Should I Get Multiple House Valuations?

You might decide to organise a home valuation for a wide variety of purposes…

Not only can sellers and buyers arrange these checks to determine a satisfactory asking price for a property, but homeowners can make the most of the readily available valuations online for free, simply to satisfy their curiosity or to arrange the remortgaging of their home.

Whatever your reason to seek a house valuation, it’s important to understand how the process is undertaken. It’s also good to know how to get as accurate a valuation as possible, to make sure you’re selling – or buying – at the right price.

But how many house valuations should you get? In this article, the team at Property Solvers – specialist providers of quick homebuying services – will help you to decide.

How Do House Valuations Work?

It is usually very straightforward to get a property valued. You can use an estate agent or an independent surveyor to determine what a property is worth.  They should also be able to assist you with getting a mortgage valuation estimate.

However, it’s important to note that the results of a valuation can be influenced by a number of factors.

So, what do house valuations look for?

Chiefly, the value of your home will be based on its current condition / state of repair and size (including the garden). A valuer will also consider whether its décor requires modernising.

He/she will also use HM Land Registry data (rather than any form of speculative estimation) and preferably be familiar with Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) valuation standards.

Matters such as the number of bedrooms, bathrooms and reception rooms will also be taken into account.

Beyond this, a valuation will explore recent sale prices of other similar local homes. They’ll also look into the amount for with the property in question most recently sold. They’ll take the general UK housing market into account too.

The specialists you choose to undertake your property valuation will base their decision on various sets of data as well as their own professional expertise and observation.

To that end, it is possible for two different professionals to come to differing conclusions regarding the value of your property.  If you find that your property is likely to fetch less than you originally expected, it’s always worth doing your own research.  Estate agents, in particular, can often be wrong.

Free House Valuations from Estate Agents

You can get free house valuations either online or in person from a range of different estate agents. Specialists of this kind don’t tend to charge, as they see a valuation as an opportunity to pitch their services to a potential client.

However, to that end, the results of an estate agency’s surveys may feature a certain amount of bias. After all, if you’re a seller, they’ll want to show you that your property is worth an attractive amount so that you’ll choose them to sell it. What’s more, estate agents are usually paid via a commission based on a property’s sale price.

The more you sell your home for, the more commission they receive. This is why they may consider it worth pushing your home’s valuation as high as possible.

Most estate agents try to be as honest and realistic as possible, but an element of underhandedness is always possible. To this end, it’s usually a good idea to seek at least one additional opinion.

Independent Valuations

Valuations performed by unattached RICS qualified surveyors are usually a little more trustworthy. This is because these specialists have no vested interest in your sale, and therefore no reason to “tweak” their findings.

However, a survey of this kind does come with a cost – usually between £160 and £600 depending on the size and complexity of your property.

How Long do House Valuations Take?

While a detailed survey can take up to two hours, a basic valuation may last as few as 15 minutes. This all depends on the size and layout of your property.

How Many Valuations Should I Get On My House?

So: how many house valuations should you get?

Ideally, it’s best to arrange at least three. This should serve to counteract any biases involved in each survey and help you to find an average value that you can trust.

Remember: if you list your property with too high an asking price, it is likely to command very little interest. This means that is will sit on the market for a longer time than intended, incurring a range of costs. If you price your property too low, potential buyers may wonder what is wrong with it. As a result, they could be discouraged from making an offer.

Seeking a second – and third – opinion will help you to avoid these issues and sell your home quickly and efficiently.

If you are hoping to sell your property fast, and for the best possible price, get in touch with Property Solvers today. We can provide you with a no obligation cash offer up front, worth up to 75% of your home’s market value. There will be no estate agency or solicitor’s fees to pay, and you’ll receive 24/7 support and advice.

We look forward to assisting you with all of your home buying and selling requirements.