Board trims Village Square apartment assessment to $15 million after debate over cap rates

The Board of Equalization and Review reduced the assessed value of Village Square Apartments (a 90-unit complex) to $15,000,000 after a contested appeal in which the county and the owner’s appraiser disagreed chiefly over capitalization rates and comparable sales.

Terry Landers, a certified general appraiser who said he reviewed three years of income statements for the 1982-built property, presented an income-capitalization analysis that produced a range of indicated values and a recommended assessment near $14,000,000 (Landers described a 2-year NOI average that produced about $14.3 million using a 6% loaded cap rate and a three-year average that produced a slightly lower figure). Landers also supplied three 2024 multifamily sales in the Charlotte metro that he said were the closest market comparables and a per-unit price range he argued supported the lower value.

Union County appraisal staff presented the county’s income and sales models and cited six sales the county considered relevant in its analysis; the county used a 5.1 loaded cap rate in its model and reported an indicated value of about $16,015,150. County staff defended the selection of local comparables and the 5.1 loaded rate, and noted that their sales and income indicators supported a higher value. County staff also said some of the appraiser’s comparables were in Charlotte proper and that Charlotte-market dynamics can differ from Union County.

The board’s deliberations focused on the cap-rate assumptions and whether recent 2024 sales (used by the owner) were the best comparables. After discussion, a board member moved to set the assessment at $15,000,000; the motion carried. The board’s written decision will be provided to the property owner according to standard notice procedures.