Market value or comparable value? What does that mean? It means we form market value opinions. Specifically, credible market value opinions. Credible in this case must mean more than merely “…worthy of belief…” since USPAP contains no indication of who’s belief we seek. It means, therefore, worthy of the market’s belief since the market is […]
There are three specific terms used to define what is a comp. It should be competitive, similar, and able to be compared. Competitive means what a ‘typical’ buyer would consider as between the comp, and the subject, if they were available in the marketplace at the same time (the date of value). Similar means “resembling […]
Market-specific price indexing is powerful and underused! It improves accuracy and precision of appraisals. It enables an objective market analysis. It forms a natural path from traditional, judgment-based appraisal to informative, evidence-based professional analyses. Best of all, it enables a sense of pride in appraisal work, while making it more fun! Market Price Indexing (MPI)© […]
Three comparables have been the standard for many years. On the residential appraisal side, some clients ask for more (such as current listings). For ‘general’ appraisal, typically four to six comparable sales are enough to achieve believability (credibility). Believability arrives at the user’s desk in a readable report. In the past, the standard residential form […]
The “Appraisal Process” requires good judgment in picking comps. USPAP (Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice) uses the word comparable 95 times. Comps MUST be important. However, it is not defined. The Appraisal of Real Estate states a comparable must be similar, competitive, and “able to be compared.” In the 14th Edition, it is used […]
Quiz: How many comps are “just right?” First we must ask: What is a comparable? We can take two attitudes: 1) “I know a good comp when I see it!” or; 2) What does our accepted literature say? The Appraisal of Real Estate says . . . “The data used for comparison … should come […]
My friend, David Braun, points out in his book, The Valuation Analyst, that scope creep has turned into scope running. I’m sure many appraisers, particularly residential people will agree. He points out that as the reviewers ask for more, appraisers are finding ways to not be specific. This has turned into a self-perpetuating loop: “As […]
Are You Worthy of Belief? Is your work “believable”? Standards require work to be “credible.” My curiosity got me this time. I researched “get people to believe you.” As you might guess, what I found is unsettling. First of all, one of the pieces of advice was to actually tell the truth! Imagine. Also, back […]
Daddy, how do You pick comps? We asked about comp selection in today’s “big data” world. We considered why we used three comps on a form, or put six comps on an accountant’s spreadsheet. But what are the different ways appraisers use to pick comps? We can use “good judgment” to pick comps. Or we […]
Comparable selection is fundamental. In the traditional “valuation process,” first the “relevant characteristics of the property” are identified. Then in the “data collection” step, “Comparable Property Data” is collected. The subject is depicted by relevant characteristics (predictor variables), and comparables are chosen to fit that depiction. In the traditional procedure, these are called “elements of […]