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Metes & Bounds

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March 2026 Metes & Bounds Lease Clinic

The Lease Clause That's Quietly Exposing Your Building to Assessment Risk

Inside most commercial leases for properties in special tax districts, there is a clause that passes the district's mandatory assessment obligation to your tenant.

By Plat Street · 10 min read
January 2026 Metes & Bounds Corridor Signal

Three Warning Signs a Corridor Is Two Years From Decline

Programming mix, tenant category drift, and board composition tell you what lease rates won't — if you know what to look for.

By Metes & Bounds Editorial · 7 min read
March 2026 Metes & Bounds Parcel Report

Did the District Deliver? Austin's South Congress BID, Five Years and $4.2M in Capital Investment Later

A corridor-level analysis of what $4.2 million in BID capital investment actually bought in measurable property value impact. The answer is more complicated than the annual report suggests.

By Metes & Bounds Research · Austin, TX · 14 min read
February 2026 Metes & Bounds Board Brief

The Short North DDA Renewal Vote Is in Eight Weeks. Here's What Property Owners Should Know Before Casting a Ballot.

A governance breakdown of what the renewal covers, what's changed in the proposed rate structure, and what the property-weighted vote means for owners at different assessed value tiers.

By Metes & Bounds Editorial · Columbus, OH · 8 min read
February 2026 Metes & Bounds District as Asset

Reading a District Budget Like an Asset Manager: The Line Items That Actually Predict Corridor Value Direction

Most property owners look at a district budget the way a taxpayer does — looking for waste. Asset managers look at it differently. Here's how to shift the frame.

By Metes & Bounds Editorial · 9 min read
Q1 2026 Metes & Bounds Metes & Bounds Survey

Only 22% of District Property Owners Have Attended a Board Meeting — Here's What That Costs You

The property owners who show up shape the district. The property owners who don't show up fund whatever the others decide.

By Metes & Bounds Research · 6 min read
March 2026 Metes & Bounds Breaking · Assessment

Commercial Property Values in Washington DC Are Falling Again. What That Means for Property Owners Inside a Special District.

The assessment decline is real, the DOGE amplification is real, and the appeal window for TY2026 has already closed. Here is what to do before TY2027.

By Plat Street · Washington, DC · 14 min read
March 2026 Metes & Bounds Assessment Intelligence

When the Largest Taxpayer in Town Goes to Auction

The K-shaped mall recovery is not a real estate investor story. It is a property tax story, an assessment base story, and a certiorari warning for every commercial property owner in a jurisdiction where a Class B or C mall anchors the tax roll.

By Plat Street · West Nyack, NY · 20 min read
April 2026 Metes & Bounds Section Lead

DC's TY2027 Problem

Washington DC commercial property owners face a compound problem: assessed values are declining, the appeal window for TY2026 has already closed, and TY2027 assessments will be set against a market that has absorbed 56,000 net job losses. Here is what to do now.

By Plat Street · Washington, DC · 10 min read
April 2026 Metes & Bounds Deadline · Appeals

Michigan Property Tax Appeals: The May 31 Deadline You Cannot Miss

Michigan commercial property owners have until May 31 to file tax tribunal appeals on 2026 assessments. Miss the deadline and you wait two years. Here is what the grounds for appeal are, what evidence you need, and how the process works.

By Plat Street · Michigan · 8 min read
April 2026 Metes & Bounds Policy · Property

The New Neighbor on Your Block: LA's Adaptive Reuse Ordinance

Los Angeles's expanded Adaptive Reuse Ordinance is accelerating office-to-residential conversions across downtown and commercial corridors. For commercial property owners adjacent to conversion projects: what the ordinance changes, what the new residential neighbors mean for corridor demand.

By Plat Street · Los Angeles, CA · 9 min read
April 2026 Metes & Bounds Assessment Intelligence

North Carolina 2026 Revaluations: Twelve Counties, First Update Since Before the Pandemic

Twelve North Carolina counties are conducting their first property revaluations since before the pandemic. Commercial property owners in those counties are facing assessments that reflect a 2020-2026 market that looks nothing like the 2016-2019 baseline.

By Plat Street · North Carolina · 8 min read
April 2026 Metes & Bounds Valuation · Retail

The Pharmacy Box and Your Income Approach

When the anchor pharmacy in your building closes, the income approach valuation changes immediately. How assessors treat vacant anchor space, what comparable rents look like for large-format retail post-pharmacy, and how to position your appeal.

By Plat Street · National · 8 min read
April 2026 Metes & Bounds Policy · Assessment

The Stick Hits Your Balance Sheet: Vacancy Taxes and Your Assessment

Vacancy taxes hit commercial property owners in two ways: the direct tax liability, and the assessment impact of reduced income from a vacant storefront. How cities are structuring vacancy tax liability and what it means for your property's assessed value.

By Plat Street · National · 8 min read
May 2026 Metes & Bounds Field Report · Assessment

Cook County's First Real Reassessment

Cook County is conducting its first real reassessment in decades. What the reassessment means for property owners and assessment appeals.

By Plat Street · Cook County, IL · 14 min read
May 2026 Metes & Bounds Field Report · Appeals

New Jersey's May 1 Window

New Jersey's May 1 property tax appeal deadline is approaching. What the deadline means for property owners and assessment appeals.

By Plat Street · New Jersey · 13 min read
May 2026 Metes & Bounds Field Report · Conversion

The Boston Conversion Reauthorization

The Boston Conversion Program has been reauthorized through December 31, 2026. What the reauthorization means for office-to-residential conversion and corridor recovery.

By Plat Street · Boston, MA · 13 min read
May 2026 Metes & Bounds Field Report · Owner Case Study

CBL Hands Back Three Malls in 90 Days

CBL Properties is cooperating with lender negotiations on three retail centers. The pattern of performing malls failing to refinance is the new owner-side story for 2026.

By Plat Street · National (CBL portfolio) · 14 min read
May 2026 Metes & Bounds Field Report · Comparative Pricing

The 90% Sale Is Real: Chicago, Denver, DC

Distressed office sales in Chicago, Denver, and Washington DC show 90% discounts from peak. What the sales mean for assessment appeals and property valuations.

By Plat Street · Chicago, IL · Denver, CO · Washington, DC · 14 min read
May 2026 Metes & Bounds Field Report · Case Study

New Castle County's First Reassessment in Decades

New Castle County completed its first comprehensive property reassessment in decades. The Delaware General Assembly shifted assessment burden back from residential to commercial property owners.

By Plat Street · New Castle County, DE · 12 min read
May 2026 Metes & Bounds Field Report · Case Study

San Francisco Centre Goes Blank Slate

San Francisco Centre, the 1.2 million square foot urban indoor mall on Market Street, has officially closed. The reuse scenarios and what they mean for adjacent property values.

By Plat Street · San Francisco, CA · 13 min read
May 2026 Metes & Bounds Field Report · Case Study

Cleveland's Downtown Distress Cluster

Multiple buildings in receivership or foreclosure are visible from Euclid Avenue and East 12th Street in downtown Cleveland. The corridor-cluster effect produces different assessment dynamics than isolated foreclosure.

By Plat Street · Cleveland, OH · 12 min read
May 2026 Metes & Bounds Platcard

Concord Capital Acquires Pontiac Building

Concord Capital completed an acquisition of the Pontiac Building in Chicago's Loop. The deal is one of the cleanest available 2026 examples of opportunistic acquisition pricing.

By Plat Street · Chicago, IL · 3 min read
May 2026 Metes & Bounds Platcard

CT Multi-Year Appeal Window Reminder

Connecticut municipalities operate on a five-year revaluation cycle with property tax appeal windows that vary by jurisdiction. Commercial owners with properties in 2026 revaluation municipalities should confirm their specific town's filing deadline.

By Plat Street · Connecticut · 3 min read
May 2026 Metes & Bounds Platcard

Portland Studies Vacancy Tax for FY27 Budget

Portland City Councilor Sameer Kanal added a note to the FY26 city budget requesting a study of a possible tax or fee on vacant residential and commercial spaces.

By Plat Street · Portland, OR · 3 min read