Valuations for Shared Ownership staircasing

[Kingston32]

I am at the start of the process to staircase the remaining % of my SO home.

Housing Association say I need to give them a shortlist of 3 RICS valuers, and they will pick one.

Stupid question time: Is this a proper 'thing' that costs money; or does a local estate agent quote do the job (assuming they are available in RICS certified varieties)?

The reason I ask is that one online 'instant quote' said £400, but the HA paperwork made dire references to them appointing the District Valuer which could cost "£300+" in the event I didn't supply a shortlist.

Its a 'proper' valuation which will cost ££ but irritatingly takes the same time it takes an estate agent for free....

RICS have a search facility that allows you to search for qualified surveyors in your area. He's the link:

www.ricsfirms.com/

Prices will be much of a muchness but I'd email 5-6 and ask then how much they charge, what their availability is and (this is important) what the period of validity is for their valuation. You might also consider asking what the fee will be too refresh the valuation of the same takes a bit longer than the period of validity as if they've seen the property already they should be able to do it more cheaply.

Thanks!

It seems that the online quote I got was actually way more than a couple of others that got back to me via email, so now the original comment about the DV makes sense (i.e. the other quotes are much lower). Good tip regarding the validity as well, thanks.

I have now got my shortlist to send off, so wish me luck!

You're welcome! Hope it all goes smoothly.