The market value side of the equation was no less contentious. Mount Vernon retained Lauer, Jersa & Associates, which valued the building at $900,000. Chippewa Loft submitted a report from Greater St. Louis Appraisal pegging the entire property at $2,925,000 – but with a valuation date of April 2022, roughly six months after the fire. The policy required market value at the time of loss. Chippewa Loft also pointed to a listing brochure and a pre-loss sales contract, both at $2.955 million. The court found that neither complied with the endorsement because both included land value and reflected the value of the undamaged building, not the damaged structure exclusive of land.
