Waukesha Board of Review upholds assessment of dealership at 1901 E. Moreland Blvd.

The City of Waukesha Board of Review sustained the assessor’s valuation of 1901 East Moreland Boulevard, approving a total assessment of $6,555,900 following competing testimony over methodology and comparable sales.

Wayne (agent for LRG LLC) presented a cost approach valuation and argued the city’s improvements value was overstated; he said the appraiser’s cost estimate for improvements was about $4.17 million compared with the city’s higher figure. "Our cost is coming in at 4,174,000," the agent said, arguing that dealerships are difficult to value and that cost-method considerations should be given weight when market sales are sparse. The agent also questioned whether a single sale the assessor relied on included non‑real‑estate components.

The assessor responded with a package of comparable sales of dealership, warehouse and office‑warehouse properties from the municipality and county, time and attribute adjustments, and a discussion of why the city used the sales and methodology it did for a maintenance assessment year. The assessor noted an initial high reported value earlier in the year had been corrected to the current figure after staff review; the assessor also pointed to statutory limitations on the use of income-and-expense data that arrived late.

After deliberation the board concluded the assessor presented credible comparable‑sale evidence and applied acceptable adjustments and therefore sustained the assessor’s valuation. The motion to sustain the assessor’s valuation passed on a roll call vote.