Appraising a condo with private elevator

[moh malekpour]

I am trying to appraise a condo unit with a private elevator. This unit is attached, 2 story building located in a complex with 200 similar units. The project type is townhouse and comprised of several buildings each with 8 attached units. The project doesn’t have elevator as the entry to each unit is at the ground level but each unit has an internal stair to its second level. The elevator was added to the subject uint few years ago due to the handicap resident that needed to go up to his bedroom. The elevator is inside the unit next to the entry door and goes up to the patient’s bedroom. There is a shower in that bedroom also that is designed for handicap person and I am not sure that shower should be counted as an extra bath or not. The condo needs to be appraised for refinancing purpose and I cannot find any condo with private elevator that is sold in the area not in the complex nor anywhere in the county. The owner and lender think that it is an accessory to the unit that should be adjusted and added to the value as it is permitted and approved by the association but it is impossible to find a comp with such item to support the value because it is an special purpose item. I don’t think that it has any market appeal to typical buyer in open market specially families with children. It might have some appeals to families with elderly but it is not a common use item. How do you handle such item in a residential property? Give it no value due to lack of market and just say it is there due to the emergency and need of owner and estimate the cost of removal if decided to be sold or you give some consideration as its estimated cost is $20000? I really appreciate it if you have any feedback or experience in similar cases.

Thanks,
Moh

 

[Frederick R. Ruffell]

Sounds like a superadequacy to me. What would be the cost to remove it? Does it qualify as personal property? What was the intent of the person having it installed(i.e. take it with them when they left)???

 

[Farm Gal]

Moh:
This may be reaching further than you want to travel, but have you considered contacting the company to ask where else (locally) such units have been installed?

I bet you can find at least ONE or two which have subsequently re-sold, if for no other reason than the person for whom the unit was installed passed on. The company may have some anecdotal eveidence you can spin into gold with just a little effort!

If you can/want to look that far I bet you can find cost to de-install, and possibly track down one or two sales from which you can extract a value (positive OR negative) in which hte property was sold because of the unit!

We have looked into such apurchase for my mother-in-law: who will NOT leave her home regardless of what it takes: (double sided door elevator to hit all 4 levels of the split level home :roll: .

 

[Lee in L.A.]

LeeAnn has a good thought there.

I doubt it would have much additional value to a typical buyer.
I also doubt they would want to spend the $ to remove it.
It certainly won't add $20k to the value in any case. Just my $0.02.

 

[Mary Fee]

Moh-
Perhaps you can find a previous sale that included a stairway lift as an alternative. I know it may be difficult to find one in the subject complex, however, it may give you a feel for the market reaction. Around here, elevators and stairway lifts pretty much only have a value for the homeowner, a typical purchaser will not pay more because of it.

Something else you may want to consider: is the complex a senior complex? It may have more value if the area is comprised of mainly seniors.

Good luck
Mary

 

[Anonymous]

Moh,
Don't limit your search to elevators. Look at properties which have other types of handicapped equipment like wheelchair ramps, lifts, special bath fixtures. After considering properties with this type of equipment or design I think that you will find that the elevator is a super adequacy and you will be able to prove it.

 

[David S. Roberson]

I say don't beat yourself to death with this. If you are familiar with your market and it seems out of place or superadequate, it probably is. Go with your first impression. Sure, you could search all over the country for similar condos with elevators. You could contact the manufacturer & find out where else they have been installed. You could try to compare it to other properties with handicapped access features. Or you could just estimate the contributory value based on your EXPERIENCE! If reviewed, who is going to point to any hard data that could refute it? I'm not saying to do a half^%s job, but is this the only appraisal you are doing this year? How much time do you really need or want to spend on it?