Definition
Appraisal Office Tower. Office is a room, set of rooms, or building used as a place for commercial, professional, or bureaucratic work. Office projects are advancing quickly in terms of design and construction in Latin America. Large class A projects are being built in office corridors that are connected to public transportation. Office projects now focus on multinational and regional tenants, that need large floor plates, climate-controlled environments, and high security standards. The advances of real estate funds in Latin America have allowed for large mixed-use projects with office components to begun to be developed. These projects require substantial capital outlay, over a long period of time. LOGAN has appraised some of the most important office portfolios and projects in Latin America including in Colombia, Peru, Mexico, Costa Rica, and Panama.
Types
Buildings
– Low-rise
– Mid-rise
– High-rise
Office Spaces – Uses
– Traditional
– Flex Space
– Co-working
– Business Center – Executive Suites
Approaches, Relevance
Cost approach – relevant when the project is relatively new
Sales comparison or market approach – applicable if there is sufficient comparable sales or leases available.
Income capitalization approach – considers the profitability of a property but does not easily change in income or costs over time.
DCF – discounted cashflow – most advanced method for valuation of offices, because the method measures the profitability of a project over time, and the method is typically the way investors analyze potential purchases in Latin America (investment funds or FIBRAs).
Value Impacting Factors
Location – the location of an office project is the most important factor of value usually. It is very important for projects to be located within office corridors or hubs because companies like to be near their clients, and near access to mass transit systems.
Floor plate size – this is a key differentiator in office projects. Typically, a larger floor plate allows for more efficiency in a project for tenants. Class A tenants often require this specification – and locate in projects that provide it.
Tenant quality – closely related to the location and building specifications is the quality of tenant a project attracts. Usually high spec, well-located projects attract multinational tenants, who have high credit ratings, and provide long-term cash flow stability for projects
Important Inputs
Rent, rental growth – rental levels and rent increments have a big impact on property value.
Tenant credit quality – having important multinational tenants helps increase the stability of the cash flows and allows for lower cap rates.
Recent Trends
– Co-working and its growth in Latin America
– Pandemic and its impact on tenant behavior
Deliverable
Narrative Appraisal Report
1. Value impacting considerations – summary
2. Purpose, scope, limitations of the report
3. Land description
4. Improvement description
5. Scope of work
6. Highest and best use
7. Approaches to value
8. Reconciliation
9. Certification statement
