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Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for Real Estate Valuation Manager

💰 $90,000 - $160,000

Real EstateValuationFinanceAsset ManagementRisk

🎯 Role Definition

The Real Estate Valuation Manager is responsible for overseeing and delivering accurate, defensible property valuations across a diverse portfolio (office, retail, industrial, multifamily, hospitality and land). This role manages internal valuation workflows and external appraisal vendors, develops and validates valuation models (DCF, income approach, comparable sales), ensures compliance with accounting and appraisal standards (IFRS 13, ASC 820, USPAP), and presents valuation conclusions to senior leadership, audit teams and regulators. The ideal candidate combines deep technical valuation expertise with strong leadership, stakeholder management, and data-driven market intelligence skills.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

  • Senior Valuation Analyst / Senior Appraiser
  • Asset Management Analyst with valuation focus
  • Commercial Real Estate Appraiser (MAI/ASA credentialed professionals)

Advancement To:

  • Head of Valuation / Valuation Director
  • Director of Asset Management or Portfolio Valuation
  • Chief Valuation Officer / Head of Real Estate Finance

Lateral Moves:

  • Portfolio Manager / Asset Manager
  • Credit & Risk Manager (Real Estate Lending)

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

  • Lead and execute complex property valuations for financial reporting, M&A due diligence, loan underwriting and portfolio reviews, delivering clear, well-documented valuation reports that support decision-making and regulatory requirements.
  • Develop, maintain and validate comprehensive valuation models (discounted cash flow, income capitalization, sales comparison and cost approaches) tailored to each asset class, ensuring assumptions are robust, market-driven and auditable.
  • Manage the end-to-end valuation process for multi-asset portfolios—setting timelines, assigning team resources or third-party appraisers, tracking deliverables and ensuring timely completion for month-end, quarter-end and annual reporting cycles.
  • Oversee third-party valuation vendors: select and onboard appraisers, negotiate scopes and fees, set quality standards, review external appraisal reports for consistency, and perform QA/QC to ensure regulatory and internal policy compliance.
  • Establish and enforce valuation policies, methodologies and governance frameworks aligned with accounting standards (IFRS 13, ASC 820), internal controls and industry best practices; keep policies current with regulatory changes.
  • Perform sensitivity and scenario analyses (cap rate shifts, rent growth, vacancy stress tests) to quantify valuation risk and inform stress-testing, capital allocation and impairment evaluations.
  • Prepare and present valuation conclusions, methodologies and key assumptions to senior management, audit committees, external auditors and regulators in a clear, non-technical and defensible manner.
  • Conduct site visits and property inspections as needed to validate condition, local market dynamics, tenant mix and lease structures; incorporate on-the-ground intelligence into valuation inputs and reports.
  • Maintain and continuously update a centralized valuation database and model library capturing comparable sales, rent rolls, operating statements, cap rates, expense benchmarks and market data for consistent, repeatable valuations.
  • Lead impairment reviews and trigger assessments, determine recoverable amounts and prepare impairment memos in accordance with IFRS and US GAAP, including supporting schedules and disclosures.
  • Partner with finance, accounting and tax teams to reconcile valuation outputs with financial statements, supporting fair value measurements, disclosure notes and audit inquiries.
  • Drive continual improvement and automation of valuation workflows—introducing model validation tools, Excel best practices, version control, Argus Enterprise templates and data integrations to improve accuracy and efficiency.
  • Mentor, coach and manage junior valuation analysts and appraisers—reviewing work product, setting performance objectives, developing training plans and creating knowledge-sharing practices across the valuation function.
  • Analyze capital markets, transaction activity, construction pipelines and macroeconomic indicators to update market assumptions (cap rates, discount rates, market rents) and ensure valuations reflect current conditions.
  • Coordinate cross-functional due diligence during property acquisitions and dispositions: review operating statements, lease documentation, zoning/entitlements, environmental reports and third-party studies to inform valuation adjustments.
  • Build and maintain relationships with brokers, local market experts, surveyors and other external sources to source comparables, corroborate assumptions and enhance market intelligence for valuations.
  • Execute portfolio-level valuation strategies such as mark-to-market exercises, hold/sell scenario valuations and strategic revaluations to support investment committees and portfolio optimization.
  • Implement valuation-related risk controls, including peer reviews, audit trails, model validation checklists and delegation of authority, to ensure defensibility and minimize valuation-related exposures.
  • Provide ad hoc valuation advice for tax planning, balance sheet optimization, loan covenant negotiations and special projects such as redevelopment valuations or pro-forma repositioning scenarios.
  • Track and report key valuation KPIs (turnaround time, variance vs. market transactions, audit findings, model error rates) to senior leadership and use metrics to drive process improvements.
  • Ensure documentation and retention of valuation methodologies, data sources and model assumptions to satisfy internal policies, external audits and regulatory examinations.
  • Lead the integration of new acquisitions into the firm’s valuation framework—harmonizing data, back-testing purchase price allocations and updating rolling valuation schedules.
  • Support investor reporting and communication by developing standardized valuation summaries, executive dashboards and narrative commentary tailored to stakeholder requirements.

Secondary Functions

  • Support ad-hoc data requests and exploratory market analysis to help investment teams evaluate opportunities and risks.
  • Collaborate with IT, data engineering and BI teams to integrate market data feeds (CoStar, REIS), automate data ingestion and improve valuation data quality.
  • Contribute to the organization’s valuation strategy and roadmap, advising on tools (Argus, Excel automation, Python scripts) and process improvements to scale valuation capabilities.
  • Participate in cross-functional project teams for property acquisitions, dispositions, refinancing and portfolio rationalization, ensuring valuation considerations are integrated early.
  • Provide training sessions and written guidance on valuation best practices, model use and report writing for non-valuation stakeholders.
  • Assist with vendor procurement processes, including RFPs for appraisal providers and technology partners servicing valuation workflows.
  • Help prepare materials and talking points for board and investor meetings where valuation results and methodology must be explained and defended.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

  • Advanced financial modeling skills: discounted cash flow (DCF), direct capitalization, sales comparison and cost approaches with strong Excel proficiency (pivot tables, advanced formulas, macros).
  • Hands-on experience with commercial real estate valuation systems (Argus Enterprise preferred) and property management/financial reporting software (Yardi, MRI).
  • Strong understanding of accounting standards and fair value measurement: IFRS 13, ASC 820 / ASC 360 and USPAP appraisal standards.
  • Transaction/market analysis: ability to source and analyze comparables, market rents, vacancy rates, sales comps and capitalization rates across asset classes.
  • Valuation model validation and governance: model documentation, back-testing, sensitivity analysis and audit-ready recordkeeping.
  • Proficiency with market data platforms and research tools (CoStar, REIS, RCA, Bloomberg Real Estate) and the ability to integrate data for valuation inputs.
  • Technical familiarity with SQL, VBA or Python for data extraction, model automation and reproducible valuation processes (preferred).
  • Experience performing impairment testing, purchase price allocation and fair value disclosures for financial reporting and M&A transactions.
  • Ability to review and critique third-party appraisal reports; strong QA/QC and vendor oversight experience.
  • Competence in lease abstraction and lease-up/redevelopment valuation scenarios, including rent rolls and tenant credit analysis.
  • Risk assessment and scenario modelling: stress testing valuations against macroeconomic and property-level risks.
  • GIS and mapping tools or neighborhood-level analytics for site-specific market assessments (preferred).

Soft Skills

  • Exceptional written and verbal communication—able to present complex valuation conclusions and assumptions to executives, audit teams and external stakeholders.
  • Leadership and people management—experience mentoring, developing and managing small valuation teams and external vendor relationships.
  • Strong analytical mindset with attention to detail and a methodical approach to problem solving and model validation.
  • Project and time management—ability to prioritize competing valuation assignments and meet strict reporting deadlines.
  • Stakeholder management and negotiation skills, comfortable collaborating with investment, finance, legal and external auditors.
  • Business acumen and commercial judgment—translating market intelligence into actionable valuation recommendations.
  • Adaptability and continuous learning—staying current on market cycles, new valuation methodologies and regulatory changes.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

  • Bachelor’s degree in Real Estate, Finance, Accounting, Economics, Business Administration or related quantitative field.

Preferred Education:

  • Master’s degree in Real Estate, Finance, Business Administration (MBA) or Master’s in Finance.
  • Professional certifications such as MAI (Appraisal Institute), ASA (American Society of Appraisers), CFA, or RICS credentials are highly desirable.

Relevant Fields of Study:

  • Real Estate
  • Finance
  • Accounting
  • Economics
  • Business Analytics / Data Science (beneficial)

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range: 5–12 years of progressive valuation, appraisal, or real estate finance experience, including 2–5 years in a supervisory or team lead role.

Preferred:

  • 7+ years of commercial real estate valuation experience across multiple asset classes.
  • Demonstrated experience supporting financial statement valuations and audits, managing third-party appraisal vendors, and applying IFRS/US GAAP valuation frameworks.
  • Proven track record delivering valuations for acquisitions, dispositions, financings and investor reporting.
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