The real cost often far exceeds the monetary losses. The real cost of an incident often comes in the aftermath, when the church body learns they have been betrayed. Loss of trust often outweighs the dollars lost to an embezzler. In the worst of cases church members leave in droves and some churches don’t survive. [...]

I have been asked on more than one occasion recently about the difference in a “Calculation of Value” and a "Conclusion of Value" when it comes to business valuations. Usually the inquiry is more about which one is cheaper rather than which one will provide the level of service needed.

Faced with this question, I try to steer the discussion toward establishing the purpose of the assignment and then explaining the various levels of service that would be appropriate. [...]

In case you were on vacation in August and missed it---- The IRS has released to the public a 107 page document entitled, “Discount for Lack of Marketability Job Aid for IRS Valuation Professionals.” This document summarizes and evaluates most of the methods that are currently in use for determining DLOM. It is primarily intended for internal use by IRS staff involved in review of valuations submitted by business valuators: www.irs.gov/pub/irs-utl/dlom.pdf [...]