PDRMA Updates Its Property Appraisals — and System

We continue to move forward with our transition to Duff & Phelps’ (D&P) appraisal and reporting features during 2021. Earlier this year, D&P concluded its comprehensive appraisal of members’ property that began in 2020 and uploaded all the data into its system.

Wait — There’s More

Property appraisals are, however, only part of the story: You still need to generate fixed asset reports for GASB filings each year as well. For 35 agencies, AssetWorks — our previous online asset management system — was their choice for these reports, and they were available free of charge.

Our contract with AssetWorks expires Dec. 31, 2021, and agencies using that system can choose to switch to D&P’s Property Clarity System for GASB reports, which requires an annual fee that PDRMA will offset in the first year. Your agency has until Dec. 31, 2021, to generate reports within AssetWorks and then download and pull that data into D&P’s system. The fee to upload and automatically update that information ranges between $500 and $1,200 annually, depending on each agency’s fixed assets.

Until the end of 2021, PDRMA will pay $500 per agency for each of the 35 members using AssetWorks to cover the initial data upload for GASB reporting into the D&P system. In 2022, those 35 agencies must either update their GASB data on their own or pay to enroll in the Property Clarity system, which automatically updates GASB data annually.

Waukegan Park District Pilots D&P’s System

Waukegan Park District participated in a D&P pilot, moving its data from AssetWorks to the Property Clarity System. According to Jon Beckmann, Superintendent of Finance and Administration, it was smooth sailing.

“It took a couple of weeks,” Beckmann recalls, “and was mostly via virtual meetings on Teams and WebEx for our prep and setup. The actual transfer of our data into D&P’s system was easy, and about three weeks later, we had the report from the system. The process wasn’t complicated but switching from one fixed asset software system to another does take time.”

But D&P offered help from start to finish, notes Beckmann. “Reporting is a lot better than what I was used to in AssetWorks, and D&P’s customer service support was outstanding!” 

What advice does Beckmann offer fellow PDRMA members about making the switch? “Be sure you include auditors early in the process's kickoff meetings to better understand each other’s needs and define the starting point for tying the audit detail in the Capital Assets Government Activities to your Annual Comprehensive Financial Report.”   

For more information about the move from AssetWorks to Duff & Phelps’ Property Clarity System, you can register to attend our Sept. 16 webinar or contact Tim Conlon, PDRMA Property/Casualty Program Director, or Britney Gillespie, PDRMA Property/Casualty Operations Coordinator.