During last year’s Summit of the Americas, members of the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors had fun putting a value on the White House. This year, being in Chicago, they chose the Chicago Cubs, in honor of their World Series win, which broke a 108-year drought.

Bruce B. Bingham (Berkeley Research Group) put a $2.3 billion value on the Cubs franchise as a whole. Of course, this is just a theoretical value based on information that’s publicly available. In doing the exercise, Bingham used the three approaches and looked at a range of aspects from stadium ownership and its bargain lease to naming rights, broadcast contracts, advertising, parking, and other facilities. Of course, the biggest expense is player salaries that include future escalations. Bingham also pointed out that "ego value" must be taken into account.

At future summits, RICS members will tackle valuations of other U.S. landmarks, such as the Statue of Liberty and Grand Canyon. We suggest a follow up to the Cubs valuation: a valuation of the right of publicity for the billy goat that allegedly triggered the “curse” on the Cubs. Is the tin termite now less relevant because the curse is now broken?