Mortgage Valuation Survey

the.ciscokid

Hi all,

I am looking at a semi-detached house which is on the market for £50K more than the other half of it sold for in the last few months. As far as I can tell, there is very little difference (it has been a rental and needs updating, so the inside is unlikely to make up for the difference), same footprint, but the garden is a little bigger.

If we make an offer (as FTBs) we obviously will use this information to justify a low offer, but my question is, what does the mortgage company do to with regards to a valuation report? If in theory we offered the asking price, would the mortgage valuation use the land registry sold price, and take that as current market value, and thus not lend above that (minus our deposit)?

TIA.

sonastin

Mortgage valuations draw on a number of sources, including recent sold prices. The price of the other half of the semi will definitely be taken into account when they decide how much to lend.

Are there any other properties in the area that have sold recently? There may have been an issue with that particular house (reposession, probate sale, "keeping it in the family", etc) which mean that it sold for a particularly low price. If a) you offered asking price, b) the lender valued the property at £50k less and only lend a % of that value which is too low for your needs and c) there is a reason why the other one was cheap, you can always try to challenge the lenders valuation, using the evidence of other properties.

Better still, get the vendor to see reason that his property isn't worth as much as he thinks it is...

the.ciscokid

sonastin wrote: »

Mortgage valuations draw on a number of sources, including recent sold prices. The price of the other half of the semi will definitely be taken into account when they decide how much to lend.

Are there any other properties in the area that have sold recently? There may have been an issue with that particular house (reposession, probate sale, "keeping it in the family", etc) which mean that it sold for a particularly low price. If a) you offered asking price, b) the lender valued the property at £50k less and only lend a % of that value which is too low for your needs and c) there is a reason why the other one was cheap, you can always try to challenge the lenders valuation, using the evidence of other properties.

Better still, get the vendor to see reason that his property isn't worth as much as he thinks it is...

Hi, thanks for your answer!

The only similar house is the other half of the semi as it is a pretty rural location, and there are very few houses in the road.

I hadn't thought of the keeping it in the family point to be honest, but the vendor of the one I am interested in actually sold the other half as well, according to the estate agent. It seems they are selling off a load of places in the area "part of a larger estate" were the agents words. I have checked google street view for clues, but it seem the gardens of next door and so on look good - there is nothing obvious to suggest it was a wreck.

The bigger garden is really the only thing I can see, it seems to be around a 1/3 bigger, with a total plot size of around 0.25 acre according to the details.... that can't be worth 50K can it?