I have been accused of being over enthusiastic at times, but hey, that’s how I roll and we are talking commercial appraisals so hear me out!!
With that caveat, an enjoyable part of the appraisal process is the chance encounter with a property owner on the street. Sometimes, getting out of the car and physically walking and taking pictures can result in finding hidden valuable information about the market. Although I’ve never been a police detective, I can only assume it carries a similar feeling when a major clue is discovered that really helps support the case. Recently, I was taking pictures of two buildings across the street from the property being appraised and was not yet aware of recent sales history.
The property owner saw me on the street taking photos from his second story office window and came down and asked what I was doing. I was able to share with him I was appraising the property across the street and was taking photos of the surrounding area. Sometimes, in order to get, it’s important to give so I first provided market intel about other recent sales and the fact there was a pending sale of the property across the street.
This helped build trust with the property owner and this random conversation led to finding two new comparable sales with fully verified details of the transactions. Both proved to be excellent data points for the property being appraised. In smaller real estate markets, boots on the ground market research can be invaluable. I often state that great data helps lead to a great appraisal and helps the appraiser have greater confidence in supporting the market value conclusion.
Mitchell Simonson, MAI has been in commercial real estate for 15 years and founded Simonson Appraisals on January 1, 2019. Need help with commercial real estate? Contact us today! To learn more or to order an appraisal, visit www.simonsonappraisals.com.