Here's a question that many aspiring commercial investors have:
A "C"-class property is posting a cap of 4.32% and a Pro-Forma Cap rate if 7.32%. Which one of the aforementioned cap rates should be used in the software to better determine an offer?
The answer is to ignore any cap rate that is posted in a listing and instead use a cap rate that is appropriate for your area. The reason for this is that the published cap rate is based on the listed seller's expenses which are typically under reported. If the expenses are not correct, then the cap rate is not correct. This is why we ignore the cap rate provided by the seller or the broker.
For Class C apartments in most areas of the United States, we are currently using .07 for the cap rate. (This percentage is referred to as a "7 Cap")
Please see another article "How to determine cap rate for your area"
By using one cap rate to value each property you are, in effect, using the same magnifying glass to look at each deal. This will allow you to compare one deal to another and give you a good estimate of the true value of the property.