Company: Advantage Software LLC
Company Overview:
The Capitalization Rate or Cap Rate is a ratio used to estimate the value of income producing properties. Put simply, the cap rate is the net operating income divided by the sales price or value of a property expressed as a percentage. Investors, lenders and appraisers use the cap rate to estimate the purchase price for different types of income producing properties.

If we have a seller and an interested buyer for particular piece of income property, the seller is trying to get the highest price for the property or sell at the lowest cap rate possible. The buyer is trying to purchase the property at the lowest price possible which translates into a higher cap rate. The lower the selling price the higher the cap rate. The higher the selling price, the lower the cap rate. In summary, from an investor's or buyer's perspective, the higher the cap rate, the better.

If you are able to obtain a market cap rate from an appraiser or lender for the type of property you are evaluating, check to see if the cap rate value was determined with recent sales of comparable properties or if it was constructed. When adequate financial data is unavailable, appraisers may construct a cap rate through analysis of its component parts thus reducing the credibility of the results. Cap rates which are determined by evaluating the recent actions of buyers and sellers in a particular market place will produce the best market value estimate for a property.

Sector: Application Development Industry: Real Estate Function: Accounting