Receipt and Sale of Real Estate Policy (B12)

SUBJECT:
Receipt and Sale of Real Estate Policy

PURPOSE:
To establish guidelines for the conveyance, purchase, and/or sale of real estate.

Conveyances, purchases, and/or sales of real estate require the prior approval of the Board of Trustees and must be signed on behalf of the Corporation by the Chair or the Vice Chair of the Board of Trustees and by the President or the Vice President for Business Services. The Articles of Incorporation also authorize the Board of Trustees to “ . . . adopt one or more policies dispensing with the need for prior approval in specified situations and granting other signature authority, all in its sole discretion.”

The conveyance and sale of real estate resulting from gifts often involve property that is at a distance from Graceland’s campuses. Opportunities to purchase real estate contiguous to Graceland’s campuses may arise when time is of the essence for advantage to Graceland. Gaining Board approval is at times inconvenient and expensive to Trustees and to Graceland.

POLICY:
The Board of Trustees authorizes Graceland’s administration to receive and sell real estate within established limits.

The types of transactions and their corresponding limits are as follows:

I. Gifts of real estate to Graceland may be accepted by the President and Vice President for Business Services assuming:

1. Risks and expenses are evaluated as acceptable compared to the value of the gift, and IRS compliance is maintained,
2. A qualified appraiser has performed an appraisal, and administration agrees that the property can be sold at a price above 90% of the appraised value, and
3. The property value does not exceed $500,000 per transaction and does not exceed $5,000,000 per year.

II. Sale of real estate (which is not contiguous to or related to the operation of the campuses) may be transacted and signed by the President and Vice President for Business Services, with proceeds from the sale being deposited in the quasi-endowment, assuming:

1. IRS compliance is maintained,
2. A qualified appraiser has performed an appraisal, and the sale price is above 90% of the appraised value, and
3. The property value does not exceed $500,000 per transaction and does not exceed $5,000,000 per year.

III. Investment of quasi-endowment and/or operating funds in the purchase of real estate contiguous to Graceland Campuses or related to the operations of the campuses may be transacted and signed by the President and Vice President for Business Services assuming:

1. Risks and expenses are evaluated as acceptable compared to the value of the real estate, and IRS compliance is maintained,
2. A qualified appraiser has performed an appraisal, and the purchase price does not exceed the appraised value.
3. The purchase does not exceed $250,000 annually.