Multifamily

By John Stark, Popp Hutcheson Student housing valuation is often saddled by two common units of comparison that multiply the opportunities for confusion and disagreement in appraising value for property taxation. For a more convincing property tax appeal, it is important for the taxpayer to ensure their property’s valuations line up on both a per-square-foot and a per-bed basis. This article will discuss the importance of a proper unit mix and rent roll analysis to reconcile values between these units of comparison. We will also discuss current trends in student housing, including free services and concessions designed to boost occupancy, that should be accounted for in an income analysis to make sure appraisal districts do not overvalue the real estate. Price Per Square Foot vs. Price Per Bed Although student housing owners typically lease their properties by the bed and calculate investment value by that metric, many appraisal districts value student housing on a price per-square-foot basis. This can lead to errors in an assessor’s potential gross income assumptions. Further exacerbating overvaluations, many appraisal districts do not distinguish lease-per-bed student housing from traditional, lease-per-unit multifamily apartments. This failure to differentiate leads to erroneous assumptions of market rents and cap rates.  …