Right to buy valuation

Daniel_smith

Hello,

New to the forum Hope someone can help me
I recently applied to buy my 1 bedroom flat from the council under Right to Buy scheme and the valuation came through a few days ago. The valuation agent came to inspect my flat last month November 2015. And the offer was a lot higher then expected I had an idea of how much the property would be valued as it wasn't my first attempt to buy my flat. I have applied for the right to buy last year but I wasn't able to accept the first offer due to a mistake on my credit file which stopped me from getting a mortgage however the first valuation I was given was 180k about 13 months ago now I've received a new offer whith a valuation of 250k for the exact same flat I don't understand how the value has gone up by 70k in such a short time. I then checked online for how much 1 bedroom flats in my purpose built blocks got sold in the past 3 years and all of them got sold under 200k they are the exact same flats. The size, dimensions etc flats are the exact same. I'm now intending to appeal to the District Valuer to re-value my flat.

Has anyone In London been through the RTB Appeal process? I'm really grateful if you can shed some light on how it went and what the process is i.e. are we allowed to submit our evidence (i.e. the valuations of the other council flats)

Any help would be much appreciated

Thanks

teddysmum

If the value of the flat concerns you, then bear in mind that you could have huge future costs, should the council wish to refurbish the block as they can demand that you pay your share.

Pixie5740

How does the council's valuation compare with sold prices for similar properties in the area?

Paully232000

Pixie5740 wrote: »

How does the council's valuation compare with sold prices for similar properties in the area?

they have said that no other comparable flat sold for more than 200K in the last 3 years, but doesn't say when last one sold.

Oswald_Funkletrumpet

I bought a council flat under the RTB four years ago. They valued it at 70k which was way out so I asked for an independent valuation which done by the district valuation office. They valued it at 60k. Ask the right to buy team at the council to arrange the district valuer for you and you will know that that price is the right price. It is worth noting that the council based their value on other local properties they had sold under right to buy, conveniently ignoring the fact that they were two and three bedroomed houses. Don't worry about gaining evidence for the value as he will have access to land registry records. The whole process was painless.

Bear in mind that LA's are potentially going to lose x amount of rent per month and won't see a lot of the sale proceeds so they are inclined to over value as someone might just accept the their valuation and stay put.

For 5 years I am tied in for an equal split of improvements should any be required such as windows, doors, damp proofing, roof etc. They advised me that they were going to undertake loads of work and my share of it would be x. Four years on and they have done nothing, best thing to do is have a look in your local area and see what work is going on council properties, not a lot I would imagine as they have no money so unless it is urgent they won't be doing it anytime soon.

Daniel_smith

Thank you for your information Oswald. I've decided to get my flat valued again by the district valuer.

CalumHeath

I was all set to respond and advise about the District Valuer but notice you answered advising you were already proceeding in that direction.

Bear in mind they might valuer it even higher than the council did.

Here's some info on it:

https://www.gov.uk/right-to-buy-buying-your-council-home/your-landlords-offer

Oswald_Funkletrumpet

Daniel_smith wrote: »

Thank you for your information Oswald. I've decided to get my flat valued again by the district valuer.

Good stuff, hope it goes well!

Daniel_smith

Hi Calum thx for your advice.
I'm well aware about the chances for the district valuer to increase, which makes me quite nervous going down this road. I have gained new information yesterday apparently a 1 bedroom flat in my block was sold last year for 250k it's listed on zoopla but not on mouseprice which I used to check recent sells in my purpose built block the flat is the only flat which has sold for over 200k within the last 3 years 6 1 bedroom flats have sold for under 200k in 2012. Can one sale affect the value of my property by this much? I'm rethinking now if i really should go to the district valuer as the property which has been sold for 250k is now valued by zoopla for 275k.

KRB2725

London prices have changed a lot since 2012. The most recent sale will be the most accurate indicator of value.

Is the flat the same? If you look at sold house prices on Rightmove you can sometimes see the original sales details which will give you an idea of whether there was anything special about it that would make it worth more.

Tamii

They should go for an average price of similar properties to yours. You can do it yourself to have an idea. Find prices for 6-7 similar flats, add them up, then divide them by the number of flats, it will give you the mean value.
I've also had my flat valuated and not happy with the price. I can't risk to appeal though.