Liquidation appraisals: orderly and forced value.
A liquidation appraisal from Lukes & Lukes is an independent, USPAP-compliant opinion of what equipment returns under sale conditions, whether the disposition is orderly or forced. It is built to withstand lender, trustee, IRS, audit and legal review.
Which value applies
The sale conditions decide the number.
A liquidation appraisal answers one question: what will these assets return when they are sold under pressure rather than held? The premise of value follows the sale conditions and the marketing window available, and we determine and defend the right one. Orderly Liquidation Value (OLV) assumes a reasonable marketing period, with the equipment advertised and sold to the best buyers over a defined window. Forced Liquidation Value (FLV) assumes a compressed sale, often a public auction with limited opportunity to reach the right buyer, so it sits below OLV. Net Orderly Liquidation Value (NOLV) takes OLV and subtracts the costs of getting there: removal, transport, storage, commissions and fees.
We do not quote a value before inspection. A certified appraiser examines the assets, then applies the cost, market and income approaches against current resale and auction data to support each figure. Start with the situation, and we map it to the premise the file requires.
- Orderly Liquidation Value (OLV): the expected return from a private, advertised sale over a reasonable marketing period
- Forced Liquidation Value (FLV): the expected return from a compressed sale, typically auction, with limited opportunity to reach buyers
- Net Orderly Liquidation Value (NOLV): OLV less the costs of disposition, such as removal, transport, storage and commissions
- Auction context: values benchmarked against comparable auction results and current dealer and resale markets, not a generic database
- Itemized support: each asset valued on its own line, so a lender, trustee or court can trace every number
Related work
Liquidation rarely travels alone.
A wind-down often begins as a credit problem and ends in court. We carry the same itemized file across each situation, so the values reconcile from the loan that funded the assets to the disposition that recovers them. We appraise equipment across every industry, so the specialty does not change the standard.
Who orders it
The people who recover the value.
Secured lenders and workout teams order a liquidation appraisal to size recovery on a troubled credit and to set a position before a borrower fails. Bankruptcy trustees and restructuring advisors order one to value the estate and support a disposition plan. Owners winding a business down order one to understand what the equipment will bring before they commit to a sale or auction. Every one of them needs a number that holds up when someone challenges it.
What you get
One file the next reader can trust.
You receive a complete report, not a printout: a written narrative of scope and methodology, an itemized appendix valuing each asset, and photographs from inspection. It is independent and certified, with senior review before it leaves.
- Cost, market and income approaches applied by a certified appraiser, not a database
- OLV, FLV and NOLV stated and reconciled where the situation calls for more than one premise
- Itemized appendix, narrative and photographs in every file
- Lender-fluent: Jesse Lukes came up inside the bank at BMO, originating loans and reviewing collateral, so the file reads the way a lender reads it
Common questions
Answers, up front.
What is the difference between forced and orderly liquidation value?
The difference is the marketing window the seller has. Orderly Liquidation Value (OLV) assumes a reasonable marketing period, with the equipment advertised and sold to the best available buyers over a defined window. Forced Liquidation Value (FLV) assumes a compressed sale, often a public auction, with limited opportunity to reach the right buyer. Because FLV gives up the marketing period, it almost always comes in below OLV for the same assets.
What is Net Orderly Liquidation Value (NOLV)?
NOLV is Orderly Liquidation Value less the costs of disposition. It starts with OLV, then subtracts what it takes to convert the assets to cash: removal, rigging, transport, storage, sale commissions and related fees. Lenders rely on NOLV because it reflects the net proceeds the collateral would actually return, not the gross before costs.
When do you need a liquidation appraisal?
You need one when assets may be sold under pressure rather than held. That includes a secured lender sizing recovery on a troubled credit, a workout or restructuring, a bankruptcy filing or trustee disposition, and an owner deciding whether to sell or auction a business. The premise we apply, OLV, FLV or NOLV, depends on the sale conditions and the marketing window available.
How is auction value handled in a liquidation appraisal?
Auction value is treated as a forced sale. A certified appraiser benchmarks the assets against comparable auction results and current dealer and resale markets, then states the figure as Forced Liquidation Value. We do not quote a value before inspection, and we do not let a database stand in for appraiser judgment.
Can you support an appraisal that has to satisfy a lender or a court filing?
Yes. Tell us who will read the file and what it has to support, and we scope the engagement and inspection accordingly. Reports are USPAP-compliant, prepared by a NEBB-certified Machinery & Equipment Appraiser (CMEA), and built to withstand lender, trustee, IRS, audit and legal review.
Need this for a lender or a filing?