Monday 3 November 2008

For What it's Worth

Trees have inherent value because of the useful goods and services they provide. A stack of 2x4's fours ready to turn into a new family room or that storage area you have been wanting can be taken to the till and paid for at your local lumber mart. Calculating the value of that lumber is easy! Calculating the value of a living tree is much trickier.

When you move to the services trees provide, shelter, shade, erosion control, wind, noise and pollution reduction these too can be calculated. Formulas have been developed over time to calculate these values per tree or for whole forests.

What happens when you wake up one morning and the construction crew working on the house next door is in the process of chipping up your favorite tree? Unfortunately these kinds of situations do occur and all to often they end up in litigation.

Fortunately there are arborists who specialize in this kind of tree valuation. These consulting arborists regularly deal with situations on landscapes that require accurate and verifiable appraisals of trees and groups of trees. Just as you would go to a specialist if you had a serious

medical condition, you would be well advised to go to a reputable consulting arborist if you ever find yourself in a potential legal situation involving trees.

The basic premise in calculating the value of a tree is that in most cases the landscape contributes 10% to 15% to the total value of your property. In special cases this may be slightly more or slightly less. It is not enough to take ten percent of value of your property and divide that by the number of trees and come up with a value for one tree. Doing this does not take into consideration a number of factors that effect tree value.

Consulting arborists use several formulas that allow for an accurate assessment of the value of a tree or trees. The arborist typically uses the value of the largest readily available replacement tree of the same species to start their evaluation. Next the diameter of this replacement tree and its value is used to extrapolate the value of the existing tree. Working from a chart of tree values, determined by groups of experts, a species percentage is assigned to each tree. Typically an oak will have a value of 100%. This is partly related to its value and longevity in the landscape and possibly the fact that even in colonial times oaks were highly valued. Oaks were considered the property of the king. A less desirable tree, like a box elder may only get a species rating of 50%. Trees are given species percentage values based on their attributes and loose percentage points if they have inherent problems that detract from their value in the landscape. Messy fruit, excessive branch drop, short lifespan, predisposition to rot or failure are all value detractors. Location on the landscape is then used as a weighting factor to further refine the value of the tree. The condition of the tree is then included in the calculation to take into account the physical shape and health of the tree. After a few more calculations a number is arrived at for the value of that tree. This value must than be proofed against the value of the home and the overall value of the landscape. This process continues until the consulting arborist is certain that he has a figure that will stand up in court if necessary.

If you have followed this article to this point it will be apparent that a certain degree of specialization is necessary to perform these valuations. Most arborists are able to refer you to a qualified consulting arborist if you ever have the misfortune to be in need of their services. In the end the value you put on your trees may be very personal and relate to moments in your life enjoyed under them.


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