Most owners find out what their building is worth the slow way: an appraisal they paid for in the middle of a refinance. A broker opinion of value gets you the same answer faster, from the people who are actually in the market every day.
A BOV is our read on what your building would trade for right now. It's appraisal-adjacent, but it works from the other direction. An appraiser values to a lender's standard and a specific date. We value to what a real buyer would pay this quarter, because we're the ones talking to those buyers.
Here's how we build one.
We start with what's actually sold and leased near you recently. Not just the numbers. We call the brokers, agents, buyers, and sellers on those deals and ask why that buyer chose that specific asset, what they paid up for, and what they walked away from. The number matters less than the reason behind it.
We cross-check against the appraisers we work with daily. We trade comps with them constantly, so the read reflects more than one desk's opinion.
Then we apply what the building in front of us actually has. Two warehouses a mile apart can trade at very different numbers because one has a secured yard, more power, higher clear height, or a tenant already in place. Value lives in those details, and a spreadsheet won't find them for you.
You'd want a BOV before you list, before a refinance, when you're buying out a partner, settling an estate, or just deciding whether this is the year to hold or sell. It costs you nothing and it's the difference between pricing off a hunch and pricing off the market.
Thinking about your options on a building? Get a broker opinion of value.
By Colter Smith, Licensed Utah Broker · CRES Utah
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