Planning & Analysis

• Develop scope of work that works for you

• Collect data on site, including all assets

• Collect data on surrounding area (county, city, neighborhood).​

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Studies & inspection

• Analyze all relevant data

• Conduct appropriate studies (drive time, marketability, best use)

• Develop proper value of land

• Application of correct approach (income, sales comparison, cost)

Your report & our continued support

• Provide defined value of property/site

• Explain clearly our professional reasoning

• Provide professional consultation and testimony when you need it​

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REAL ESTATE TAX APPEAL

JSO provides our clients with expert appraisal reports that give them a leg up during the real estate tax appeal process. We work with local, trusted law firms to save our clients money and combat Assessor estimates that are outdated.

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We appraise properties ranging from a few thousand to a few million square feet, including "Loop" high-rise office buildings, suburban big-box stores, shopping centers, industrial buildings, and a variety of other property types. These buildings have ranged from a few thousand square feet to a million square feet. We work throughout Cook County, the Collar counties, and throughout the lower 48. Potential tax savings vary depending on age, condition, and use of the property.

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This is a strange arena to work in.  It is only getting stranger and there are competing agencies that can over-rule each other.  

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The Cook County Assessor derives his assessments for all properties from a Mass Appraisal technique.  However real estate is not  homogenous, therefore even two seemingly similar and adjoining properties can have very (and this can't stressed enough) different value outcomes.  

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But this is a story for a different day.  In tax appeal there is only one major and beyond important issue... and that it the final property assessment.  This falls with the Assessor's office and finally the Cook County Board of Appeals - the Board.  These guys have been doing a stellar job.  There are other avenues in the appeal process after this, but these outcomes will not influence the "Assessment:"  

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Why is this so important?  In Cook County all the properties are assessed every three-years, a triennial taxation system. The county is therefore divides into three sectors (one per year) and in 2021 it is the turn of the City of Chicago.  After all the appeals at the Assessor's office and the "Board" were completed in 2018 the final certified assessment was issued.  In 2021 the next assessment (the current pending one) is based on these 2018 Certified total.  Therefore if one was not able to bring this assessed amount under control one can expect an even higher property tax assessment this year.  

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There are several news articles on this matter and they need to be a cautionary tail for the Cook County Assessor and all Assessors across the nation for that matter.   One of the issues is that when there is a non-real estate individual, like Fritz Kaegi in Cook County, there is a complete lack of knowledge and understanding.  

Read more....  

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The JSO team expertly revalues from a cost approach point of view. We have seen time and time again how replacement costs imposed by insurance companies are too high, inaccurate, and void of proper analysis. JSO provides clients with consultative reports that drilldown, component by component, the exact cost to replace the property.

We work with trusted and proven insurance brokers who take our appraisals into negotiation alongside the often-outdated costs regulated by insurance companies. We have applied our expert cost analysis to a variety of property types, and have aided our diverse pool of valued clients.

analysis for

individual investors

joint-ventures

FINANCING

Appraisal for financing is one of our specialties, but it is work that we only complete on a sporadic basis. We understand the ins and outs of Commercial Mortgage Backed Securities (CMBS) and various other traditional financing methods. We have prepared expert appraisals for Life Companies such as Artesia Mortgage Capital Corporation, Business Men's Assurance Company, and Royal Neighbors of America to mention a few.  

The issue for us has been the race to the bottom on appraisal fees.  It is difficult to understand that if an institution is going to forward several million to tens on millions of dollars in loan financing that they would not wish to know everything possible about the property and its environs. Its is necessary to understand the health of the rental market and the current trends in leasing such as the lease basis, terms, concessions, tenant improvements, etc.  Not to mention expenses, and capitalization rates and why (especially in this market) are the indices moving in one direction or another.

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I would expect an institution would want to know the direction of the market and more importantly the future upside for the property in question.  After all they would like to be taken out of the loan at some stage and get paid back in full.

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This takes time.  This is reflected in the fee.  Many of the large brokerage houses that have appraisal departments say they are doing this already.  But in essence they have a stock sections that try to fulfill this criteria.  

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JSO has appraised hundreds of office buildings, shopping centers, and industrial buildings—it was one of our hallmarks. But we also specialize in valuing cooperative housing for blanket loans, whether they’re limited equity or full equity developments. Co-ops come in all shapes and sizes from the ultra-luxury high-rise apartments to the standard town home housing developments commonly built in the 1960s.

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We also have crafted deep experience with self-storage valuations plus other niche areas such as swim clubs.  However, it always boils down to the fee.  We are simply not interested in the financial race to the lowest common fee.

REAL ESTATE TRUST

We work with Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) for annual or bi-annual valuations of properties in various markets, including office, industrial, and multi-family residential. We have travelled coast to coast to provide exceptional and trusted work.

Are you looking for a professional appraisal partner that will go the extra mile?

For decades JSO has provided strong value-add to our clients, even in those times that are most trying.

Our team compiles reports that exceed IRS guidelines for estate tax requirements. More about that below...

We clearly understand the intricacies of estate valuation that involves multiple owners and ultimately a valuation including Fractional Interest.

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In this short summary, its worth mentioning that as a general rule we do not work with other appraisal firms in developing values across multiple States for multiple properties.  We handle all States at one time, and develop all values for all properties allowing for fruitful discussions with our clients.  It has been our experience that quality control and coordination don't fair well when there ia more than one appraisal firm developing values.  We prefer to be the one voice on all values to aid with the completion of the return.  

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Lastly, within this field there are conservation easements, preservation easements, etc., that we believe need a strong guiding hand from a valuation point of view.  This is a difficult area of valuation and JSO is clearly up to this task. The link below develops this further.

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Read more...

GET IN TOUCH

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we'd love to hear from you!

JSO Valuation Group, Limited

2100 Greenwood Street, Suite 104

Evanston, Illinois 60201 

847-866-6660

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