ATALI ELECTRIC vs CoStar comps with manual grids
ATALI ELECTRIC vs pulling CoStar comps and building grids by hand
CoStar is the deepest source of commercial sales and lease comparables many consultants have, and ATALI ELECTRIC does not replace it. The difference is what happens after the export: the manual path rebuilds the adjustment grid, uniformity matrix, forms and binder for every parcel, while ATALI ELECTRIC turns the comps you already license into appeal evidence.
What it is
CoStar is the commercial real estate information and analytics platform from CoStar Group. Subscribers search researched sales and lease comparables, property records, availability and tenant data and submarket analytics, and can export search results to Excel within the terms of their subscription. In a typical appeal workflow, an analyst filters CoStar sales comps by property type, size, submarket and date, exports them, builds an adjustment grid in Excel, and then assembles the uniformity analysis, county forms and exhibits separately.
| Dimension | ATALI ELECTRIC |  CoStar comps with manual grids |
|---|---|---|
| Comparable sales data | Works from the comps you export under your CoStar license, plus ATTOM and public deed records; ATALI ELECTRIC does not resell CoStar data | CoStar's researched sales comparables with price, buyer, seller, brokers, sale type and sale notes |
| Lease and market data | Market rents and vacancy from your exports and rent rolls feed the income approach | Lease comparables, availability and submarket analytics, which are core CoStar strengths |
| Adjustment grid | Grid generated with size, age, condition, location, parking ratio and market conditions adjustments, each editable and logged | Built in Excel for each parcel from the exported comps |
| Arms-length screening | Portfolio allocations, sale-leasebacks, distressed and related-party sales flagged for review before they enter the grid | Analyst reads the sale type and sale notes and decides comp by comp |
| Income approach | P&L and rent roll normalization with a loaded cap rate (base rate plus effective tax rate) | Separate spreadsheet using CoStar market rents and vacancy as inputs |
| Equity uniformity | Uniformity matrix from county assessment data with median adjusted value per sq ft | Assessment figures gathered from the assessor or property records and arranged by hand |
| County forms | Official county forms filled from the parcel record | Completed by hand for each filing |
| Evidence binder | 20-page hearing-ready binder with the grid, income pro forma, uniformity matrix and exhibits | Exported tables formatted and collated by staff |
| Deadline tracking | Filing windows, hearings, settlement offers and determinations tracked per parcel | Managed outside the comp workflow in calendars or spreadsheets |
| Evidence prep time | 16 hours to 20 minutes per parcel (ATALI ELECTRIC customer results) | Comp search is fast; the grid, forms and binder remain inside the 12 to 25 billable hours per parcel consultants report (IPT Practice Survey) |
| Data licensing | Uploaded comps stay governed by your CoStar license and are stored only in your tenant | Use governed by your CoStar subscription agreement |
Choose CoStar comps with manual grids when
- -You need CoStar for far more than appeals: leasing, acquisitions, underwriting and tenant research. Keep it either way; ATALI ELECTRIC sits on top of the comps you license.
- -Your appeal volume is small and the slow step for you is finding comparables, not formatting evidence.
- -Your board is used to a CoStar-based grid layout your team built, and you file few enough appeals to maintain it by hand.
Choose ATALI ELECTRIC when
- Your analysts spend more time rebuilding grids and binders than choosing comparables.
- You need income, sales and uniformity evidence in one package for every parcel, not sales alone.
- You file across many counties and want each county's form and deadline handled from the same record.
- You want every comp adjustment and exclusion logged for review before filing.
Using both, or switching over
- Step 1
Search CoStar the way you already do
Filter sales comps by property type, size, submarket and sale date in CoStar and export the results to Excel under your subscription.
- Step 2
Upload the export to the parcel
ATALI ELECTRIC maps the export columns to its comparable fields, flags sale conditions that need review and adds the comps to the parcel's evidence set.
- Step 3
Review the grid instead of building it
Adjustments for size, age, condition, location, parking and market conditions are proposed with their support. The analyst accepts, edits or rejects each one, and the income and uniformity evidence is built alongside.
- Step 4
Generate the forms and binder
The county form and hearing binder are produced from the approved evidence, and the filing deadline moves into the Deadline Tracker.
Questions
Does ATALI ELECTRIC include CoStar data?
No. ATALI ELECTRIC does not license or resell CoStar data. You bring comps you export under your own CoStar subscription, and their use stays governed by that agreement.
Is ATALI ELECTRIC affiliated with CoStar Group?
No. ATALI ELECTRIC is independent of CoStar Group. The workflow runs on files you export from CoStar, with no direct connection to CoStar's systems.
Can I combine CoStar comps with public deed records and ATTOM data?
Yes. Each comparable carries a source tag, so a grid can mix CoStar exports, ATTOM sales and county deed records, and the binder shows where each one came from.
What if a board questions a comparable?
The binder lists the sale type, notes and screening flags behind each comparable and the adjustments applied. Confirming key sales with a party to the transaction before the hearing remains good practice.
Stop overpaying commercial property tax on a flawed mass appraisal.
Upload an assessment notice. ATALI ELECTRIC returns a valuation audit and comp analysis in about two minutes.