Neighborhood Analysis

[debbiemaekershaw]

In the Northeast we have towns that encompass relatively small areas (12 square miles for example). My question is when you are doing a neighborhhod analysis and are using a portion of the town as your neighborhood, where do you get your land use percentages from? In the small towns such as here, it's not uncommon to use the entire town as your neighborhood, and you can refer to the town master plan (which may have the land use % broken out) or talk to the assessor who can break out the numbers for single family, commercial, multi family (over 4)..., but that is for the entire town. I'm interested in hearing how others determine this land use when looking at a small area of a town. How do you establish these %'s? Does the Assessor in your towns have these broken out? It's interesting. I just had an order for a small town (which I'm familiar with, but haven't done any assignments in, and referred to the master plan. The information was 15 years old, and I know the town has grown substantially. When I called the Planning department, they had no clue! I then spoke to the Assessor, who thought my question was INTERESTING and actually did some calculations himself and called me back. The %'s were striking! But again, that is for the entire town. This made me wonder what other appraisers do/use for this part of the analysis. When time is short, sitting at town hall to try to determine these %'s for a section of a town can be daunting. What say you?

 

[CANative]

It's an estimate and based on your geographical competence and knowledge of the area. If you're not there regularly, drive around the neighborhood and make some notes.

 

[Robert Dunkle]

Greg got in while I was typing a reply. As he said, it is more an informed guesstimate than exact figures. You should drive the neighborhood and, unless it is a very small town, the neighborhood will not likely be the entire town. Look for dividing lines such as expressways, rivers and the like that might delineate a neighborhood. You have to do some research to ascertain the true boundaries and then just give your estimation. I typically will indicate in increments of 5% as I don't think anyone expects to know to the %age point, but wants a feel for whether there is a predominance of commercial, industrial, etc.

 

[Kate]

Greg is right as usual. It's an estimate. It's important to drive around the neighborhood to get a good feel for what your boundaries will be. It's very rare for me to use the whole town as my neighborhood. In fact I have used one street before as my neighborhood.

Most towns will have a zoning map posted of the whole town. When I determine the neighborhood boundaries I like to look at my invisible square on the master zoning map and make my estimate from that. Unfortunately it is not an exact #. But it's as close as I can get.

 

[george foster]

I lived in small towns in ME for 30 years. Each and every one had its' "good and bad side of the tracks". There were places run-down mobile homes congregated, and places where people established "gentlemen" farms. Rural appraisals are like buildin' an Italian sportscar...every one is individually hand-built.

The key term is "locational competency."If you've driven the subject neighborhood and each comp for photos, you can determine the percentages. See Greg Boyd quote. IF your dumpin' pics from the MLS...well-garbage in garbage out.

Course the statewide MLS destroyed that concept. Have trainee-will travel 200 miles for $150.00 fee split.

Town as an entire neighborhood is a computer canned phrase conveniently used by the 24 hour turnaround low-ball fee hacks.

 

[Farm Gal]

Keep in mind that the percentages are mostly intended to reflect present land USE... not neccesarily zoning or prospective uses.

I agree that geographic competency and personal observation is the intended reporting for those blocks.

If there are a great number of obvious vacancies, or other positive or negative features which lead one to believe there is a change in uses (note the flow to the end block on the form(s)... it should be further described narrratively.

 

[john snyder]

During review of newbies in my own office and other appraisers I find that many times the neighborhood boundaries are described as whatever the border streets that encompasses that particular entire small town.

What I have tried to explain and change the thinking to is that while the general boundary is adequate for travel information it is not the neighborhood. Also if an appraiser leaves that broad range boundary description in there they should embellish it in there neighborhood comments discussing the micro-description of the actual neighborhood the subject is within.

If not explained it seems rather misleading don't ya think?

john

 

[Ross (CO)]

You'll never get the distribution of those %'s exactly.....but the options on the form are few(er) and the total number must equal 100%. My amounts are in 5% incrementing. You do the best you can from your knowledge of the subject's market-area and perhaps by closely viewing the very map page of your local atlas map book which is on your desk or would accompany you when you go the the field.

I will offer my %'s of land use based on that block of area (for me here, basically, an assemblage of 1-sq.mile grid-blocks coordinated over our metro area) in which I isolated my comp data search, since they will be in my subject's "neighborhood" and with me NOT reaching beyond and into other neighborhoods. That adjacent form-field for relative "SFR price and age" data also comes from this same number of total square mile(s) in which I have accessed my database, and I state that amount of square-miles of area from which those ranges are sourced. I will take out the extremes of any single low or high price which would skew that range, like figure skating judging does to the low and high scores. Ideally I would like the subject to be "centered" as best as possible within my total map search area.....but markets are not perfect.

The "neighborhood boundaries and characteristics" is the more immediate series of named streets and roadways that are a reasonable perimeter around the subject subdivision and logically mention those streets so the reader can look at the accompanying location map page too. If I can get 3 of 4 bounding roadways to appear in my cropped map page I feel that suffices......even if I gleaned overall SFR price and age data from a slightly larger (square/rectangular) map area.

 

[Paula Greer]

From the end-user's perspective, what we want to know is the general make-up of the area--is it predominantly residential with some commercial, or is the area mostly industrial and this happens to be one of a few remaining residential properties? Percentages with 5% increments are a good thing. Doesn't have to be rocket science. But just to throw a wrench in the works, don't forget that the neighborhood and market area can have, and usually do have, far different boundaries.

 

[Farm Gal]

Thank you, Paula!

I appreciate your input!

And thanks also for pointing out that the 'neighborhood' which BEST describes the subjects immediate area and surroundings may not be the precise limits of the marketing area for that property...

Many times in my neck of the woods (or prairie) a town may have several complimentary marketing areas, from which a given buyer might seek to purchase a property, but specifically excluding certain areas which through cost (or perceived value) woudl NOT be considered in their market search!

Soemtimes a dual description of the immediate area, with an additional explanation of the compliemntary marketing areas is the best way to describe a property, either with atypical features OR one where decribing the whole town (or whatever other boundaries) is excessively large or inappropriate.

For example: The new construction suburban subdivision on the north end with the first few houses... might require comparison with the same TYPE of subdivision on the west end of town... but is markedly and physically seperated by a river and six miles from the other COMPARABLE marketing area subdivision!!