House Valuation

bigfreddiel

Agents will value your house for you, and I guess that will depend on a number of factors, neighbouring property values, the agent's client list, property location and so on.

On the otherhand a property developer has told me the current trend is to pay a professional property surveyor for a valuation - which they can show is correct and can be proven - quite how I'm not sure.

What's the opinions of people on this forum?

Cheers

fj

googler

Guess it all depends on why you think you would need to prove it, and who you would want to prove it to.....

Give us a bit more context; why are you asking?

Doozergirl

What's he on about?

You can't prove a price. Price is dependent on so many uncontrollable factors.

As property developers, we have to have proper paid for valuations of our properties for the bank. Those valuations are gospel for the bank, but not for anyone else! We've had valuations at more than we've paid, less than we've sold for and everywhere in between. They've often been perfectly in line with EA valuations. Some EA valuers are RICS surveyors!

I can't think that we've ever really sold a property for bang on a paid for valuation. That is not the nature of the market.

What "trend" and to what end?

bigfreddiel

Okay, a bit of background - two local agents - valuations £100k apart.

Property developer friend says we should get a surveyor to value it beause

a) he doesn't have a vested interest in selling property

b) he must be abe to stand by his value for example in court

Doozergirl

Ok, if you need it for a divorce or a deceased estate then yes, you might need a paid for valuation which a surveyor will stand by and is, to a degree, insurance backed.

But the surveyor is no more likely to get the eventual selling price as an EA though. They have no influence on that.

There is no trend for paying for valuations amongst people are simply looking to move up/down the property ladder because there is no gain to doing so. The price is always decided between buyer and seller.

bigfreddiel

Doozergir,

What you said is exactly what I thought - I've always thought vauations are just for banks etc to base the mortgage offer on - so they know they can get their money back if they need to reposess the property.

Not a problem for cash buyers - at the end of the day a property is only worth whatever soeonewants to pay for it!


cheers

fj

googler

bigfreddiel wrote: »

Okay, a bit of background - two local agents - valuations £100k apart.

Property developer friend says we should get a surveyor to value it beause

a) he doesn't have a vested interest in selling property

b) he must be abe to stand by his value for example in court

£100k apart at what price level, for goodness' sake?

Do you need the valuation because you're selling, and you want to determine an asking price?

henrik1971

If you had say half a dozen qualified, experienced surveyors in that property type in that location all provide a valuation, there would be a spread, but that spread should (in theory) be small if the property is relatively 'normal' (e.g. nothing weird or problematic). Then you have to value the valuer. Which of them is the most qualified/experienced and has carried out the most detailed analysis and research. If you go through all that process, you will get as close as possible to a reliable, accurate valuation.

As the previous poster has said though, buyers will probably pay more money or less money than this, and sellers will sell for more money or less money. This doesn't mean the valuation was inaccurate, it just means that the people actually involved in the deals either (a) have a specific reason for paying more or accepting less, or;(b) either the buyer or the seller, or both are not acting prudently and/or do not have thorough knowledge of the market.

This was all a long way of saying that professional valuations have a place and a purpose, but in the main, only for things like lending or accounts or compensation purposes. The real transactional market that we all have to deal in is a very different animal.

bigfreddiel

googler wrote: »

£100k apart at what price level, for goodness' sake?

Do you need the valuation because you're selling, and you want to determine an asking price?

Agents quoted £525k and £626k - £100k spread

Need valuation to determine asking price.

Bit more background - my property is coastal - right on a popular surfing beach in N Cornwall - detached - large garden - fantastic sea views - nothing comparable in the village - thus the problem in valueing

fj

googler

...and the reason you can't split the difference and set the asking price halfway between the two is....?

Are there any other agents you can ask for a third or fourth opinion, then take the average of all 4?

How much did you pay, when did you pay it, and how much do you want/need to sell for?

ex_surveyor

An experienced local agent (who could also be an RICS surveyor) will often be able to give a more realistic valuation than an RICS valuation surveyor not completely familiar with the area. In-depth knowledge of the local market and experience in selling that particular type of property should always count towards the chances of a more realistic assessment.
For a really individual property, with particular positive features like yours, even the experienced valuer/agent will be pushed to come up with more than an educated professional estimate. As ever, what the market will pay depends on who's looking at the time you go on the market. The good agent should advise you of the value range he feels the proeprty would achieve (also depending on the negotiating stregths of buyer and seller). If, because of its features/location, it is likely to appeal to a number of potential purchasers, the agent might recommend marketing it at a 'guide price' in the middle of his estimated range or slightly above, with a view to attracting two or more potential purchasers who will bid against each other. This is where the good agent will really work for you.