Possibly purchasing my late friend's turn key darkroom / studio....

[Kodachrome25]

It's not enough to know about the general market; you need to know about the market for that particular commercial space (size, layout, accessibility, possible uses, location). A point that confuses me is that your original post described it as in a business park. But above you reference retail commercial space. If the space is, in fact, desirable for retail, it may be a safer bet.

I was wondering why the taxes were so low for a space with a market value so high. "County assessed valuation for property tax purposes is $55,970, actual value listed at $193,000" explains that. But why is the county's actual value so low relative to market? Is that typical in your county? Around here, at least for residential property, they aim for assessed values close to, but under, market. And assessed value is often updated after a sale if there's a significant disparity.

Best of luck when you meet with them.

OK, OK...look, there are numbers I am waiting on, two agents are working on what comparable units have been selling for in the past 18 months. Also, it is zoned commercial but it is out near the airport some 2.5 miles away from the core of town. So while the town core has Prada, high end restaurants and hotels, out near the airport are a mix of condos, office space and commercial units like this one. This is why it is desirable for me & other small business owners who need affordable space to work out of. The area is far less about polished retail space than workable commercial space such as metal shops, construction, a bakery that serves needs in the town core, etc. You can use this space for retail and the rent would typically be $700-$1,000 per month for this square footage, I have been looking into that for nearly two years. But you would not get the traffic you need for a typical retail operation out there. Conversely, the same square footage within a few blocks of the core of town proper would run you anywhere from $6,000 to $20,000 a month depending on all the usual factors. There are no photographers operating a business in town center except for Peter Lik, most operate out of their homes or at the Airport Business Center.

As far as county valuations go, I am learning about this as I go, so your guess is as good as mine. Market on this could very well be $225,000-$350,000, the original owner bought it for $343K in 2005. Or it could be $600K, I am not sure yet. But I won't know until both the appraiser finishes her work and the two agents get back to me with real numbers. It's one step at a time, looking at all options and possible partnerships and that includes having an investor buy it and I rent with right of first refusal on a possible purchase, you name it, all kind of things. I am not going to get my self into a hole that I will regret but I *have* to start making headway with my plans or in a year or two, I won't even want to touch a camera let alone be in business with them....and I have been doing this since age 8 my friend.

This will either work and be a sound decision or it won't and I will have to find another way.

[hoffner]

This will either work and be a sound decision or it won't and I will have to find another way.

Affirmative on that. Apart from that, asking this forum if I should buy something for $ 500 000 is, undoubtedly, in a class of its own.

[Sal Santamaura]

...As far as county valuations go, I am learning about this as I go. Market on this could very well be $225,000-$350,000, the original owner bought it for $343K in 2005. Or it could be $600K, I am not sure yet...

I owned a parcel of land in Larimer County from 1984 until selling it in 2012. During that period, the assessor's "Actual Value" tracked closely what the market was doing for comparable properties. Since Pitkin County must follow the same voter-approved statewide real property provisions that Larimer County does, I'd be very wary of what real estate agents claim it's "worth." My lot sold for very close to the "Actual Value" assessment in 2012.

That the original owner paid $343k in 2005, right at the bubble's peak, is probably meaningless. In my opinion, you should be evaluating this deal using an estimate just under the Assessor's $193k figure for its real property portion.

[Kodachrome25]

I owned a parcel of land in Larimer County from 1984 until selling it in 2012. During that period, the assessor's "Actual Value" tracked closely what the market was doing for comparable properties. Since Pitkin County must follow the same voter-approved statewide real property provisions that Larimer County does, I'd be very wary of what real estate agents claim it's "worth." My lot sold for very close to the "Actual Value" assessment in 2012.

That the original owner paid $343k in 2005, right at the bubble's peak, is probably meaningless. In my opinion, you should be evaluating this deal using an estimate just under the Assessor's $193k figure for its real property portion.

Absolutely and I suspect that is what could happen since this is not a marble floored store front next to the Ritz. I have a number of people looking out for me on this and while I am learning as I go, I am going to be very careful at each step. The real estate agents are just looking for past sales, not anything else. They are also long time personal friends of mine, they are looking out for my interests.

[brucetaylor]

An experienced real estate agent should get you close to a realistic selling price on the open market. A licensed real estate appraiser can get you a number for "fair market value," which is commonly used to settle estates and other legal matters concerning property values. Finally, if you get a loan to buy the property the lending institution will order their own appraisal for the loan. It's pretty straightforward.

[Jon Shiu]

You can often get property valuations by going to Zillow.com and zooming in on the neighborhood and looking for the yellow dots (past sales).

Jon

[David Lobato]

K25, are there city and county zoning regulations to be concerned about? A chemical photo lab in your town seems to be a business anomaly.

[Kodachrome25]

K25, are there city and county zoning regulations to be concerned about? A chemical photo lab in your town seems to be a business anomaly.

Not in this area, it is already registered as a studio / lab business. Up until 2005 or so, there were actually 4 studio / darkrooms plus two full service commercial B&W, C41, RA-4 and E6 labs that did up to 8x10.

In the mid 90's big name location advertising shooters would pull snips mid day and get chromes back by day's end...those were the days.

[Ron Bose]

Any update on this K25 ?

[tonyowen]

Nowhere in the 6 pages of this posting has any mention be made of the old adage regarding the subjective danger of dealing with friends and family.
How sure are you that the advice given (to be given) to you is/will be objective and not 'adjusted' because you are part of a group and/or well known to the advisor?
[I skied Aspen several times in the 1970s when I was living in Toronto - even then Aspen cost/prices outdid those in Toronto.]
I guess the bottom line is if you can afford a known possible negative revenue stream for 'n' years. Also what is the most pessimistic prediction till you have an acceptable break even point?
The major problem with life is that you never know what is going to happen. So you present-day wealth and happiness could all come crashing down. [Without warning my wife, {who like yours was the major wager earner} came down with MS and that caused us to alter our way of life and circumstances - we have survived, butn life could have been much better]
Certainly you cannot wind your life-clock backwards and it will be no good wishing that you'd done something AFTER you decided not to take the balanced risk.
Also, if you get into trouble then you can always sell and at sometime in the future get back on track - even being bankrupt is not the end of everything.
regards

Tony