GETTING A
PROPERTY
VALUATION

Before you can sell your home or buy a bigger share, you need to appoint a RICS surveyor to value your home.

Before you start

Before you contact a surveyor, check your lease length. If your lease has fewer than 85 years left, it may be helpful to ask the surveyor for a lease extension premium at the same time.

Your valuation is only valid for a limited time, so don’t book it until you are ready to proceed.

Lease length advice

How to get a valuation report

  • Choose an independent RICS surveyor to write a valuation report
  • The surveyor will visit your home and write a detailed report giving the current full valuation of the property.
  • At your valuation, make sure you tell the surveyor about any structural home improvements you’ve made. Where relevant, they will deduct the value of these from their written valuation. Cosmetic improvements are not taken into account.
  • The value of your home is based on the report and cannot be negotiated
  • You pay your surveyor directly, and they send the report to you. If you use one of our recommended independent surveyors, they will also send the report to us, so we can approve it as quickly as possible.

Recommended RICS surveyors

RICS website

How long is your valuation valid for?

If you’re selling your home and a buyer is found within 3 months of the valuation date, the valuation will then be valid for a further 3 months from the date of the offer. If it then expires before your sale completes, you can extend it for another 3 months without a second visit from the surveyor, although there will be a small charge.

If you’re buying a bigger share and do not complete within 3 months of the valuation date, your valuation will expire. Then you need to ask your surveyor for a desktop valuation. This will be valid for another 3 months.

Not using one of our recommended surveyors?

If you choose an independent RICS surveyor not on our list, you will need to contact them directly and send their report to us when it is finished. Please ask them to include a full valuation report and a sales description, including measurements.  Follow these guidelines when instructing your valuation:

  • The surveyor must be RICS accredited
  • The surveyor must be independent of an estate agent
  • If your property is a flat, the valuation report should be based on the open market value of the current leasehold interest of your property and should include the current unexpired lease term
  • If your property is a house, the valuation report should be based on the open market value of the freehold interest and include the unexpired lease term
  • The surveyor should provide at least three comparable properties and sale prices from within the last six months including the square footage of each comparable property
  • The surveyor must not be related or known to you
  • The surveyor must inspect the interior of the property and provide a full valuation report
  • Valuations carried out for bank or mortgage purposes only are not accepted
  • SO Resi will require a copy of the valuation report. The date and duration of validity must be noted on the report

Please send us your valuation report. We will let you know once it has been approved and you are ready to move to the next step.

See also

Step by step guide to buying 5% or more
Step by step guide to selling your home
Recommended RICS surveyors
Recommended solicitors
Recommended financial advisors