial Appraisals
I can't count the number of times I've received calls from a bank asking me to readdress a commercial appraisal report. What the caller doesn't realize is that things just aren't that easy. This situation arises most often when a borrower begins the loan process with one bank and, after paying for an appraisal, switches lenders. I explain to the … [Read more...]
Kicking Things up a Notch with National CoStar Data
We're kicking things up a notch here at Russell Roberts Appraisals, taking things to a whole 'nother level. We already explained some of the things we love about CoStar in a previous post. Now, with access to their nationwide database, we have even greater tools at our disposal to serve our clients better. As data about potential commercial real … [Read more...]