After a hiatus from his blog, veteran valuer Chris Mercer (Mercer Capital) certainly has made up for lost time. A few weeks ago, he started a series of thoughtful posts focusing on appraisal review, a process he deems “essential.” As of now, he has done five installments in the series, the latest post discussing—from an appraisal review standpoint—the definition of fair market value and the basic eight factors in IRS Revenue Ruling 59-60. While these factors are discussed in nearly every business valuation report, “not every business valuation report reflects a solid understanding of this important standard of value,” he writes. “Often, one or more of the critical three factors of common sense, informed judgment and reasonableness are missing.” He discusses these three critical factors and gives an example of a simple reasonableness test still missing from certain appraisals he reviews. Mercer will continue the series in future weeks.

Extra: Speaking of appraisal reviews, there is a webinar today, April 20, Appraisal Review for Financial Reporting, with Raymond Rath (Globalview Advisors).