Arlington BOE affirms county's revised assessments for two Columbia Pike apartment complexes despite owners' cap-rate dispute

The Arlington County Board of Equalization on June 24 confirmed the county's revised 2026 assessments for two Columbia Pike apartment properties after hearing owners say rising operating costs and aging infrastructure have pushed net operating income below levels that support the assessor's cap rates.

Appellants Jerry Morose and Gerald Pierce, representing family-owned buildings on Columbia Pike, told the five-member board their properties—identified in the hearing as Dorchester Apartments and Dorchester Towers—are roughly 70 years old and face recurring, expensive repairs. "With our buildings approaching 70 years old, we consistently find that they're increasingly more costly to repair and maintain," Gerald Pierce said, describing repeated plumbing failures, HVAC and electrical work and nearly $200,000 in water-related repairs at one property so far in 2026. The owners said turnover and local economic headwinds have driven rent losses and higher rehab costs that squeeze NOI.

Their independent appraiser, Gary Sapperstein, told the board the assessor's cap rates understate market risk for an older product. "You cannot sustain a property of that age on a 5 to 5 1/2% cap rate," Sapperstein said, explaining he used base cap rates of about 6.5% for the garden buildings and 6.0% for the towers and, with load adjustments, arrived at effective cap rates around 7.5% and 7.03%.

County staff, represented at the hearing by Ms. Shuddlesworth, said the assessor had already adjusted the prior assessment to reflect some owner-submitted expenses and removed clearly nonrecurring costs from 2025 operations (for example, $118,643 for floor-damage repairs, $146,825 for temporary chiller rental and $412,180 for other items). The county said it stabilized operating expenses (OPEX) at about 55.5% in its reconstruction, producing a revised per-unit assessment of $158,442 for the first case. "We did acknowledge the age of the property and the fact that it requires significant maintenance and repairs," Shuddlesworth told the board, while explaining why certain fee-appraisal reserves and vacancy assumptions were treated as they were in the county reconstruction.

Board members pressed both sides on vacancy, turnover and whether to alter the cap-rate assumption. Several members said the county's revision narrowed the gap, but that the cap rate remains the primary driver of valuation differences. One board member (Mr. Mendes) calculated a blended cap rate of 6.57% as an intermediate position between the county and appellant numbers.

After deliberation the board voted to accept the county's revised assessment for RPC 32000205A at $61,951,000 (motion seconded; chair announced the manager guidance number was confirmed; vote recorded as passing without Mr. Pace). On the related RPC 25021043 case the board confirmed the county's revised assessment at $47,716,200; that motion passed on a 3-to-2 vote.

The board's decisions leave the county's revised 2026 assessments in place for both Columbia Pike properties. Appellants said they may revisit values next year if elevated expenses and turnover trends continue, and the appraiser warned that financing at the assessor's lower cap rates would be unrealistic for buildings of this age.

The Board of Equalization concluded the scheduled items and adjourned at 10:34 a.m.; the next session is scheduled for June 30 at 9:00 a.m. "We implore the county appraisers to recognize annually and in advance that operating costs for these older properties are not just marginally higher," Gerald Pierce said during his presentation, encapsulating the owners' central claim about deteriorating infrastructure and higher maintenance burdens.