Donald J. Sherwood, LLC

09/25/2023

02/11/2023

Birthday card from my twin

11/11/2022

Check out my latest Field Story in the latest Right of Way magazine. The article tells a tale from appraising in the Big Thicket.

06/11/2022

In 2007 and updated in 2014, my article on easements included a matrix discussing the percentage of property rights a landowner is conveying by an easement. Despite being over 7 years old, it is still used all over the world as a guide for valuation. And, I still receive phone calls and emails about the matrix. I wish I had some type of royalty every time it’s used. I’m always open to discuss the methodology used and how the matrix was developed. It would be cool if some younger appraiser would enhance and expand on this original work.

06/11/2022

Just returned from Houston where I was acting as a consulting expert in a large real estate/easement case. This was a bench trial and the judge only allowed each side 27 hours of testimony (including direct and cross examination time). Due to so many witnesses, I never testified but I was able to assist the attorney’s in how to value easements.

03/31/2022

Why The Rent Is Too Damn High - The Dispatch

If you’re a homeowner right now, congratulations. If you’re a renter, condolences. And if you’re looking to buy a house, well, that’s rough, buddy. Housing prices have skyrocketed in recent years thanks to pandemic-related supply chain disruptions and inflation, plus pre-existing pressures like zoning restrictions and population density. Federal Reserve interest rate hikes will likely cool the market eventually, but for the moment, cost growth shows no signs of slowing.

According to this week’s numbers from the pithily named S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller National Home Price Index, housing prices nationwide were 19.2 percent higher in January 2022 than January 2021. Monthly mortgage payments rose by 3.4 percent from December to January, according to the National Association of Realtors. The exact increases vary from market to market, but to put that average 19.2 percent figure in perspective, a house that sold for $600,000 a year ago would typically go for about $715,000 now.

Incomes have not kept pace, rising an average of 5.5 percent over the same time period. And with more and more people priced out of home ownership, demand for apartments has increased as well. Per real estate company Redfin, rent prices jumped a record 15 percent year over year in January.

The pandemic—and how policymakers responded to it—played a large role in the cost hikes. Dropping interest rates near zero to stimulate economic activity meant better mortgage deals, which drove demand higher. People suddenly working from home decided to spend stimulus money and canceled vacation savings on a condo or house of their own. On the other side of the ledger, worker shortages and supply chain disruptions drove up costs and delayed construction, limiting supply.

02/06/2022

As I start another round of the sun, I look back at how I have been blessed to work with some great folks. The relationships with my co-workers and clients is something I treasure.

I’m still hoping for another review assignment. It is my opportunity to help appraisers produce the best appraisals possible. If anyone needs review work or consultation, just give me a call.

07/02/2021

Except from Counselors of Real Estate report Top Ten factors Affecring Real Estate for 2021-2022

Political Polarization

There seems to be nothing new about America’s political polarization. And it is not our intent to pick sides in this divided polity. Doing so only exacerbates the division. We want, first of all, to reflect on the pragmatic harm that the division is inflicting on our society, our economy, and on the real estate industry which is our professional field. Political friction is holding back America’s economic productivity. We are squandering resources as we try to address problems that arise from the partisan divide, rather than problems confronting us as common issues.

Pre-COVID, real estate was feeling the pinch. The National Association of Home Builders has stressed how the broken immigration system has hamstrung the production of housing, delaying deliveries and driving up prices. Building service workers are calling for an immigration approach facilitating immigrants’ full participation in the economy as an immediate priority. Many forms of real estate, including hotels, restaurants, personal service retailing, and medical offices, have high levels of immigrant workers in their occupancy profile.

So it is that we consider the present tribalism of American politics as a top issue for real estate now and in the foreseeable future. It hinders our productivity and therefore the nation’s economic strength. And the real estate industry’s well-being is a function of our economic growth. Partisanship has been distilled into more extreme positions within Washington by the vagaries of primaries, gerrymandering, and the propensity of incumbents to stick to the status quo. In fact, Congress is more divided on many issues than is the American public as a whole.

We acknowledge that there is legitimately a diverse range of political ideology in America. But there must also be a kind of Venn Diagram in which the political positions can acknowledge an area of overlap, common ground that is apparent when those outside the Beltway are queried. Even though the red and blue map represents truly differing perspectives and priorities, the nation is decidedly less polarized than are its elected representatives. The economy and the real estate industry would be far healthier, as would American society, if the pattern of party-line voting in the halls of Congress could be transcended in favor of something very traditional: the defining of politics as the art of compromise.

03/03/2021

Ever wonder what it was like growing up in the 1950’s and 60’s? Go to Amazon and purchase “Life as a Baby Boomer” by yours truly. Lots of advice and life lessons. And, it’s only $5.00.

01/14/2021

Just published this book that is available at Amazon books. The book captures life growing up in the world of “Ozzie & Harriet” with pearls of wisdom gained through the storms of life as one enters retirement. Well worth the $5.00.

12/26/2020

Just wrote a new book “Life as a Baby Boomer”. This is my personal story of growing up in the 50’s & 60’s in a small town, and my career as a real estate appraiser and teacher. It features some valuable life lessons I learned along the and pays tribute to my parents.

The book is available through Amazon just search for books by title or author. It’s only $5.00. Hope you enjoy.

11/22/2019

I just got a new IPad and the requests for friends is legit