Commercial
Appraisals · Evaluations · Review
Office, retail, industrial, hospitality, multi-family, and special-purpose property.
Montana Valuations
The science and the art
of valuation.
Every property has something the data doesn’t show.
Trusted by lenders, attorneys, developers and brokersAll 56 Montana counties
- Sidewall height: 20'
- Office finish: ±6% of building area
- Grade-level overhead doors: 3 doors
- Site coverage: 7% · 3.67 acres
- Utilities: All public utilities
- Zoning: I-2 Heavy Industrial
- Market lease rate: $10.00/SF NNN
01 — The Building
Details matter.
02 — The Market
Every Montana market, known at the parcel level.
Trusted by lenders, attorneys, developers and brokers
- MontanaBased & focused
- CertifiedGeneral appraisers
- AI-GRS · MAIFirst AI-GRS in Montana
- USPAP& Interagency Guidelines
- 56Counties we work in
01 — The Difference
When the number has to hold up.
- Years of expertise
- 25+
- Valuations annually
- 1,000s
01
Judgment, not arithmetic
25+ years on Montana's most complex properties: cell tower leases, self-storage where every unit size rents differently, parcels that only make sense valued as one. The experts other experts trust.
02
The same firm in every county
One standard whether the property sits in Billings or Plentywood, and we work in 77 towns across the state. Value here turns on which side of town, how a property type trades, and what a building has been through. None of that is learned quickly.
03
Built to hold up
Prepared under USPAP or the Interagency Guidelines, checked in-house before delivery, and written to hold up in credit review, in an examination, with the IRS, or in court.
04
Both reports, one firm
Appraisals and evaluations under one roof, so the file gets the report it actually needs. We will tell you which one the situation calls for, including the times the shorter one is the right answer.
Where do you sit?
Same standard. Different question.
Choose the one that fits and you'll see how we scope the work, what you get, and what it's built to answer.
02 — Philosophy
Valuation is not a formula.
Two appraisers can start with the same sales, the same standards, and the same software, and finish a hundred thousand dollars apart.
One of those sales carried two other buildings. A lease is propping up the rent. The only access crosses a neighbor's ground. None of that is in the data, and all of it is in the value.
Deciding what belongs in the analysis, and what has to come out, is judgment. So is knowing how much weight each piece of evidence deserves. That is what twenty-five years buys.
That's the art. The science is rigor: verified data, conclusions you can trace, and a report that reads the same to a credit officer, an examiner, and a judge.
We're paid to be right, not agreeable.
“The art is knowing which questions to ask before you run the numbers.”
03 — What we value
Commercial at the core. The whole relationship covered.
Commercial property is what we're known for. Many clients rely on us for their agricultural and residential work too, so every valuation in the relationship runs through one firm and one standard.
Three services. One standard.
Appraisals
The full, certified report.
Commercial, agricultural, and residential. Required for most commercial lending over $500,000, and the standard for litigation and estate tax filings.
Evaluations
Faster, lender-grade property reviews.
Our highest-volume work, performed under the Interagency Appraisal and Evaluation Guidelines that bank regulators set. Every file gets the same standard, because the ones that turn complicated look routine on the way in. Commercial, agricultural, and residential, including date-of-death valuations.
Advisory & Review
Planning, strategy, and a second opinion.
A second set of eyes on another appraiser's report, studies of what a property is best used for and whether a plan pencils out, market and rent studies, reviews of a group of properties, and values for estate and succession planning.
Specialties
EstatesDate-of-death valuationsWhat a property was worth on the date of death — for the heirs' new tax basis, estate tax returns, and dividing property fairly.Estate services Lenders · InvestorsPortfolio valuationsMulti-property loans, collateral reviews, and statewide holdings — every property valued the same way, delivered together.Portfolio services
Quick check
Which does your deal need?
$50K$3M+
Result
Appraisal required
Above $500,000, a commercial real estate transaction at a federally regulated lender requires an appraisal by a state-certified appraiser.
Order an appraisalHow date-of-death valuations work →
General guidance for federally regulated lenders, based on the federal appraisal thresholds and the Interagency Appraisal and Evaluation Guidelines. Your institution's credit policy governs and may require an appraisal below these thresholds. Credit unions follow NCUA rules, where the commercial threshold is $1,000,000.General guidance, not legal or tax advice. Your attorney or CPA has the final say on what a matter requires.
04 — Expertise
Every property type in Montana.
Commercial property is what we are known for, and the range inside that is wide. Run down the list to see what we look at on each one.
What we look at
- Lease abstracts & rollover
- Tenant credit
- Market rent & vacancy
What we look at
- Anchors & co-tenancy
- Visibility & traffic
- Sales-to-rent ratios
What we look at
- Clear height & doors
- Site coverage & yard
- Office finish %
What we look at
- RevPAR & ADR
- Real estate vs. business value
- FF&E & brand standards
What we look at
- Rent roll & unit mix
- Expense ratios
- Market cap rates
What we look at
- Vacancy across unit sizes
- Unit mix & climate control
- Street vs. in-place rates
What we look at
- Soils, water rights & irrigation
- Carrying capacity & grazing leases
- Improvements, access & timber
What we look at
- Evaluations for lenders & estates
- Comparable sales
- Condition, updates & outbuildings
What we look at
- Zoning & approvals
- Utilities & access
- How fast lots sell
What we look at
- Cost approach
- Limited buyer pool
- Functional utility
What we look at
- Component allocation
- Blended cap rates
- Parking & access
05 — Process
A disciplined process. Every time.
The same five steps behind a single-building evaluation and a statewide portfolio. No guessing about what happens next.
- Send the address, the property type, and what the valuation is for. We tell you whether the file calls for an appraisal or an evaluation, what it costs, and the date you will have it.
Send the address, the property type, and what the valuation is for. We tell you whether the file calls for an appraisal or an evaluation, what it costs, and the date you will have it.
- Anywhere in Montana’s 56 counties. Access gets arranged around the tenant or the property manager, so an occupied building does not hold up the file.
Anywhere in Montana’s 56 counties. Access gets arranged around the tenant or the property manager, so an occupied building does not hold up the file.
- Sales get verified rather than taken at face value. Where one does not belong in the analysis — a portfolio sale, a related party, a use that has since changed — the report says so and says why.
Sales get verified rather than taken at face value. Where one does not belong in the analysis — a portfolio sale, a related party, a use that has since changed — the report says so and says why.
- A second set of eyes on every file, against USPAP or the Interagency Guidelines as the assignment requires. Problems get caught here, not after the report reaches you.
A second set of eyes on every file, against USPAP or the Interagency Guidelines as the assignment requires. Problems get caught here, not after the report reaches you.
- The date you get on day one is the date we work to, and you hear from us early if anything moves. After delivery we stay available through credit review, audit, and exam questions.
The date you get on day one is the date we work to, and you hear from us early if anything moves. After delivery we stay available through credit review, audit, and exam questions.
06 — Leadership
Certified. Credentialed. Montana-based.
Of counsel
Where we work
77 Montana towns. All 56 counties.
Billings is home. The work is everywhere else too, and it runs to one standard wherever the property sits.
Western 18
Big Fork · Columbia Falls · Eureka · Hamilton · Kalispell · Libby · Lolo · Missoula · Philipsburg · Plains · Polson · Ronan · Stevensville · Superior · Thompson Falls · Victor · West Glacier · Whitefish
Southwest 19
Anaconda · Belgrade · Big Sky · Boulder · Bozeman · Butte · Clyde Park · Deer Lodge · Dillon · Ennis · Gardiner · Helena · Livingston · Manhattan · Three Forks · Townsend · West Yellowstone · White Sulphur Springs · Whitehall
North Central & Hi-Line 13
Chester · Chinook · Choteau · Conrad · Cut Bank · Fort Benton · Great Falls · Havre · Lewistown · Malta · Shelby · Stanford · Winnett
South Central 10
Absarokee · Big Timber · Bridger · Columbus · Hardin · Harlowton · Laurel · Red Lodge · Roundup · Ryegate
Eastern 17
Baker · Broadus · Circle · Colstrip · Ekalaka · Forsyth · Glasgow · Glendive · Hysham · Jordan · Miles City · Plentywood · Scobey · Sidney · Terry · Wibaux · Wolf Point
Plus select engagements beyond Montana — Wyoming and other states — depending on the property and the client.
07 — Insights
Field notes.
Short dispatches on Montana real estate, valuation methodology, and the questions we get asked most.
Methodology
Evaluation vs. Appraisal: Which Does Your Deal Need?
A practical guide for lenders navigating the threshold rules.
Industrial
Clear Height, Racking, and the Fire Code
Why a warehouse's usable height depends on more than the sidewall.
Land & Development
Setbacks and the Buildable Envelope
How zoning shapes what a Montana site can actually hold.
Montana market wire
What's being built, zoned, and debated.
Recent Montana real estate and development headlines, updated daily. Links go to the original publishers.
- Broadview area data center sees first phase of construction with roads, well workMontana Free Press · Sep 18(opens in a new tab)
- Data center opponents seek interim zoning as Yellowstone County official cites roadblock from new state lawMontana Free Press · Sep 7(opens in a new tab)
- Housing Montana Heroes opens new veteran apartments in MissoulaFairfield Sun Times · Sep 1(opens in a new tab)
- Little Shell housing project gets approval from Great Falls officialsMontana Free Press · Jul 22(opens in a new tab)
- What’s next for Little Shell housing plans?Montana Free Press · Jul 20(opens in a new tab)
- Revised 24-unit apartment project proposed for Montana Avenue corner in Santa MonicaSanta Monica Mirror · Jun 29(opens in a new tab)
The Montana Report
What Montana property actually rents and sells for.
Rent and capitalization rate ranges by market and property type, what traded and what it says about value, and how the Hi-Line differs from the Gallatin Valley. Built from verified Montana sales, not a national model pointed at Montana.
The first edition is in the works. Leave your email and we will send it the day it publishes.
Thanks — your download has started.
One report a year. No sales sequence.
08 — Questions
Questions we answer often.
An appraisal is the full, certified report. Federal rules require one for most commercial loans over $500,000, and it is the standard when a value has to hold up in court or on an estate tax return. An evaluation is a shorter, faster report, allowed for smaller loans, residential lending, internal monitoring, and many date-of-death values. Both follow published standards, and the same people prepare both.
Headquartered in Billings, we work in all 56 Montana counties, with someone local to walk the property. We also take select engagements outside Montana — Wyoming and other states — when the property or the client calls for it, typically agricultural, specialty, or portfolio work where our experience fits. Ask us about a property anywhere and we will tell you honestly whether we are the right firm for it.
A standard commercial evaluation typically runs 5 to 10 business days. Certified commercial appraisals usually require 3 to 4 weeks, depending on the complexity of the property, the depth of data required, and our current schedule. We confirm scope, fee, and the delivery date within one business day of your request.
Yes, though commercial property is the core of our practice. We take farm and ranch work where it fits, often as part of a lending relationship or an estate that holds several kinds of property. Assessed values for ag land reflect productive capacity, not market value, so they are never a substitute for an appraisal or evaluation.
Yes. Every appraisal is prepared in compliance with USPAP, and evaluations are prepared under the 2010 Interagency Appraisal and Evaluation Guidelines. Every report is checked in-house before delivery for compliance, data accuracy, and support. The goal is a file that clears credit review the first time and holds up if an examiner, auditor, or court looks closely.
This is our specialty. Cell tower leases, self-storage where every unit size rents differently, ground that is excess rather than surplus, rent sitting above or below market, sites worth more under a different use than the one they hold today, and several parcels that have to be valued as one. When the work is outside what another appraiser wants to take on, it is often referred to us.
More answers forlenders,attorneys and CPAs, andowners.
Get Started
Two ways to reach us.
Prefer to talk? Call 406-894-2639 or email Info@RoveValuations.com.
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