Why should I get a valuation?
How many home owners really know what their property is worth?
Although many would venture a guess based on asking prices in the surrounding area, this is generally an ineffective way of determining a price for your house, especially if you are seriously thinking about selling.
A professional property valuation will often reveal that many people overestimate the worth of their house based on emotional connection to the property.
On the other hand, some people far underestimate the market value of their home.
When getting a property valuation it is important to make use of the services of a reputable real estate agent, or a certified valuator. A valuator simply 'spitballing' a price can lead to the problems mentioned above, and one should be wary of such practices.
Aside from the obvious reason of coming up with a listing price for selling your home, there are numerous other reasons to get a professional property valuation. Here are the most common reasons for getting a property valuation:
Selling your home
Determining a listing price when selling your home is one of the most common reasons to get a professional property valuation. Making your asking price too high will result in your property being on the market for ages without success. Setting your asking price too low will result in you losing money. Therefore it is important to set a market related price which suits both the buyer and the seller.
Buying your home
Lending institutions require that a professional property valuation be done in order to determine that the property is worth the amount being loaned. In this case, the bank will generally be the one to send out the valuator.
Cash or business loans
If you plan on taking a loan and using your property as the primary source of collateral, the lending institution will require a current property valuation by a professional appraiser.
Refinancing your home
Once again, lending institutions will ask for an appraisal on your property to ensure that the amount being financed is covered by the value of the property being put up as collateral.
These are just a few reasons why you might need to have a professional property valuation done.