Vacant Land

Land lacking man-made modifications, additions, or improvements.

Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP)

Appraisal standards developed by The Appraisal Foundation, which have come to be commonly accepted throughout the real estate industry as the proper and best way for appraisers to perform their work, conduct their activities, and write their reports.

Utility

The ability of a good to satisfy a want.

Valuation Date

The date for which the property value estimate(s) applies. It could be the same as the other dates used in an appraisal or it could be different. Because of the statistical nature of the appraisal process, it is best expressed as a time range rather than a specific day, excluding unusual or unexpected events. When looking for current value, all comparables are historical in character, i.e. occurring before the value date. Thus, any value date developed after the last comparable sale date will, in essence, be a forecast of the future. Excluding unusual events, it is difficult to refine an appraisal to a specific day. Such day-to-day detail may occur in the stock market but not in real estate; excluding hypothetical situations, the real estate market moves too slowly to estimate value to a specific day.

Value

The power or capability of a thing to obtain other things in exchange for itself.

Whole Property

In eminent domain, it is that property which exists before the taking of any rights (sometimes called the larger parcel). It can also be represented as the sum of the part taken plus the remainder and can be represented by the following formula:

 

W = R + T

Where:

·         W = whole property before the taking of any rights;

·        R = remainder;

·         T = part taken.

Zoning

Public laws regulating or restricting land use, character, intensity, etc. by the creation of geographic districts or zones.

 

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