There is more than one type of commercial property appraisal - the full narrative (self-contained) appraisal report and the Limited Commercial / Industrial / land Appraisal and Summary Report are the most common.
Limited Commercial/Industrial/land Appraisal and Summary Report
This type of report has a variety of applications, including but not limited to gift tax, bail bonds, buyouts, financial or estate planning, inclusion into any divorce settlements, or, put simply, to establish fair market value for potential sellers. Regardless of the application, this is the report which will likely take the appraiser the least amount of time to complete.
Depending on the property’s size, the appraiser may even just do a drive by exterior inspection of the building. The type of inspection your appraiser ultimately conducts is largely dependent on how much interior access is desired or even possible. It’s very possible that the appraiser may only need to do an exterior inspection of the building because an interior inspection may not even be required. Regardless, inspections for a report of this type will generally take no longer than an hour.
The limited commercial/industrial/land appraisal and summary report does have some detail, but it’s important to note that the detail you receive from this sort of report is considerably less than that which you’d receive from the more detailed full narrative. This brief narrative includes:
Whether you want a fully detailed report when looking at purchasing your commercial property or you’re seeking a briefer report, it’s important to realize the essential elements between the report types. It’s these differences between the report types that ensure you get exactly the type of report you need – and, of course the protection of knowing the property has been appraised at fair market value.
See also Full Narrative Appraisal