Mary Cummins, Real Estate Appraiser, Animal Advocates, Los Angeles, California

Mary Cummins, Real Estate Appraiser, Animal Advocates, Los Angeles, California
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Showing posts with label expert witness. Show all posts
Showing posts with label expert witness. Show all posts

Monday, July 11, 2022

Diminution of Value in Real Estate Appraisal and Valuation by Mary Cummins Real Estate Appraier Expert Witness

diminution of value, diminution in value, value, real estate appraisal, mary cummins, real estate appraiser, valuation, calculation, los angeles, california, expert witness, black's law library, property value, expert witness, litigation

Diminution of value in real estate appraisal refers to the reduction in the market worth or perceived value of a property due to various factors. Black's Law Dictionary definition: Rule of damages which provides the difference between “before” and “after” values of property, which has been damaged or taken. These factors can be external (outside the property) or internal (related directly to the property itself). Here are some common examples:

External Factors:

Neighborhood Decline: If the neighborhood experiences an increase in crime rates, deterioration of infrastructure, or a decline in nearby amenities like schools or parks, the property's value may decrease.

Environmental Changes: Events such as the construction of a landfill nearby, contamination of groundwater, or the installation of high-voltage power lines can negatively impact property values.

Economic Conditions: Economic downturns can affect property values, leading to diminished demand or lower prices in the area.

Changes in Zoning: If zoning regulations change, affecting how nearby properties can be used (e.g., from residential to commercial), it can impact the value of neighboring properties.

Local development: A new large scale development may be built affecting traffic and access. A new freeway may be contemplated affection pollution, noise, traffic...

Internal Factors:

Structural Issues: Problems such as foundation cracks, roof leaks, or termite damage can decrease a property's value unless repaired.

Outdated Features: Homes with outdated kitchens, bathrooms, or obsolete heating systems may be less attractive to buyers, reducing their market value.

Poor Maintenance: Lack of upkeep, such as overgrown landscaping, peeling paint, or broken fixtures, can make a property less appealing and lower its value.

Loss of portion of property or loss of use of portion of property: A neighbor's wall or building could be trespassing upon the subject property limiting access, use and enjoyment of the subject property.

Legal and Market Factors:

Legal Encumbrances: Easements, restrictions, or pending legal issues (like ongoing litigation involving the property) can decrease its value.

Market Perception: Negative perceptions about a property (e.g., a notorious event occurring there) can reduce its value beyond physical characteristics alone.

Example Scenario:

Consider a house located near a new freeway under construction. The noise, increased traffic, and potential pollution from the freeway may decrease the property's desirability and, consequently, its market value. This is an example of external diminution of value.

Alternatively, a property with an outdated kitchen and bathroom, which hasn't been renovated in decades, may not attract as many buyers as similar homes in the neighborhood with modern amenities. This represents an internal diminution of value.

In real estate appraisal, identifying and quantifying diminution of value involves evaluating these and other factors to determine the fair market value of the property under current conditions.

The DIV can sometimes be calculated by valuing the property as if whole then valuing the property as affected by the condition then calculating the difference or loss in value. 



Mary Cummins of Cummins Real Estate is a certified residential licensed appraiser in Los Angeles, California. Mary Cummins is licensed by the California Bureau of Real Estate appraisers and has over 35 years of experience.


Mary Cummins, Mary K. Cummins, Mary Katherine Cummins, Mary, Cummins, #marycummins #animaladvocates #losangeles #california #wildlife #wildliferehabilitation #wildliferehabilitator #realestate #realestateappraiser #realestateappraisal #lawsuit real estate, appraiser, appraisal, instructor, teacher, Los Angeles, Santa Monica, Beverly Hills, Pasadena, Brentwood, Bel Air, California, licensed, permitted, certified, single family, condo, condominium, pud, hud, fannie mae, freddie mac, fha, uspap, certified, residential, certified resident, apartment building, multi-family, commercial, industrial, expert witness, civil, criminal, orea, dre, brea insurance, bonded, experienced, bilingual, spanish, english, form, 1004, 2055, 1073, land, raw, acreage, vacant, insurance, cost, income approach, market analysis, comparative, theory, appraisal theory, cost approach, sales, matched pairs, plot, plat, map, diagram, photo, photographs, photography, rear, front, street, subject, comparable, sold, listed, active, pending, expired, cancelled, listing, mls, multiple listing service, claw, themls, historical appraisal, facebook, linkedin

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Tuesday, October 18, 2016

Donald Trump and the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles, California - Mary Cummins Real Estate Appraiser

Donald Trump, Donald J Trump, Ambassador Hotel, Los Angeles California Wilshire Robert Kennedy shot killed Coconut Grove Nightclub
Today the LA Times had an article about Donald Trump buying the Ambassador Hotel and trying to build the tallest building in the world on the site. The development was to include retail, commercial and residential uses.  http://www.latimes.com/politics/la-na-pol-trump-california-20161017snap-20161017-snap-story.html Instead the LA Unified School District took the property through eminent domain and built the current Robert F Kennedy school.

I was one of the appraisers involved as an expert real estate witness in the litigation between the then owners and other parties. (Due to client confidentiality I can only disclose public facts about the property. I would of course never share any client information or any confidential information.) Because my appraisal was used in the original litigation I kept getting deposed for the next ten years. Every time there would be a conference room full of at least ten lawyers.

When I first appraised the hotel in 1989 it had just been permanently shut down for only a few months. On my initial inspection there was already significant damage to the interior of the property. That damage caused rain to flood the Coconut Grove Nightclub. It also appeared to have been damaged by vandals. I'm sure the vandalism is what caused them to gate the entire property and hire guards. I was walking over soggy broken dishes, moldy carpet and lots of trash. I immediately considered the property a tear down due to the extensive damage. It didn't look that bad from the outside.

My scope of work was to figure out the highest and best use/uses, find comparables for those uses, calculate the cost to demolish, cost to dispose of hazardous waste... to arrive at the ultimate current fair market value for the land for development purposes.

The site was actually about four square blocks combined missing the two front corner lots and one lot depth of land off the western side which were old apartments. Because of the complex nature of the appraisal I had to use a few different commercial valuation theories to arrive at the ultimate value of the land. Needless to say I had to use a few assumptions.

During the course of meetings, depositions I met Donald Trump's then right hand person for the real estate development division of his company Barbara Res. I never realized she was not just a real estate attorney but also an engineer. That explains her extreme knowledge of building materials and practices. She no longer works with Trump and has since written a book about her experience "All Alone on the 68th Floor." She also recently wrote an Op-Ed about Donald Trump and women. I completely agree with her assessment of Trump.

Originally I was shocked to see a woman oversee real estate development for Donald Trump. I already knew how he treated women through social encounters. Based on Res' Op-Ed I agree that Trump took advantage of the fact that women in the 1980's 1990's in the man's world of commercial real estate, development had to be tougher and work harder, longer than men. I also agree that Donald Trump is not fit to be President.

After LAUSD took the Ambassador Hotel property and built the school I no longer was dragged back into deposition. I destroyed my files three years after the end of the final litigation. I would never have been able to share the files publicly anyway. Here's some information about the Ambassador Hotel from the Los Angeles Conservancy.

https://www.laconservancy.org/locations/ambassador-hotel-demolished

Mary Cummins of Animal Advocates is a wildlife rehabilitator licensed by the California Department of Fish and Game and the USDA. Mary Cummins is also a licensed real estate appraiser in Los Angeles, California.


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Monday, August 10, 2009

Mary Cummins gives expert real estate testimony in criminal trespass case - real estate appraiser

LA Weekly. "Jimmy on the edge of town."

"Mary Cummins, a longtime real estate assessor, has independently deduced that he is, indeed, on county-owned land. But she questions whether or not Union Pacific issued a valid citation for trespassing. If Jimmy is living on county-owned property edging the railroad spur, Cummins’ logic goes, then the railroad company may not be able to charge him with “trespassing” on the railroad’s “private property” or of “lodging without [their] permission.”

As an expert real estate assessor for more than 25 years in the Los Angeles area, Cummins knows how to read tract maps. Just recently, for example, she was hired to testify in court over a major real estate dispute at the Ambassador Hotel. Feral-cat activist Muzika started looking into Jimmy’s case, and he asked Cummins, a friend from animal-rights circles, to help.

Cummins, who normally charges $100 per hour for her expertise, took up Jimmy’s cause for free. She looked up Jimmy’s location on Google Earth, found an L.A. County Assessor’s map, and placed the Google map on top of the county’s map. “You can clearly see Jimmy’s on the L.A. County flood-control channel” land, Cummins says. She is also “absolutely certain,” and would testify in court, that Jimmy is on county-owned property, not the railroad’s.

Cummins sent her findings to Muzika, who e-mailed the maps information to Councilman Smith’s office, and alerted the city attorney at Jimmy’s court hearing on July 1 in the Los Angeles Superior Court in the small town of San Fernando, in the far northeast Valley.

In court that day, the prosecutor handling the case, Apraham Atteukenian, looked surprised when Muzika, with Jimmy near his side, offered up the disputed land-ownership evidence. It’s clearly very basic land-ownership homework that Los Angeles city prosecutors should have done before hauling a man into court for trespassing on railroad property. The prosecutor promised to “make some calls.” Jimmy is defending himself pro per, having dumped a Los Angeles County public defender who advised him to plead guilty to trespassing against Union Pacific. Jimmy is now facing trial August 3, yet, Cummins says, even now, the city attorney and Smith’s office have not responded to her finding that Jimmy is not on railroad land."


Mary Cummins of Cummins Real Estate is a certified residential licensed appraiser in Los Angeles, California. Mary Cummins is licensed by the California Bureau of Real Estate appraisers and has over 35 years of experience.


Mary Cummins, Mary K. Cummins, Mary Katherine Cummins, Mary, Cummins, #marycummins #animaladvocates #losangeles #california #wildlife #wildliferehabilitation #wildliferehabilitator #realestate #realestateappraiser #realestateappraisal #lawsuit real estate, appraiser, appraisal, instructor, teacher, Los Angeles, Santa Monica, Beverly Hills, Pasadena, Brentwood, Bel Air, California, licensed, permitted, certified, single family, condo, condominium, pud, hud, fannie mae, freddie mac, fha, uspap, certified, residential, certified resident, apartment building, multi-family, commercial, industrial, expert witness, civil, criminal, orea, dre, brea insurance, bonded, experienced, bilingual, spanish, english, form, 1004, 2055, 1073, land, raw, acreage, vacant, insurance, cost, income approach, market analysis, comparative, theory, appraisal theory, cost approach, sales, matched pairs, plot, plat, map, diagram, photo, photographs, photography, rear, front, street, subject, comparable, sold, listed, active, pending, expired, cancelled, listing, mls, multiple listing service, claw, themls, historical appraisal, facebook, linkedin