Very simply put, we appraise real estate and consult with clients on land use issues, such as highest and best use and zoning.

But behind that simple statement is a wealth of detailed experience – a wide variety of property types, property interests, property locations, intended uses (a USPAP term that refers to the reason why a client needs an appraisal service), and settings.

Property types

We have appraised most of the property types found in urban areas, as well as some found outside of cities. These include:

Airport property, including hangars, terminals, exclusive-use areas, fixed-base operations (FBO) – Apartment buildings – Auto dealerships – Bowling alleys – Branch banks – Churches – Condominiums – Cooperative apartments – Department stores – Fast food restaurants – Gas stations – Golf courses – Grocery stores – Hotels and motels – Industrial property – Landfills – Multi-family property – Nursing homes – Office buildings – Oil refineries – Railroad property – Recreation corridors – Regional malls – Restaurants – Retail buildings – Senior housing – Shopping centers – Single-family homes – Special purpose property – Storefront retail – Vacant land, including lots and acreage

Property interests

Appraisers and attorneys are familiar with the “bundle of rights” theory of real estate ownership, which collectively represent the ownership that a particular entity enjoys in a particular piece of property. These rights may be divided both legally (that is, conceptually) and physically. We have appraised property rights in both senses, including:

Air rights – Avigation easements – Conservation easements – Easements appurtenant – Fee simple estates – Flowage easements – Leased fee estates – Leasehold estates – Life estates – Railroad easements – Sandwich leaseholds – Sidewalk easements – Subsurface rights – Surface rights – Undivided fractional interests – Utility easements

Property locations

We have appraised property in every area of the City of Chicago, with a particular concentration on valuations in the central business district. In the greater Chicago area, we have appraised property in Cook County, DuPage County, Lake County, Will County, Kane County, McHenry County, DeKalb County, Kendall County, Grundy County, Kenosha and Milwaukee Counties (Wisconsin), Lake and LaPorte Counties (Indiana), and Berrien County (Michigan). Beyond that range, we have appraised property across downstate Illinois as well as in Georgia, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Missouri, Nebraska, New York, Ohio, Tennessee, Texas, and Wisconsin. These assignments have taken us from upper-bracket residential units overlooking Lake Michigan to small towns in rural areas, and many places in between. One thing our clients can always count on: we do what it takes to acquire the local knowledge and competency to complete our assignments.

Intended uses

Clients have many reasons to order appraisals, and when you call, we will take the time to completely understand your (or your client’s) reason for ordering appraisal services. The intended use of an appraisal is an important component of the “scope of work” (another USPAP concept), and will help the client to determine, with our help, the level of written appraisal reporting, the format requirements of the agency, or the evidentiary requirements of the jurisdiction, among other things. Here are some of the intended uses for which we have appraised real estate:

Acquisition – Ad valorem assessment (property taxes) – Appraisal review – Arbitration – Disposition – Divorce – Eminent domain – Estate – Expert testimony – Feasibility studies – Financing – Highest and best use – Impact studies – Insurance – Litigation support – Market analysis – Market rent estimates – Partition suits – Zoning

Settings

Most appraisers do their work in the office or “in the field,” viewing property. However, we are accustomed to providing substantive client services in a variety of other settings, including conferences with municipal clients, meetings with our clients’ legal counsel, sessions with corporate clients, on-site interviews with property owners, and expert testimony. In each setting, our experience helps guide us to the proper type of presentation and interaction with or for you, our client.

Our expert testimony has been accepted in the following venues:

Circuit Court of Cook County – Circuit Court of Lake County (IL) – Circuit Court of Will County – Cook County Board of Review – DuPage County Board of Review – Madison County (IL) Board of Review – Rock Island County Board of Review – Will County Board of Review – Illinois Property Tax Appeal Board – U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Illinois – Zoning Board of Appeals of the City of Chicago – Zoning Board of Appeals of Cook County – Zoning Board of Appeals of DuPage County – Illinois Pollution Control Board – Various arbitrations – Various public hearings – Depositions