Real estate market analysis relies on AMS survey data

Applied Marketing Science, Inc. (AMS) conducted a survey to support a market definition analysis in an arbitration concerning the value of a parking garage lease. After a 20-year term, the agreement stipulated that the lease terms would revert to the market rate. However, to determine a fair rate, the owner first had to determine which garage was comparable to the one in dispute. AMS conducted a survey which asked people who parked at the garage why they chose that particular facility. Based on these results, AMS was able to show that the comparable garage suggested by the defendant was in fact used for different purposes and periods of time by very different populations, and therefore was not similarly valued.