Article 3:  Get a Valuation by an Accredited Property Valuer?

When the Taxation Department, Family Court, Government, Banks or any other body dealing with money and assets require precise knowledge as to the value of real estate, they engage an accredited property valuer – sometimes called a Certified Practising Valuer, a Sworn Valuer or Licensed Valuer (or simply called property valuer in this article) - someone who is able to stand up in a Court of Law and swear on oath as to the value of the piece of real estate in question.   

Educated, trained and experienced 

All property valuers have to undergo years of on-the-job training and experience in the field, on top of rigorous degree-level education before they are eligible to sit in front of three of their peers (in an oral examination) and could be asked virtually any property valuation related question. Only if successful can they then qualify to be a Certified Practising Valuer who is accredited with the Australian Property Institute (API), Australia’s premier property professional organisation. Following accreditation property valuers continue to update their knowledge with regular professional development courses within the API. 

A valuation is NOT the same as a free appraisal

Do not confuse valuations carried out by property valuers with free appraisals by real estate agents. Real estate agent provide free appraisals with the hope that they may secure your property i.e. to list your property for sale. Real estate agents are constantly looking for new properties to sell as they can not stay in business without new properties to sell. A real estate agent is dependent on the sale of the property taking place to earn a commission, hence an agent's appraisal is never independent. On the other hand, a property valuer has no pecuniary interest in the sale and earns a relatively small fee for a totally independent valuation.  

When are valuations needed?

A valuation by a property valuer could be required in numerous situations and for various purposes. These could include: pre-purchase or pre-sale; resolving a partnership / marriage dispute; tax purposes (stamp duty or capital gains tax); will settlement / probate; Centrelink asset test; transferring property to a loved one, to your self-managed superannuation fund and/or to a family trust. 

A property valuer could also provide answers to such questions as: What will be the market value of a residence after renovations? What is a fair market rent to pay for a particular commercial building? What is the maximum price a builder / developer should pay for a development site in order for a proposed building project to be financially feasible?     

Leave it to the specialist or expert

When your car needs servicing or to be repaired how often do you do it yourself? When you have a burst pipe do you attempt to fix it yourself? Sure, there are those who are “Jack of all trades” who are willing and perhaps have the time (and some degree of skill) to get their hands dirty to do these things. These “masters of none” would also confidently say that they do not need the services of a property valuer and can find out about property values on their own...on the internet and from other sources. But why not leave these to the specialists and experts who earn their living from what they do best day in day out.

A valuation by a property valuer requires a combination of knowledge, experience, subscription-based information sources and the right tools, borne from years of tertiary and continuing education, and training in the industry. Would you trust your expensive vehicle to a person with a toolkit and some lubricants who has worked on a car or two every month? Or would you rather go to a professional and accredited licensed motor mechanic who services and repairs vehicles everyday of the week?   

Working behind the scenes

A property valuer has a role at the heart of property as an important part of the Australian economy. He/she is usually working quietly behind the scenes in an objective and independent manner to help reduce risk and provide greater certainty for his/her clients. From buying a house to building a shopping centre a property valuer can add value. When an individual is buying a house, the bank or other lending institution will engage a property valuer to value the property before making a decision on whether to approve the loan. At a commercial level, when a developer is planning to build, say, a shopping centre or subdivide land, a property valuer will be on board to make sure, for instance, the site is suitable and the developer is maximising their investment potential. 

More than just valuations

Property valuers do far more than offer property valuations; they can also act as your adviser in developing your business assets, no matter whether you’re part of a large corporation, a fund manager, a private individual, or anything in between. These property valuers are expertly equipped to give you up-to-date and impartial professional advice in a wide variety of areas. If it’s anything to do with property, the chances are that a property valuer will be able to help provide you the best information for your decision making.