Divorce is never easy. If your divorce involves a business, it’s even more complex. We’ve worked with many attorneys and business owners to provide appraisals for divorces, some more amiable than others. One thing that all of these situations have in common is that by the time our appraisal firm is called in, the divorce…Read More
Deconstructing Daubert on the Art of Appraisal
Appraisers frequently refer to what they do as an “art.” And in fact, the word “art” features prominently in the title of a book on appraisal review published by a major appraisal organization. But the practice of referring to appraisals and appraisal review as an “art” can be problematic, especially when we’re providing appraisals to…Read More
Specialty Equipment: Orchards & Vineyards
Big changes are happening in California agriculture! As farmers convert massive amounts of acreage to orchards and vineyards, abandoning annual crops like tomatoes and rice, farming equipment is changing as well. As one would expect, orchard and vineyard crops use entirely different machinery types, especially for harvesting. This is an interesting transition for appraisers of…Read More
Are Your Wine Tanks Excessively Taxed?
What would you think if I told you that the value of wine tanks increases annually? That the longer you use them the more they’re worth? You’d think I was out of my mind! It just doesn’t sound reasonable, does it? How can it be possible that the value of equipment as standard as wine…Read More
Case Studies: Food Processing Equipment
Food and beverage processing equipment isn’t like the equipment in other manufacturing plants. Lubrication is different. Sanitation is on-going. And usage cycles vary — not only from facility to facility, but often within individual facilities, often depending on the agricultural cycle. And awareness of equipment usage cycles is essential for an accurate appraisal. Why? Usage…Read More
Case Study: Inventory Fire Loss
Join us Friday, Nov 10, 2017, 4:00pm to 5:00pm at Caruso’s in The Westin St Francis, Union Square in San Francisco, CA, when ASA equipment appraiser, Jack Young, ASA, CPA, will be available to answer your questions about the importance of independent, defensible and USPAP compliant equipment appraisals for in fire litigation. Click here for more information &…Read More
Factors in Appraising for Fire Loss or Theft
How do we appraise equipment that’s been destroyed or stolen? Of course we hope for good records — photos, equipment lists, maintenance records — but rarely are those available. Often whatever records might have existed have been lost in the same fire that destroyed the equipment. In most of the fire cases we’ve been called…Read More
Glass Fabrication Equipment Appraising
Recently we had the pleasure of inspecting and appraising a glass tempering and coating plant. Residential window glass production slowed considerably from 2008 to 2014 due to the devastating effects of the Great Recession on the home building market and construction in general. During that period of time a number of firms in the industry…Read More
Appraisals for Ad Valorem Tax Appeals
Considering an ad valorem tax appeal for your business? Business owners who provide independent equipment values researched by experienced, qualified equipment appraisers are more successful in their tax appeal. Whether negotiating assessed values with the county property appraiser or in a value adjustment board hearing, a taxpayer who’s prepared with a USPAP equipment appraisal review has a better chance of…Read More
Finding the Best Equipment Appraiser
This article by Joe Santora, ASA, was published earlier this summer on Equipment Finance Advisor and subsequently on Joe’s LinkedIn page, where I found it. I think you’ll enjoy Joe’s explanation of why choosing your equipment appraiser wisely is a critical step in the equipment finance process. Thanks, Joe, for granting permission to republish here! “You have…Read More
Equipment Appraisal Reconciliation
Reconciliation is the final process for the equipment appraiser when more than one approach to value is used in an equipment valuation. That process involves reconciling the values from the separate approaches and resolving, if necessary, any differences in order to arrive at a final opinion of value. The question here is: “Why in the world…Read More
Drought and its Impact on Valuing Agricultural Equipment
Several equipment appraisal report clients have recently asked me to include information on California’s on-going drought conditions and how current and continuing conditions might affect the value of the equipment appraised. It’s an interesting situation for an equipment appraiser to be in. As a rule, equipment appraisal reports state that the opinion of value provided…Read More