Chicago Meatpacking History-
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The document discusses the importance of properly accounting for refrigeration costs when appraising cold storage facilities. It notes that refrigeration costs can range from $30-60 per square foot of cooled area. Without recognizing these additional capital costs and ensuring adequate returns, an investment will not attract investor interest. The document provides an example where refrigerating 50% of a 100,000 square foot building at $40 per square foot would add $2 million in capital costs, equivalent to raising the overall property value by $20 per square foot. Failure to properly consider refrigeration costs can lead appraisals to be off by 25-50%.
Chicago Meatpacking History-
- 1. A Cost Analysis Can Be Invaluablein the Appraisal of Cold Storage Facilities The history of Chicago is meat. At its peak, the Stock Yards were processing 82% of all meat consumed in America. A lot of Chicagos dominance came from the development of refrigeration technologies; ice cooled rooms meant the Yards could operate through the summer, and ice cooled train cars allowed the shipping of processed meat. Chicago is no longer the nations butcher, with Illinois having just one-third the capacity of the highest producer, California. But Illinois still has plenty of refrigerated warehouses, and inexperienced appraisers commonly make mistakes in their appraisals, doing a simple evaluation like what theyd do for a regular warehouse. Refrigeration costs may vary from $30-$60 psf of cooled area when considering equipment, doors, and insulation. Remember, investments must all provide a return of the investment and a return on the investment when considering rents. Without each of these components being properly recognized and likely achieved, an investment does not spark investor interest or tell an accurate valuation story. As an example, if 50% of the area of a 100,000 sf building is refrigerated at a chilled level, the total cost/value must be spread prorata over the entire warehouse building in the sales comparison approach of a report. Assuming that the cost added is a new refrigerated warehouse by refrigeration is $40 psf, this means the cost for the refrigeration component is $2,000,000 ($40 psf x 50% x 100,000 sf) over the normal value of the building. The $2,000,000 is equal to $20 psf spread over the entire building when analyzing the whole building on a per square foot basis. Without any further complicating issue and attempting to keep the example simple, the unit value of the entire property of land, building and refrigeration increases by $20 psf. This figure can represent a large percentage of value, possibly 25%-50%. Moreover, this $20 psf value increase reflects a net rent of $1.80 psf at a 9% capitalization rate, again 25%-50% higher than non-refrigerated warehouse rents. Hence, the rent for the refrigerated space only causes a large percentage increase in overall value from a normal warehouse rent when that rent is spread over the entire building. The appraiser must properly consider the contribution of refrigeration cost in the valuation, and an appraiser who relies on broad brushed sales comparison or income approach may find interest from investors growing cold. Gary DeClark,MAI,CRE,FRICS Debi Simon Business Development 714-495-6825