House valuation

[Shery7788]

What should i expect from the valuation of a house by the lender's surveyor ?
Do they normally undervaluate the property?
Are they trusted in their reports and reflect the truth about the real value of the house ?

Have bought 3 houses in 4 years.

Twice they have valued it at what we were buying it at (they'll never value it above!)

And the last time theh valued it at lower than we had offered so we amended our offer accordingly. The house needed full renovation and our offer wasnt a million miles from their valuation but still, we weren't going to pay over the odds for it

Presumably when you made your offer you looked at recent comparable sold prices?
If you did and offered accordingly the survey value should be the same as your offer.
If you have over paid they will probably down value it to what recent sold prices suggest it to be worth.
I think they are also more strict if it is a high ltv ie 85% or higher as their valuation is all about the bank getting their money back
For example if house prices fell 10% and they let you overpay by 10% the bank would not get their money back if they had to reposess and sell quickly, where as if it was only a 50% ltv and you overpaid by 10% then the bank would still easily recover their money so the surveyor would probably be a bit more lenient

Thanks so much , but what if the vendor has done many renovations which I think should add to the value of the house by £15000 and the other houses in the same location are sold for a lot less because they are not renovated as him .
Does the Surveyor consider these renovations in the price ?

Surveyor considers state of kitchens, bathrooms, windows, fireplaces etc. We once had replacement of a patio door as part of our mortgage offer.
Only once had a surveyor value beneath offer, but that was a semi commercial property in the free fall between March and July 2008.
I have had a property valued more than my offer, just kept that to myself and bank were very happy. I was just the right person in the right place at the right time.
All the other valuations have been within in 5K of the offer.

And what about the state of garden ? Fences replaced ...etc ? Do surveyors consider their state ?

And what about the state of garden ? Fences replaced ...etc ? Do surveyors consider their state

Not really something that's likely to affect the value.

Does the surveyor of the bank or the lender is more realistic reflecting what actually the house worth ? Or should I instruct another independant company ?

The primary focus of the surveyor employed by the lender to carry out a valuation is to assess whether the property in question represents adequate security for the loan that is to be taken out.

If you are buying a property and what the comfort that the price you are paying is about right it may well be worth considering employing your own surveyor.

Are you worried you have paid too much op? Are you looking to find a way to reduce your offer? The bank surveyor will value it at the market price.
You can have a private valuation added to your structural survey if you are having one done.

Yes i am looking for a logical way to reduce the offer as when i searched thoroughly after making the offer , i found that i may pay about 10 to 15 thousands more .
I am a first time buyer andit seems that i did not make my homework really that good .

I just wonder that if the surveyor will always make the right valuation on a property , why do estate agencies and vendors raise the asked price and buyers negotiate and negotiate .
What is the benefit of this story if it will end anyway by the surveyor's report !!?

Property valuation is very much art and not science.

It really is impossible to value with 100% accuracy, +/- 10% is about as good as you can hope for.

Your answer was really helpful , thank you
I got it .

Is it a dream house? If not you always have the option of walking away. Has the banks surveyor valued it? What ltv is your mortgage?

Yes It is the first house , but the one i really like .
The deposit is only 5 %.
The surveyor has not valued it yet.

We had a surveyor claim a house we were selling was £10k overvalued on the basis of, among other equally petty things, 'poor decoration' (it was magnolia all through and the house was 2 years old) and some material to stop rain above a window was half a brick too far to the left.! can't remember what else he included in the 'survey' but I think it cost us £2000 to get all the bits done and most of that was the material as it the roofer had to take off some tiles.

So a 95% mortgage the surveyor will definitely value on the side of caution as if the market drops at all the bank wont get their money back.
What makes you think you have offered too much?

It seems pretty strange that the surveyor commented on the decoration !
But was it an obligation to fix what was in the report before selling the house or you was having the option of deducting those fixes from your asked price ?

When i searched the market and the near by sold prices on Rightmove .
I felt it was not a proper offer !

I’ve had two vacations on a house less that six months apart (was remortgaging) and there was a 10% difference. It’s subjective.
No one is obliged to fix anything. If it’s general redecoration and the odd slipped tile or wonky door that’s life. If there’s damp or rewiring needed then you renegotiate.
You should be getting your own homebuyers or structural survey. This will go into some detail about the condition of the house, and as you are new to it will help if you do need to negotiate down.
Many times if the report highlights it needs say damp work for £3000 it’s normal to split the cost (they reduce the price by £1500).
The agents do have a acceptable level in mind but the vendor can put whatever price they want. The agent knows that the valuation will come it at a certain level. When the agent values it they go take the general finish and state of repair. Plus remember they work for the seller not you.

Vacations? Valuations!

The lender's surveyor is thinking about the lender's risk. If they value it lower, then you will have to make up the difference if you really want the property. The bank wants to lend you money - so if they deem it too risky to lend at that price then I would listen to them.

I've moved quite a few times and the only time that the surveyor's value came up less than my offer, I paid the difference because I really wanted the property. It was a mistake and I regret it. But you live and learn.

If it's an older property then definitely get a structural survey.

Would you tell me please from your experience if there was a damp problem or subsidence or roof problem or rewiring or problems related to the boiler .
How much should i negotiate and deduct from the asking price as i have no idea ?

Depends on how severe the problem was, and whether the property was originally priced to reflect the condition.

Damp is often easy to sort out.
Roof - a couple of slipped tiles or a whole new roof?
Subsidence - I'd probably just walk away.
Surveys generally don't comment in any meaningful detail on electrics or heating systems,