Boxwood Means
Boxwood Means, founded in 2003 and headquartered in Stamford, CT, provides commercial real estate valuations, appraisals, inspections, and price index analytics to 300+ banks, credit unions, and nonbank lenders specializing in the small-cap CRE (sub-$5M) segment.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2003
- HeadquartersStamford, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Boxwood Means does
Boxwood Means, LLC is a Stamford, Connecticut-based commercial real estate valuation and data analytics firm founded in 2003 that specializes in the small-cap CRE segment (properties typically valued under $5M). The company serves more than 300 commercial banks, credit unions, nonbank lenders, private investors, insurance firms, and government agencies by delivering FieldSmart Commercial Evaluations, FieldSmart Restricted Appraisals, Asset Value Reports, full USPAP-compliant Appraisals (via the June 2023 BOXWOOD X BAAR joint venture with BAAR Realty Advisors covering 30+ states), Property Inspections, Environmental Inspections, and Appraisal Reviews. Its technology platform is anchored by a proprietary national database of 3.5M+ small commercial and multifamily properties, multivariate hedonic models that produce the SCPI (150+ MSAs) and SMPI (100 metros) price indices distributed via Bloomberg Professional, and the Mercury PRO automated valuation model.
Revenue is generated through a mix of recurring subscriptions (SCPI/SMPI indices, Mercury PRO data products, REIT advisory research), per-report transaction fees for evaluations, appraisals, AVRs, and inspections, data licensing agreements (Real Capital Analytics, LoopNet), and professional service fees for appraisal reviews and consulting. Distribution occurs via direct institutional sales, a retail self-serve portal, channel partnerships (PeerStreet, Accurate Group, MountainSeed, FinXTech, Bloomberg, Symetra, Angel Oak), and the BOXWOOD X BAAR appraiser network. With approximately 14 in-house employees augmented by 10,000+ vetted independent contractors, Boxwood operates a capital-light model that has produced 50,000+ valuations cumulatively across 3,000+ U.S. counties.
Boxwood Means firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Boxwood Means
- Legal name
- Boxwood Means, LLC
- Website
- https://boxwoodmeans.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2003
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Boxwood Means, founded in 2003 and headquartered in Stamford, CT, provides commercial real estate valuations, appraisals, inspections, and price index analytics to 300+ banks, credit unions, and nonbank lenders specializing in the small-cap CRE (sub-$5M) segment.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Where Boxwood Means is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Stamford
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices2 records
Markets served
Boxwood Means business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Supply Chain
Revenue model
- SCPI / SMPI Price Index Subscriptions: Recurring subscription revenue from monthly delivery of Small Commercial Price Index and Small Multifamily Price Index reports in PDF and Excel formats across 150+ and 100+ MSAs respectively, plus Bloomberg distribution rights.
- FieldSmart Evaluation Report Fees: Per-report fees charged for FieldSmart Commercial Evaluation reports (sales comparison, sales+income, income-only); orders placed via institutional accounts, retail self-serve portal with credit card payment, or partner channels; rush order options available.
- FieldSmart Restricted Appraisal Fees: Per-report fees for state-certified, USPAP- and FIRREA-compliant Restricted Appraisals in four versions (RA LTE, RA Sales, RA SI, RA Income); produced via the BOXWOOD X BAAR alliance covering 30+ states.
- BOXWOOD X BAAR Full Appraisal Fees: Full USPAP-compliant commercial real estate appraisal fees delivered through the BOXWOOD X BAAR joint venture with BAAR Realty Advisors; typically fixed-rate appraisal fees with fixed turn times.
- Asset Value Report (AVR / BPO Alternative) Fees: Per-report fees for Asset Value Reports used as a higher-quality alternative to commercial broker price opinions (BPOs); applied for collateral reviews, distressed loan purchases, loan servicing, and portfolio monitoring.
- Property Inspection and Environmental Inspection Fees: Per-inspection fees for commercial property condition assessments and environmental inspections delivered through a nationwide network of 10,000+ certified independent contractors.
- Appraisal Review Service Fees: Per-engagement fees for desktop Appraisal Review reports conducted by state-certified licensed appraisers to validate USPAP compliance, completeness, accuracy, and reasonableness of third-party appraisals.
- Mercury PRO / VALPRO Data and AVM Subscriptions: Subscription and pay-per-view revenue from Mercury Reports, Mercury PRO, Mercury PRO-PC, and VALPRO products on SmallBalance.com; provides metro-level rents, sales prices, cap rates, AVM values, and neighborhood-level market data.
- Mortgage Market Analysis Reports and Research Subscriptions: Subscription and one-time sales revenue from analytical reports (Mortgage Market Analysis, Small Balance Origination Briefs, community bank lending analyses) and bespoke client research engagements.
- Data Licensing (Mercury / RCA Partnership): Data licensing revenue stream augmented by Real Capital Analytics (RCA) sales transaction data integrated into Mercury Reports and SmallBalance.com offerings.
- REIT Advisory and Quantitative Research Services: Subscription advisory service providing monthly quantitative REIT stock selection updates based on Boxwood's quantitative models; supports Long/Short REIT hedge fund mandates.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | FieldSmart Evaluation reports priced per report by approach/version (sales comparison, sales+income, income-only); rush order options at premium |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | FieldSmart Restricted Appraisal reports in four variants at different price points (RA LTE, RA Sales, RA SI, RA Income) |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | BOXWOOD X BAAR full USPAP-compliant appraisals at typically fixed-rate fees |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Asset Value Report (AVR) priced as a higher-quality BPO alternative |
| Subscription | Annual | SCPI and SMPI recurring subscriptions with monthly updates in PDF and Excel |
| Subscription | Monthly | Mercury PRO / Mercury PRO-PC / VALPRO / Mercury Reports via subscription or pay-per-view |
| Other | Pay-as-you-go | Retail self-serve orders for FieldSmart Evaluations and Restricted Appraisals under $5M paid by credit card |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels6 records
Marketing channels10 records
Boxwood Means product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Boxwood Means provides commercial real estate valuations, appraisals, and market analytics for the small-cap CRE market, selling a FieldSmart-branded platform of evaluation reports, restricted appraisals, full USPAP appraisals (via BOXWOOD X BAAR), asset value reports, appraisal reviews, and property/environmental inspections, alongside recurring SCPI/SMPI price indices and Mercury PRO AVM data products. Its products are used by 300+ commercial banks, credit unions, nonbank lenders, and private investors to underwrite, monitor, and mark to market small-balance commercial and multifamily loans and properties.
Product overview
Boxwood Means, LLC operates a unified commercial evaluation and analytics platform built around its FieldSmart product family, serving small-cap commercial real estate (CRE) lenders and investors. The platform combines collateral valuation services — FieldSmart Commercial Evaluation reports, FieldSmart Restricted Appraisals, BOXWOOD X BAAR full Appraisals, Asset Value Reports (AVRs), Appraisal Reviews, Property Inspections, and Environmental Inspections — with recurring price analytics (SCPI for commercial properties under $5M across 150+ MSAs and SMPI for small multifamily across 100 metros) and consulting services for AVM testing and assignments. Together these offerings help more than 300 commercial banks, credit unions, and nonbank lenders manage collateral risk, mark assets to market, and monitor small-cap CRE portfolios, supported by legacy Mercury Reports and Mercury PRO AVM products delivered through the SmallBalance.com portal.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- FieldSmart: Boxwood's proprietary series of commercial evaluation reports (including sales comparison, combined sales-income, and income-only FieldSmart Evaluations; FieldSmart Restricted Appraisals in RA LTE, RA Sales, RA SI, and RA Income variants; FieldSmart Collateral Advisor; and FieldSmart Ag Land Evaluation) for small-balance CRE lenders.
- Boxwood Small Commercial Price Index (SCPI)
- Boxwood Small Multifamily Price Index (SMPI)
- Boxwood Inspection Reports
- Asset Value Report (AVR)
- BOXWOOD X BAAR
- SmallBalance.com
Products and services
- FieldSmart Commercial Evaluation Patented FieldSmart series of commercial evaluations providing in-depth property and market intelligence for small-cap CRE loan origination, renewals, credit reviews, portfolio monitoring, and workouts. Offered in multiple approaches (sales comparison, combined sales+income, income-only) with rush order options and typical delivery in as little as 7 business days, produced by in-house senior analysts and appraisers.
- FieldSmart Restricted Appraisal USPAP- and FIRREA-compliant restricted appraisal reports signed by state-certified licensed appraisers, available in four versions (RA LTE sales comparison, RA Sales, RA SI combined sales/income, RA Income-only) tailored to asset type, market, and credit conditions, with coverage spanning 30 primary states.
- FieldSmart Ag Land Evaluation Ag land evaluation offering within the FieldSmart product family, addressing agricultural land valuation needs as a specialization of the broader FieldSmart evaluation platform.
- BOXWOOD X BAAR Appraisal Report Full USPAP-compliant commercial real estate appraisals delivered through the BOXWOOD X BAAR alliance with BAAR Realty Advisors, customized to client-specific reporting requirements with multiple report options and approaches to value at different price points, with service coverage in 30 of the most populous states.
- Asset Value Report (AVR) Commercial broker price opinion (BPO) alternative for small-cap CRE properties, performed by in-house veteran appraisers using the sales comparison approach, used for collateral and portfolio reviews, distressed loan purchases, and loan servicing.
- Appraisal Review Desktop Appraisal Review services conducted by state-certified and licensed appraisers, complying with relevant USPAP Standards. Standardized reports use checkbox lists to authenticate compliance with regulatory items and verify building/site characteristics, analytical methods, and valuation approaches, supplemented with commentary, with scope varying with property complexity, report quality, fee-appraiser communication protocols, and required turn time.
- Property Inspection Report Commercial Property Condition Assessments (PCAs) delivered via a deep pool of independent contractors who must complete comprehensive certification exams twice per year and submit to background checks. Reports cover neighborhood conditions, building sketch, occupancy status, exterior condition, building measurements, photos, lot/environmental observations, for-lease/for-sale signage, and deferred maintenance observations.
- Environmental Inspection Environmental inspection services complementing the property condition assessment offerings to address environmental risk as part of collateral valuation.
- Boxwood Small Commercial Price Index (SCPI) National and metro-level price index for small-cap commercial real estate tracking sales transactions priced at $5 million or less across more than 150 MSAs, built on multivariate hedonic models and updated monthly with a two-month lag, delivered in PDF and Excel; SCPI-100 covers 103 metros and SCPI-20 covers 20 metros that also comprise the S&P/Case-Shiller Index.
- Boxwood Small Multifamily Price Index (SMPI) Companion index to the SCPI covering small multifamily asset prices across 100 metro areas, used for marking assets to market, monitoring credit risk, and creating investment hierarchies of local markets by diverging performance.
- Mercury PRO / Mercury PRO-PC Industry's first automated valuation model (AVM) for small commercial properties, combining an AVM value for subject properties with neighborhood-level small-cap market information, street maps, and aerial building images; Mercury PRO-PC adds property condition assessment to support compliance with Interagency Appraisal and Evaluation Guidelines for regulated financial institutions.
- Mercury Reports Subscription-based reports providing metro-level rents, sales prices, and cap rates for various property types along with subject-related information and maps; available online through subscription or pay-per-view in 80+ metro areas via SmallBalance.com, with data sourced from LoopNet listings and licensed from Real Capital Analytics.
- AVM Testing (Consulting) Consulting engagement to test and validate automated valuation models, leveraging Boxwood's quantitative expertise in CRE valuation and price index methodologies.
- Assignments (Consulting) Custom consulting assignments extending Boxwood's analytical capabilities (portfolio analytics, geographical dispersion studies, AVM testing, etc.) to lender and investor clients on an engagement basis.
- SmallBalance.com Subscription Web Portal Subscription-based website providing instant access to Boxwood's data and analysis on small-cap CRE markets and Mercury Reports, hosting Mercury Reports, Mercury PRO, VALPRO, and other small-cap CRE data and analytics products.
Companies that use Boxwood Means
Customer profileNamed customers13 records
Segments7 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Boxwood Means technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration3 records
AI capability2 records
Feature10 records
Boxwood Means partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered flagship — extends boxwood into full uspap-compliant appraisal territory; coverage in 30 most populous states, core — supplier status in bank-focused online directory, important — extends reach into online private lending marketplace, important — extends appraisal, valuation, and title product reach, important — supports delivery of commercial evaluations to lenders via mountainseed platform, flagship — broadens scpi distribution to global finance professionals, core — enhances research leadership in small-cap cre, important — research partnership with leading mortgage originator resource, legacy — earlier joint venture for indexed value report (ivr), core — supplies rent and listing data underpinning mercury reports, important — recurring webcast series for industry thought leadership and legacy — early joint venture productizing boxwood's indexing model.
- BAAR Realty Advisors (BOXWOOD X BAAR Alliance)flagship — extends boxwood into full uspap-compliant appraisal territory; coverage in 30 most populous statesBOXWOOD X BAAR is a unique alliance that expands Boxwood's portfolio of valuation and risk assessment services to full USPAP-compliant commercial real estate Appraisals. The joint venture combines Boxwood's market knowledge and technology with BAAR's MAI Chief Appraiser Adam Hardej Jr. and team. Delivers a seamless client experience in appraisal ordering and fulfillment across primary and secondary property types.
- FinXTechcore — supplier status in bank-focused online directoryFinXTech selected Boxwood as a Supplier in its online directory for banks, recognizing Boxwood as a technology leader with its FieldSmart commercial evaluations.
- PeerStreet, Inc.important — extends reach into online private lending marketplaceBoxwood Means announced its status as a Preferred Vendor with PeerStreet. PeerStreet is an online private lending marketplace; the Preferred Vendor relationship enables Boxwood to deliver FieldSmart commercial evaluations to PeerStreet's lender network.
- Accurate Groupimportant — extends appraisal, valuation, and title product reachAccurate Group and Boxwood Means announced a joint partnership. The partnership gives clients of both companies expanded access to appraisal, valuation, and title products and expands Accurate Group's real estate valuation service offerings to include FIRREA-compliant commercial evaluations.
- MountainSeedimportant — supports delivery of commercial evaluations to lenders via mountainseed platformMountainSeed partnered with Boxwood Means on delivery of commercial evaluations to lenders, integrating Boxwood's FieldSmart evaluations into MountainSeed's lender offering.
- Bloomberg Finance L.P. (Bloomberg Professional)flagship — broadens scpi distribution to global finance professionalsBloomberg distributes Boxwood's SCPI measures (SCPI-100 covering 103 metros and SCPI-20 covering 20 metros) to Bloomberg Professional subscribers, enabling analysis of small CRE property prices against housing and other economic time series.
- Real Capital Analytics (RCA)core — enhances research leadership in small-cap creBoxwood completed a data licensing agreement with RCA. RCA data on CRE investment sales augments Boxwood's Mercury Reports on SmallBalance.com with monthly updates, increasing research leadership in the small-cap CRE arena.
- Scotsman Guideimportant — research partnership with leading mortgage originator resourceBoxwood partnered with Scotsman Guide on joint research surveys of the small-balance commercial mortgage market, resulting in published research reports (e.g., 2006 Small-Balance Mortgage Brokers Survey, 2006 Small-Balance Lenders Survey, Lender Research Report, Broker Research Report). Randy Fuchs also writes the monthly "Inside Small Balance" column for Scotsman Guide.
- First American Commercial Real Estate Serviceslegacy — earlier joint venture for indexed value report (ivr)Boxwood's joint venture with First American produced the Indexed Value Report (IVR), a collateral valuation tool for small business loans and small commercial mortgages. The IVR is based on an indexing model fully redeveloped by Boxwood that studies the relationship between publicly-recorded sales prices and assessed values.
- LoopNetcore — supplies rent and listing data underpinning mercury reportsStrategic alliance with LoopNet provides Boxwood with for-lease and for-sale listings that power Mercury rent statistics, trends, and sales information on SmallBalance.com.
- Coldwell Banker Commercialimportant — recurring webcast series for industry thought leadershipColdwell Banker Commercial sponsors recurring webcasts by Boxwood Principal Randy Fuchs (e.g., "Terra Firma," "Momentum Shift," "Two Thumbs Up," "Office Markets Break from the Pack") that position Boxwood as a thought leader and generate inbound lender interest.
- First American (Indexed Value Report / IVR)legacy — early joint venture productizing boxwood's indexing modelBoxwood's joint venture with First American produced the Indexed Value Report (IVR) used by more than a dozen commercial lenders for small-business loan and small-commercial mortgage valuation. The model studies current and historical relationships between recorded sales prices and assessed values.
Scale indicators14 records
Recent moves8 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Boxwood Means competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- CoStar Group: Largest CRE data, analytics, and marketplace platform. Comparable as a subscription-based provider of CRE intelligence and valuation-related data, though CoStar is heavily weighted toward office/multifamily and serves institutional investors broadly, whereas Boxwood focuses on the small-cap CRE lender niche.
Direct peers
- Trepp: Leading provider of CRE data, analytics, and indices (CMBS, CRE debt, servicer data) sold to lenders and capital markets participants. Comparable subscription-based CRE analytics and price index model for institutional debt-market clients; directly overlapping with Boxwood's index and lender research business.
- Real Capital Analytics (MSCI Real Assets): RCA (acquired by MSCI) is the leading source of CRE transaction data and capital flows intelligence. Directly comparable as a CRE sales transaction data and analytics provider; Boxwood actually licenses RCA data to enhance Mercury Reports, evidencing the close product overlap.
- Reis (Moody's Analytics CRE): Provider of CRE market analytics, rent/sales comps, and forecasts. Reis's co-founders include Randy Fuchs (Boxwood's co-founder/CEO), making the firms highly comparable in product philosophy (CRE market intelligence for lenders and investors); now part of Moody's Analytics.
- Green Street Advisors: Independent CRE research and advisory firm serving institutional investors and lenders. Comparable subscription-based CRE research and analytics model with similar client base of public REITs, lenders, and institutional investors; serves a higher-end market but offers overlapping index and analytics products.
- LRES Corporation: Appraisal management company providing commercial and residential valuations, asset management, and technology platforms to lenders. Directly comparable as a CRE-focused valuation services provider serving banks and nonbank lenders; one of Boxwood's named competitors in client services (Ryan Clearwater previously worked at LRES).
- Accurate Group: Provider of collateral valuations, title, and due diligence products for the mortgage industry. Directly comparable as a CRE evaluation and appraisal services platform for lenders; also a Boxwood channel partner (joint partnership announced 2018), evidencing closely overlapping offerings.
- MountainSeed: CRE data, analytics, and appraisal platform serving community banks, lenders, and investors. Directly comparable as a technology-enabled CRE evaluation delivery channel for small-balance lenders; active channel partner integrating Boxwood's FieldSmart evaluations.
Emerging players
- CompStak: Crowdsourced CRE lease and sale comps platform serving brokers, appraisers, and lenders. Comparable as a CRE data and valuation technology provider serving similar lender and appraiser user personas; emerging data-licensing competitor in the comps space that Boxwood's Mercury Reports also target.
- HouseCanary: Residential and commercial AVM and analytics provider serving lenders and investors. Comparable as a CRE/residential AVM business; an emerging PropTech competitor to Boxwood's Mercury PRO AVM franchise, although HouseCanary is more weighted toward residential.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Boxwood Means social profiles
Digital presenceBoxwood Means compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance3 records
Boxwood Means financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Boxwood Means leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles14 records
Boxwood Means subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
Boxwood Means funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Boxwood Means M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Boxwood Means
What does Boxwood Means do?
Boxwood Means provides commercial real estate valuations, appraisals, and market analytics for the small-cap CRE market, selling a FieldSmart-branded platform of evaluation reports, restricted appraisals, full USPAP appraisals (via BOXWOOD X BAAR), asset value reports, appraisal reviews, and property/environmental inspections, alongside recurring SCPI/SMPI price indices and Mercury PRO AVM data products. Its products are used by 300+ commercial banks, credit unions, nonbank lenders, and private investors to underwrite, monitor, and mark to market small-balance commercial and multifamily loans and properties.
Is Boxwood Means a public or private company?
Boxwood Means is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Boxwood Means founded?
Boxwood Means was founded in 2003. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Boxwood Means based?
Boxwood Means is headquartered in Stamford, United States, in the North America region.
How does Boxwood Means make money?
Eleven revenue lines are on record. SCPI / SMPI Price Index Subscriptions are the primary driver. The others are fieldSmart Evaluation Report Fees, fieldSmart Restricted Appraisal Fees, BOXWOOD X BAAR Full Appraisal Fees, asset Value Report (AVR / BPO Alternative) Fees, property Inspection and Environmental Inspection Fees, appraisal Review Service Fees, mercury PRO / VALPRO Data and AVM Subscriptions, mortgage Market Analysis Reports and Research Subscriptions, data Licensing (Mercury / RCA Partnership) and REIT Advisory and Quantitative Research Services.
Who are Boxwood Means's main competitors?
CoStar Group is listed as a broad incumbent. Direct peers are Trepp, Real Capital Analytics (MSCI Real Assets), Reis (Moody's Analytics CRE), Green Street Advisors, LRES Corporation, Accurate Group and MountainSeed. Emerging players are CompStak and HouseCanary.
Does Boxwood Means have an API?
No public API is recorded for Boxwood Means.