Estate agents frequently offer free valuations because they understand this is an excellent opportunity to show you the property, promote their services, and gain your business. Customer interaction time is crucial to the estate agent’s business strategy around the question: How much is my house worth.
Who Makes Valuation Fees?
But there are a few circumstances in which you can be required to pay for an evaluation. For instance, the price of a valuation performed by an RICS surveyor could range from £150 to £800, depending on your location and the size and value of the property. If you have a Help to Buy: Equity Loan, you might require one.
Additionally, banks charge for valuations associated with mortgages. It could cost several thousand dollars, again depending on the size and value of the property, or it could be free (albeit recovered by increased arrangement fees or interest). While some banks have a flat rate, others have variable rates.
What Does The Estate Agent Pay For Valuations?
Research is typically required for valuations. The estate agent must research the neighbourhood real estate market and discover how quickly homes in that neighbourhood are selling. The majority track this with software and provide a first appraisal that is pretty accurate. Nevertheless, this is a monthly fee rather than a fee for each use.
The agent needs 20 to 60 minutes for most properties, depending on how complicated it is and whether the neighbourhood has a strong sales history.
To accurately analyse the property, they must then travel there. Although software can be an excellent place to start, it is only possible to assess a property by viewing it because its value depends on its condition and liveability.
A property’s worth decreases, for instance, if it was demolished before renovation and is no longer inhabitable. However, its worth will typically rise if it is finished to an exceptionally high degree and has a suitable extension.
Because of this, you have mileage. Estate agents typically pay between 30 and 45 pence per mile or use a business car and pay for gas. You also have the time it takes to travel to a property. This can pile up in dense urban and remote, highly rural locations. Even a 20-minute commute to work can take up to an hour if you factor in time for getting in the car, finding parking, and returning.
The time needed to evaluate the property, market the estate agent’s services and perform the other duties expected of a valuer is also a factor. Usually, this takes between 30 and 60 minutes.
Therefore, it may take the estate agent two to three hours to complete just one valuation. Even more is added by software costs, office time, coffee, and other minor elements like lighting, computer time, and additional expenses related to hiring the valuer. As a result, you might be looking at £80 to £150 in charges to the estate agent for 3 hours of work.
Types Of Home Appraisals And Costs
We’ll now examine the costs associated with the following valuation kinds in more depth. There are four basic categories of value that you will encounter:
Online Assessments
There are many online housing cost calculators available online. These tools estimate the cost of a home using mathematical formulas.
More accurate tools exist than others. For instance, the house price calculator on Zoopla does not consider recent property improvements. But to provide you with a reasonable price, our Valuation Tool uses the most recent data about your house. It is presently free for you to use.
Estate Agent Assessment
When you request an estate agent appraisal, the agent will come to your home and provide you with a free estimate of its potential value. The asking price for your property will then be established using the results of this valuation. Estate agents will consider several aspects when determining the value of your home.
An Independent Appraisal Of The Home
An impartial third party, unaffiliated with either the buyer or the seller, visits the property to assess its value. This will cost more than £300 and be performed by an independent or chartered surveyor.
RICS
The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) is capable of valuing real estate and offering surveys that support the precise valuation. RICS surveys and valuations are frequently employed during purchasing rather than right before a home is listed for sale. However, this is only sometimes the case. For instance, you could need RICS surveys before marketing the house if you’re purchasing or selling a property through the government’s Help to Buy programme for shared equity.
Summary
This article is well articulated to understand estate agents’ charges for property valuation.