Category Archives: Company News

Our 2024 Commercial Real Estate Predictions

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This has been a major year for commercial real estate in the Quad Cities in many ways. Looking into 2024, we have three main predictions based on trends we’re seeing locally, regionally, and nationally.

commercial appraisal and litigation

  1. “There’s a lot of potential for disrupters, whatever they may be.”

2024 is an election year. This isn’t great news for a market that relies on investors who are not interested in gambling when it comes to inflation, interest rates, and other laws which could majorly affect how and where they do business. Additionally, current geopolitical and environmental issues could lead some investors and businesses to pause until the election cycle has ended.

  1. “There’s a lot of capital with no place to go.”

A trend we believe will continue from 2023 and into 2024 is the purchasing of distressed buildings. There are some positives and negatives to this piece. When buying a distressed building, it is important to have the building thoroughly inspected and appraised. Recently, a building purchased in the Quad Cities was found to have nearly $1M in damage due to a collapsed roof. The repairs had been estimated to cost $250,000 a few months before the collapse.

The tension between the existence of start-up capital and the need for major renovations on many buildings in the Quad Cities is leading to some hesitation. On top of this, anyone who has already locked in a low-interest rate on their building is generally not going to move out for a higher interest rate.

  1. “Large corporate offices are still seeing low market values.”

One major disruptor from nearly 4 years ago is the continuation of the effects of the Pandemic. Large corporate offices are not returning to their former value, even as many offices call their employees back to work. There’s a lot of uncertainty and caution among real estate investors because of this new trend.

As 2023 comes to an end, it is important to take stock of the year before moving into the next one. Despite high-interest rates, uncertainty, and population decline, there have been many investments and new businesses appearing in the Quad Cities.

At Roy R. Fisher, we provide commercial real estate appraisal and litigation services. If you are interested in working with us or would like to join our team, please reach out.

On the Winning Side of Property Tax Assessments

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Many residential and commercial businesses faced large tax assessment hikes for the 2023 year. Some commercial assessments increased well over 25% between 2022 to 2023. The County and City Assessors typically do a good job of capturing the sales data, but in setting values for some properties, they sometimes land at assessments outside the market norms. That is when an appraisal is helpful.

Roy R. Fisher has been providing appraisals for over 90 years, helping hundreds of Iowa and Illinois businesses and multi-family property owners appeal their tax assessments.

Through July of this year, Roy R. Fisher worked with several property owners to appeal their assessments. We were successful at the Board of Review level in helping the owners get reductions in 11 of 13 appeals where an appraisal was developed. The average reduction from the preliminary 2023 assessments was over 17%. In two cases, the reduction was more than 30% in the preliminary 2023 assessed value.

And we don’t just work with property owners. We have performed several appraisals for City and County Assessors throughout Iowa and Illinois, primarily valuing larger retail and industrial properties. This has helped Assessors and County Boards of Review defend their assessments.

These appraisals require extensive demographic analysis and a wide regional search for comparable data. Our firm strives to serve all our clients with impartiality and a commitment to credibility.

Meet Jordan Maus: Commercial Appraiser and Vice Chair of the Real Estate Appraisal Examining Board for the State of Iowa

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Jordan Maus began his appraisal career in 2008, in Chicago, IL. After gaining valuable experience in such a large market, he returned to the Quad Cities two year later. In January 2012, he joined Roy R. Fisher as an Associate Appraiser. He then earned his license to become a Certified General Real Property Appraiser in 2013 and has been licensed in Iowa and Illinois ever since. While he works primarily on assignments for loan underwriting, Jordan can handle any appraisal task that comes his way.

“I noticed from the time he first arrived, Jordan had a keen eye for detail,” says Roy R. Fisher President, Mark Nelson. “He’s efficient with his time and always goes above and beyond.”

One way Jordan continues to excel in this field is through his appointment to the Real Estate Appraisal Examining Board for the State of Iowa. He has been a member of the Board since May of 2020. He currently serves as the Vice Chair of the Board and sits on the Discipline and Peer Reviewer Committees.

Serving on this Board allows Jordan to give back to the appraisal industry. The Discipline Committee takes their service seriously and ensures integrity in the industry throughout Iowa. Their efforts may mean disciplinary action in some cases. This can include assigning appraisers additional training and education to help improve their work and ensure USPAP compliance in every appraisal report.

In his day-to-day work for Roy R. Fisher, Jordan is responsible for writing appraisal reports, general property research, real estate market analysis, and sales/lease research. Additionally, he reconciles income/expense data and performs property inspections. Jordan is deliberate about the appraisal tasks he takes on, but he handles every assignment with finesse.

The industry has largely remained constant throughout Jordan’s career with Roy R. Fisher. “The biggest change,” he says, “has been improvements in technology and report writing software.” While technology makes writing reports and gathering data more efficient, it always takes an expert appraiser to do the job thoroughly and properly.

Jordan focuses on the Quad Cities region, which includes Scott County, in Iowa, and Rock Island County, in Illinois, though sometimes he serves other nearby communities such as Muscatine, Burlington, Iowa City, Clinton, and Dubuque, as well as smaller communities in Illinois. “We try to avoid encroaching on other appraiser’s primary markets,” says Jordan. “However, we are happy to help out when our colleagues call for help.”

Assisting fellow appraisers, whether it’s in a nearby market, or by serving on the Real Estate Appraisal Examining Board, makes Jordan a strong member of the Roy R. Fisher team and the broader appraisal community.