AI Highest & Best Use Analysis

The Problem

Your team can’t price and underwrite deals fast enough to win (or avoid overpaying)

Organizations face these key challenges:

1

Underwriting cycles take days/weeks because comps, zoning constraints, and feasibility are assembled manually

2

Valuations and “best use” conclusions vary by analyst, office, or appraiser—hard to standardize and audit

3

Teams screen too few opportunities; high-potential deals are missed while low-quality leads consume time

4

Market shifts (rates, rents, supply) outpace spreadsheet models, causing stale assumptions and mispricing

Impact When Solved

Faster deal screening and underwritingMore consistent, defensible valuationsScale investment analysis without hiring

The Shift

Before AI~85% Manual

Human Does

  • Collect comps from MLS/CoStar/public records and reconcile adjustments manually
  • Read zoning/ordinance PDFs and interpret allowable uses, FAR, setbacks, parking, density
  • Build spreadsheet pro formas and run limited scenarios (often 1–3) due to time constraints
  • Write appraisal/IC memos and defend assumptions in meetings

Automation

  • Basic data pulls/exports from MLS/CRM and templated report generation
  • Static rules in spreadsheets (simple calculators, macros)
With AI~75% Automated

Human Does

  • Set investment strategy/constraints (target returns, risk tolerance, hold period, capex limits)
  • Review AI-generated comps/scenarios, challenge assumptions, and approve final underwriting
  • Handle edge cases (unique assets, sparse comp markets, entitlement uncertainty) and negotiations

AI Handles

  • Automated property valuation and confidence scoring from multi-source market and transaction data
  • Generate and rank highest-and-best-use scenarios based on zoning + site + demand signals
  • Continuous comp selection, adjustments, and anomaly detection (outliers, stale listings, data gaps)
  • Auto-build pro formas (rents, costs, absorption, cap rates) and run Monte Carlo/sensitivity analyses

Real-World Use Cases

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