Southern California Commercial Real Estate Appraisals You Can Trust

We appraise commercial property throughout Southern California, including Los Angeles, Orange County, San Diego, the Inland Empire and Ventura County, from our offices in Carlsbad and Los Angeles. Our Charlotte-area office covers North and South Carolina. Every property is inspected in person. We also take assignments in the Bay Area, Sacramento and the Central Valley, Phoenix, Las Vegas and other markets. If your property is somewhere else, just ask. See all the areas we serve.

Look for a commercial appraisal firm with a local office, a California state-certified general appraiser on every report and MAI-designated leadership. Vanguard Realty Advisors has offices in Carlsbad and Los Angeles, so our appraisers are near you anywhere in Southern California, from San Diego and Orange County to Los Angeles, the Inland Empire and Ventura County.

Most commercial appraisals cost about $2,000 to $4,000. The fee depends on the property type, its size and complexity, and how quickly you need the report. We give you a fixed-fee quote within one business day.

Most commercial appraisals take 2 to 3 weeks from engagement. Rush delivery in 1 week or less is available for an added fee.

In most cases, yes. A date-of-death appraisal sets the property's new tax basis (the stepped-up basis), which can greatly reduce capital gains tax when the property is sold. It also supports an estate tax return if one is required, and gives the executor or trustee a fair value for dividing the estate. Learn more about our date-of-death appraisals.

Yes. A retrospective appraisal values the property as of an earlier date, such as the date of death, a transfer date or a date in a dispute. We use the sales, rents and market conditions from that time, even if the date was several years ago.

Our appraisals are prepared to meet the IRS requirements for a qualified appraisal by a qualified appraiser. Our MAI-designated, Certified General appraisers sign each report, and every report follows USPAP, the national appraisal standards.

Make sure the appraiser holds a Certified General license, the only state license that covers all commercial property. You can confirm it on your state's licensing board website or the national Appraisal Registry. For estate, tax or legal work, also look for the MAI designation.

Start with the license (Certified General) and credentials (MAI), then look for experience with your property type and the reason you need the appraisal. Online reviews help too. Vanguard holds a 5.0 rating on Google from 85+ reviews. Our guide to choosing a commercial appraiser walks through the questions to ask.

An Appraisal Report and a Restricted Appraisal Report. Both are based on the same research and analysis. An Appraisal Report summarizes the data and reasoning behind the value, so a reader can follow how it was reached; it is the usual choice when lenders, the IRS or a court will rely on it. A Restricted Appraisal Report is more condensed: it states the conclusions rather than summarizing the analysis, and its use is limited to the client and any other intended users named in the report.