Solving friction across CRE valuation teams with data and technology

Identifying operational risks in a fragmented valuation landscape

The valuation of commercial real estate (CRE) is, in many ways, the beating heart of critical investment, reporting, and risk management functions. But as property portfolios grow in complexity and markets shift with increasing speed, the pain points embedded in legacy valuation workflows only become more acute for everyone involved.

Firms that continue to rely on siloed processes, disjointed tools, and inconsistent data practices find that these challenges create operational friction and pose a significant risk to decision-making, investor confidence, and strategic outcomes.

The valuation chain: Why every link matters

The modern CRE valuation process is inherently collaborative, spanning asset managers, property managers, appraisers, fund managers, and investment committees. Each group not only relies on the others’ output, but often overlays its own unique expertise, models, assumptions, and documentation styles.

With the work of each stakeholder representing a link in the valuation chain, it’s easy to understand how the integrity of each link is essential to the success and accuracy of the process. But when left at the mercy of legacy workflows and outdated technologies, maintaining alignment and consistency across the valuation chain becomes a persistent challenge.

Each team tends to operate in their own space; asset managers with their own models and spreadsheets, external appraisers with different models, and portfolio managers pulling together summary reports. The result? Constant rekeying, duplicate files, and different answers to the same question depending on who you ask.

Jorge Paredes

Senior Director, Valuation Advisory

Friction arises at every stage:

• Appraisers and asset managers often spend too much time gathering and reconciling data when they could focus on interpreting results and surfacing new opportunities

  
  

• Property managers are frequently bogged down with unstructured, last-minute requests for information, creating additional operational burden

  
  

• Portfolio/fund managers lack a prompt, high-level view they can trust for investment decisions and investor communications

  
  

• Investment committees struggle with fragmented data trails, limited scenario analysis, and uncertainty about the “story” behind the numbers.

  
  

• All stakeholders are impacted by version-control issues, inefficiencies, and delays that erode transparency and strategic agility.

The impact of this friction is cumulative:

• Misaligned data: Disconnected documents and point solutions mean that rent rolls, lease abstracts, and property comps rarely reflect “one version of the truth”

  
  

• Process disconnection: Hand-offs between internal and external teams (and even within organizations) are often informal, risking incomplete data, and compounding errors

  
  

• Inconsistent assumptions and documentation: Market volatility means underlying assumptions shift quickly, and without validated models, standardized processes, and robust documentation, reconciliations become a negotiation rather than a review

As teams reconcile versions and chase clarity, operational risk mounts. Meanwhile, critical insights into the true drivers of portfolio value are delayed or obscured, just when investors and boards demand greater transparency.

The path to valuation clarity

The way out of these traps is clear. Rather than continuing to contend with fragmented tools and inconsistent methods, leading organizations are redefining their approach to valuation management.

By focusing on foundational principles that resolve misalignment and inefficiency at their source — not merely treating the symptoms — organizations can achieve lasting transformation. These principles include:

• Centralizing data and models so appraisers, asset managers, and property managers operate from a single version of the truth

  
  

• Standardizing workflows and assumptions to ensure portfolio managers and committees can ensure the accuracy of comparisons

  
  

• Enabling cross-functional, real-time collaboration that shortens cycles for all, reduces administrative burden, and streamlines communication between stakeholders

  
  

• Documenting decisions and model changes as a system of record, which gives committees enhanced (and defendable) transparency into every key valuation driver

Firms that focus on these principles transform the valuation workflow from a collection of one-off tasks into a true value creation engine that reduces risk, empowers teams, and increases agility.

Achieving this overhaul requires more than just software; it requires an integrated technology and advisory platform designed for the specific pain points of the CRE lifecycle. It’s this combination of purpose-built tools and hands-on advisory that truly addresses fragmentation, fosters trust among stakeholders, and allows organizations to realize lasting benefits across their valuation processes.

Jorge Paredes

Senior Director, Valuation Advisory

Unifying data, people, and processes

As a neutral, third-party solution, Altus Group’s Valuation Advisory Services (VAS) brings together data, people, and workflows to unify and centralize every stage of the valuation process for every stakeholder. With VAS, organizations can:

• Connect cross-functional teams both within and beyond organizational boundaries, fostering seamless collaboration whether participants are internal staff, external partners, or valuation advisors

  
  

• Ensure rigorous consistency in methodology, key assumptions, and documentation, establishing a single source of truth to eliminate discrepancies and standardize how valuations are performed across assets and geographies

  
  

• Streamline all aspects of the valuation workflow from property-level data capture through to portfolio-level aggregation, roll-ups, and audit trails, so every step is transparent, traceable, and efficient

  
  

• Deliver unprecedented transparency for all stakeholders, offering a unified, real-time view into the key drivers of value and the variables that impact outcomes

  
  

• Reduce operational risk by eradicating version confusion, manual rekeying errors, and the need for labor-intensive reconciliations; VAS automates and validates data processes, letting teams focus on analysis and value creation rather than manual inputs or troubleshooting mistakes

Critically, VAS combines robust valuation execution, workflow governance, and expert oversight within a single framework. This ensures the valuation process is adequate and consistent, and that models are reviewed, governed, and supported by experienced valuation professionals who help organizations transition from fragmented, ad-hoc processes to a scalable, future-ready valuation operating model.

What CRE leaders stand to gain

The real payoff extends beyond an uptick in operational efficiency. With the right tools and support, every stakeholder in the valuation process can move faster, act with confidence, and clearly demonstrate value to investors and boards.

When solutions like VAS free appraisers and asset managers from the repetitive tasks of chasing down rent rolls and reconciling spreadsheets, they can instead focus their expertise on interpreting results, identifying risk, and surfacing insights that drive real value. Meanwhile, portfolio managers, fund managers, and investment committees gain a high-level, real-time diagnostic view that reveals not just what has changed in the portfolio, but why. This transparency empowers more informed, proactive decisions and fosters stronger, data-driven dialogue with investors.

When you bridge the gaps between teams and data sources, the number of surprises goes down, and the trust goes up. For firms that get this right, that’s a huge competitive advantage… especially when the market is moving fast.

Jorge Paredes

Senior Director, Valuation Advisory

A future-proof roadmap for valuation teams

For CRE organizations, the cost of a fragmented valuation process is costly, manifesting not only as longer cycle times and greater operational risk, but also as missed opportunities to respond nimbly to market changes.

It is not enough to simply recognize these sources of friction in the valuation chain; true leadership means taking decisive actions to address and eliminate them. This means centralizing critical data, breaking down silos to foster genuine collaboration across teams, adopting consistent methodologies, and leveraging modern technology to bring greater transparency and agility to the valuation process.

CRE leaders who embrace these shifts will be best positioned to demonstrate value, build trust with stakeholders, and adapt quickly as market demands inevitably evolve.

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