Commercial property takes valuation hit

The numbers aren't out yet, but Lee County Property Appraiser Ken Wilkinson says commercial-property valuations will take another double-digit percentage fall this year.

“I don't think we've reached bottom in commercial,” Wilkinson says. “We know it's going to take a heavy hit.”

Wilkinson says he's working on a plan to incorporate what he calls “economic obsolescence” into his valuation calculations. “I can't define the obsolescence factor because I don't have the data yet,” he says.

Part of Wilkinson's challenge is that he needs rent income and other financial information from commercial property owners to make valuation determinations. Despite the fact that this information is confidential, Wilkinson says many property owners refuse to share the data for fear it will fall into competitors' hands. For example, fewer than 5% of the area's hoteliers have shared financial information with Wilkinson's office.

By contrast, about half of Lee County's apartment owners have shared their property's financial data. “Right now, apartments are the best,” Wilkinson says.

Estimates by Wilkinson's office will be available June 1.

“There's negative operating income on some properties,” he says. “It's making me a little nervous.”