NatWest huge downvaluation

beach39

Hi, house we are buying has been down valued  by a huge 25%.

I believe this is much too low and have paid for a private survey with valuation and I get a second opinion which I should have tomorrow.

Are NatWest being ridiculously cautious at the moment? Anyone else had the same issue and then been successful with another lender?

I know I could appeal but I’ve heard these are rarely successful!

K_S

@beach39 If the client still wants to buy the property in-spite of a down-val, the vendor is unwilling to negotiate (not uncommon at all) and the client doesn't have the cash to proceed with the same lender (common for high LTV applications), my approach in these cases is usually to try with another lender that uses a different surveyor panel.

If that comes back similarly down-valued as well, then perhaps it's worth moving on if the vendor still refuses to budge.

FWIW, I've have about 4-5 down-vals fitting the above pattern this year and except for one, all of them were 'rescued' by another lender that valued it at the purchase price, a couple of weeks on from the initial down-val. Just to be clear, it doesn't mean that will apply to your particular case, but something to help you make an informed decision.

Appeals may work if the valuer has made a clear error or there are recent sold comparables that the Estate Agent can show.

Good luck, hope it works out in the end!

ACG

It appears to be a bit of an odd time at the moment.
I have seen a couple of down valuations this year, although in all honesty I think both were to be expected. 

The problem with appealing is that you are asking the surveyor to admit they were wrong. The information they have open to them now is very in depth and I dont think you will get a valuation overturned. 

Your only option is to try a different lender and hope you do not get the same surveyor. 

simon_or

An appeal is a waste of time. Get your broker to try a different bank. I think all banks offer free valuations and make sure you add any product fee to the loan instead of paying upfront. So then it's risk free to try.

In your place I would not waste any money on an independent valuation, the bank will not use it anyway and if you don't proceex with this house, you lose that money