NC Court Excludes Broker Price Opinion

Today, the NC Court of Appeals published an opinion  (click here to see full opinion) upholding the trial court’s exclusion of a broker price opinion (BPO.)   A broker prepared a 124-page BPO for use in a condemnation action related to Landmark at Battleground Park, a 240-unit apartment complex in Greensboro, NC.

The Court noted that NC Real Estate Licensing Law (click here to see statute) provides that a broker may prepare a BPO and collect a fee for the opinion.   However, a BPO that estimates the value of or worth of a parcel rather than sales or leasing price shall be deemed to be an appraisal and may not be prepared by a licensed broker.

The broker’s report “repeatedly states it is an opinion of the ‘fair market value’ of the property…rather than the ‘probable sales price.'”

In upholding the trail court’s exclusion of the broker’s BPO, the Court noted that the broker is not also a licensed appraiser and is not permitted to prepare “a valuation appraisal.”

What’s in your BPO?

How many brokers in North Carolina violate the law by preparing BPOs that report value rather than price?

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