Case Study 01
Minority interest in a pre-development land holding entity
Pre-Development Stage
Subject Interest
Minority membership units in a single-asset LLC
Underlying Asset
100+ acre undeveloped land tract (Southeast US) with nominal lease income and no structures
Valuation Approach
Net asset value: third-party real estate appraisal less outstanding debt, then discounted at the interest level
Report Use
Fair market value support for estate and gift planning
Discount for Lack of Control
25–40%
- No distributions, with none anticipated; net asset yield under 1%
- Benchmarked against published non-distributing partnership data and closed-end fund discounts
- Portfolio concentration in one non-income-producing asset
- Restrictions on disposition; shallow management depth
- Offset: small member group simplifies coordination
■ Amber items reduced the discount
Discount for Lack of Marketability
10–30%
- Pre-revenue asset with no performance history
- No market for units; severe transfer restrictions
- Very long expected holding period with no distribution offset
- Material debt against a non-income-producing asset
Total effective discount45–55%