Real Estate Appraisal – Reforms a bitter pill for real estate appraisers – Florida Times-Union

Reforms a bitter pill for real estate appraisers – Florida Times-Union
S ince May, it’s been a lot harder to be a real estate appraiser, according to Paul Jarnutowski. The problem hasn’t been the recession, as much as a controversial new code of conduct adopted by the appraisal industry on May 1. Many real estate agents

Real Estate Appraisal – Do Your Own (Real Estate Appraisal)

For single family homes, there are two basic methods used in real estate appraisal. They are replacement cost analysis, and using comparable sales. A third appraisal method, based on capitalization, is used for income properties, and is covered in another article.

In figuring replacement cost the question is: What would it cost to buy this land and put this house on it? If the land (improved) would cost $40,000, and the house could be built for $150,000, the value indicated would be around $190,000 – if the house is fairly new. If it has used up 10% of its useful life, you can deduct $15,000 for depreciation.

Replacement cost is not really a very useful measurement. It is difficult to say what the land is worth in a city center where none is left for sale, for example, and tough to gauge depreciation. It is used as a secondary method, and for unique homes that can’t be compared easily with others. The primary method of real estate appraisal used for homes is a market analysis using comparable sales.

Real Estate Appraisal 101

To get a good idea of what a home should sell for, you need to compare it to homes that have sold. Find at least three similar homes in the same area that have sold within the last year, preferably within the last six months. This information is available in the county records, or from a real estate agent with access to the MLS (multiple listing service).

Now the confusing part. You start with the selling price of each of your comparables. If your subject home has a second bathroom, and the a comparable doesn’t, you add the value of the bathroom to the sales price of the comparable. If a comparable home has a blacktop driveway, and the subject home doesn’t, you take the value away.

You are rectifying differences, to see what comparable homes would have sold for if they were like yours. So if a comparable sold for $140,000, and a bathroom is worth $15,000 in your area (ask a real estate agent for help with these figures), you ADD $15,000 for the bathroom it doesn’t have. Then you subtract, say $4,000, for the paved driveway it does have. This gives you a comparable sales price of $151,000.

You do this with all differences between the subject home and each comparable. When done, you average the three comparable prices. So if the three comparables have adjusted sales prices of $151,000, 162,000, and 149,000, you add the three figures and divide by three. The indicated value of the home is $154,000.

Of course all appraisal is an inexact science. If you can only find comparables sold over a year ago, you have to estimate appreciation in the area. If one sold with seller financing, you have to decide how this affected the price. For all of it’s flaws, however, for single family homes, this is the most accurate method of real estate appraisal.

About the author:
Steve Gillman has invested in real estate for years. To learn more, and to see a photo of a beautiful house he and his wife bought for $17,500, visit http://www.HousesUnderFiftyThousand.com

Houston Office Market (Real Estate Appraisal)

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The downtown Houston office market is a hot topic these days. Recent months have seen a flurry of activity, whether it be leases, move-outs, or acquisitions. It’s no secret that the downtown market continues to be plagued by average vacancies painfully close to 20% and stagnant rents. With the thought that things will improve in the near future, investors have been purchasing properties in earnest. The fourth quarter news was encouraging, notably EPCO, Inc.’s acquisition of 1100 Louisiana, a building in which they have subsequently occupied 300,000 square feet. Also, Wells Real Estate Funds paid the highest per-square-foot price in the Houston office market’s history ($286 psf) for 5 Houston Center. Rumor has it that ChevronTexaco is interested in purchasing the remaining vacant former Enron building, while other energy companies have begun to reclaim shadow space downtown.

Unfortunately, the Central Business District’s recovery is anything but a slam dunk. Two major tenants, Burlington Resources and Bank One, are expected to vacate CBD space in 2006 after acquisitions by ConocoPhillips and Chase, respectively. In the same building Burlington is expected to vacate, Calpine Corp. reduced the amount of space they lease and subsequently lost naming rights to the former Calpine Center, now known by its address, 717 Texas.

Questions still remain about when the downtown office market will see a substantial improvement. It did not happen with the recent influx of New Orleans office tenants, as some thought it would. However, strong job growth has many experts predicting a healthy 2006 for the Houston office market overall, and with the positive fourth quarter numbers, it appears the market is moving in the right direction.

To view this entire article and more market research updates on apartments, offices, industries and retailers and to learn more about the services O’Connor & Associates offers, please visit {A HREF = http://www.poconnor.com}houstoncommercialproperties

About the Author

Patrick O’Connor, MAI is president of O’Connor & Associates. The firm, in business since 1974, specializes in nationwide real estate appraisals, research, and state and federal tax reduction services. O’Connor is frequently acknowledged by national publications as a respected source of information on real estate trends.

Real Estate Appraisal – Monopoly

Monopoly Hasbro Interactive has managed to make an old-time favorite even better. This version of Monopoly includes the features we have loved for years–Boardwalk, Community Chest, Go Directly to Jail cards–but enhances enjoyment with some new features. Players can completely redesign the game board by importing their own images or using the included clip art. The 3-D graphics have never been this detailed–you can take game play down to street level and actually see your tokens dance around the board as they pass through the extravagant neighborhoods surrounding Park Place or the down-and-out areas along Mediterranean Avenue.
Customer Review: Loaded Dice?
I’m not sure what’s wrong with the dice generator on this game or how the odds are stacked. However, I bought this game to have a little fun with a computer opponent(one). Everyone knows that if you play again one opponent the game will go faster. So I like to just spend a short time(an hour or less playing). However I find that when I play against one computer opponent I will usually lose. For example the computer will usually get first roll and will usually get all properties of one color first. If you don’t mind losing time and time again (you’re a little masochistic) then this is fun. I have looked for updates or patches to this program but have never seen any that will balance the lopsided ‘luck’ that the computer usually has. I must say then that the computer has ‘loaded dice.’ Has anyone else had the same experience? Is this problem corrected in newer versions? I’ll give it two stars for the ability to play online against a human opponent but the computer opponent’s ‘luck’ knocks off 4 stars