Calendar

The SCCAI WIN Committee is glad to bring a lunchtime interview with Brenda Hicks.  Ms. Hicks is a Founder and CEO of Realwired, which simplifies workflow automation and integration for lending institutions. In this discussion, Ms. Hicks will share about moving from appraiser to founder, lessons in product development, and about her winning formulas in the appraisal industry. In this meeting there will be a direct engagement with audience questions. This program is open to all, and you are warmly invited to join us.

Date:  March 6, 2026

Time:  12 noon

Venue/Location:  Zoom

WIN Committee

Ariana Arredondo ([email protected])

Jennifer Hsu ([email protected])

Linda Whittlesey ([email protected])

TOPIC: Appraising the Tough Ones – Complex Valuation Concepts

Exploring creative valuation techniques for unique appraisal problems such as trash hauling routes, subsurface tunnels, ocean floor ROW, Etc.  We will explore several assignments where the client needs a creative valuation solution that requires the appraiser to utilize “any method that is just and equitable.

SPEAKER: BRADFORD THOMPSON, MAI, AI-GRS, SR/WA

APPRAISAL EXPERIENCE President and Managing Partner of Thompson & Thompson, established 2020. Entered the appraisal field in 1989 and was with the appraisal firm of Mason and Mason from 1991thru 2019, Partner 2006 thru 2019. Expertise includes research, consulting, appraisal report preparation, and expert testimony for a variety of property types, including industrial, commercial, retail, office, vacant acreage, and single and multi-family residential properties. Property valuations for eminent domain both full and partial acquisitions, inverse condemnation, property tax appeals, possessory interests, corridor valuation, asset management, and loan underwriting.

AFFILIATIONS & ACTIVITIES

MAI Designated Member, The Appraisal Institute, Designation No. 11063

AI-GRS (General Review Specialist) Designated Member, The Appraisal Institute

SR/WA Designated Member, International Right of Way Association, Designation No. 5336

Certified General Real Estate Appraiser, State of California, Certificate No. AG002282 (Exp. 2/1/2027)

Certified General Real Estate Appraiser, State of Nevada, Certificate No. A.0208134-CG (Exp.4/30/2026)

Certified General Real Estate Appraiser, State of Arizona, Certificate No. CGA-32273 (Exp. 4/30/2026)

Licensed Real Estate Broker, State of California, Certificate No. 01070707 (Exp. 4/1/2026)

Planning Commission, City of Arcadia (2015 to 2023)

Past President, Southern California Chapter of the Appraisal Institute (2017)

Member, AIR Commercial and Industrial Real Estate Association

Member, Pasadena-Foothills Association of Realtors

EDUCATIONAL BACKGROUND

California State Polytechnic University, Pomona Graduated September 1999, with a master’s degree in business administration (MBA) with an emphasis in Urban and Regional Planning, and Finance, Real Estate and Law. Admitted to the Honor Society of Beta Gamma Sigma. Masters Project – Just Compensation, The Physical Partial Acquisition of Real Property through Eminent Domain.

Classes included:

• Real Estate Market Analysis

• Real Estate Investment Analysis

• Management Science – Quantitative Decision Making

• Policy Analysis, Implementation and Evaluation

• Urban and Regional Planning – Legal Foundations

• Urban and Regional Planning – Urban Analysis Fundamentals

• Urban and Regional Planning – Theory and Practice

• Urban and Regional Planning – Graphics and Design

• Managerial Accounting for Decision Making

• Business Research Methods

• Management Policies and Strategies Practicum

• Advanced Financial Management

SPEAKERS: 

Mark Easter, Esq.

Best Best & Krieger LLP

Mark Easter’s practice focuses on public agency acquisitions, including eminent domain and inverse condemnation litigation. Mark is a partner in the Riverside office. He represents public agencies throughout California on a wide variety of public acquisitions, including projects for cities, counties, school districts, special districts, water districts, transportation agencies and housing authorities, and has extensive court and jury trial experience in eminent domain-related matters.

Mark is a member of the Inland Empire Chapter of the International Right of Way Association, an organization devoted to excellence in all aspects of public right-of-way work, including legal issues related to eminent domain and inverse condemnation litigation. He frequently writes articles for the IRWA and speaks at IRWA seminars. In 2018, he was named Professional of the Year by the Chapter.

Mark has significant experience in substandard housing and commercial building litigation, including litigation under California Business &Professions Code section 17200 and Health & Safety Code section17980.7. He is one of the most experienced attorneys in California on Health & Safety Code section 17980.7 receiverships and speaks at seminars throughout the state on receiverships.

Andrew G. Saghian

Associate

Best Best & Krieger LLP

Andrew G. Saghian is a litigation associate in Best Best & Krieger’s Municipal practice group. He assists clients with navigating all aspects and stages of litigation at both the trial and appellate levels. Andrew’s practice includes contract claims, business and real property disputes, tort litigation, civil rights actions, employment/discrimination claims, property tax appeals, eminent domain and inverse condemnation.

Andrew attended Loyola Law School, Los Angeles, where he was a member of the Ninth Circuit Clinic. While in law school, he briefed and argued a constitutional due process claim before the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and served as a judicial extern for the Honorable Virginia A. Phillips of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.

Jacinto (“Jay”) Munoz, MAI, SRA, AI-GRS, AI-RRS

Cogito Realty Partners

Based in Irvine, California, Jacinto Munoz is a Managing Director and Principal for Cogito Realty Partners. Mr. Munoz is a U.S. Navy Veteran and joins Cogito Realty Partners with more than 25 years of experience in valuation, lending, litigation support, eminent domain, arbitration, mediation, deposition, underwriting, review, development, expert witness, and environmental real estate roles, with extensive valuation experience across all asset types nationwide and internationally.

Prior to joining Cogito Realty Partners, Jacinto served as a Managing Director and Head of Strategy and Compliance for Apprise by Walker and Dunlop. Jacinto also served in a variety of roles with JPMorgan Chase Bank, which included serving the bank as a Regional Appraisal Manager, National Commercial Lending (CML) Review manager and most recently, in a senior leadership role as the National CTL Appraisal Manager, which was responsible for leading a team of more than 100 managers, appraisers, and administrative professionals nationwide.

Jacinto has conducted research, prepared appraisals, reviewed, consulted, and/or completed inspections of numerous property types nationwide, which include a wide variety of commercial land, subdivisions, multifamily apartments, health care facilities, auto dealerships, hotels, parking garages and surface lots, industrial properties, mobile home parks, self-storage facilities, office buildings, retail properties, special purpose facilities, air and water rights, synthetic leases, and various other stand-alone commercial assets.

Title of Presentation

Getting Your House in Order: Deposition Preparation for the Appraiser in a Virtual World

Description of Presentation

Getting Your House in Order: Deposition Preparation for the Appraiser in a Virtual World will explore the essential steps every appraiser should take to be fully prepared, confident, and compliant when giving deposition testimony in an online environment. The session will cover best practices for organizing your workfile, managing digital exhibits, understanding attorney expectations, and maintaining professionalism on camera. Attendees will also learn how to avoid common pitfalls unique to virtual proceedings and how to present their opinions clearly, effectively, and defensibly in a remote setting.