Topic · Practical guides

Practical guides for property owners

The unglamorous half of valuation: which document you actually need, and what to have ready before someone walks through your front door.

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In short

Two practical questions cover most of what owners need. First, which product you need: a valuation from a registered valuer is legally recognised and accepted by banks, courts and the ATO; an agent's appraisal and an online estimate are not. Second, how to prepare: presentation has limited effect, but documentation has a large one — council approvals, plans, renovation invoices, leases and full access to every room, shed and secondary dwelling.

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Three products, three purposes

A valuation is prepared by a valuer registered under the Valuers Registration Act 1992 (Qld), involves a physical inspection, documents its comparable evidence, states an effective date, and carries professional indemnity insurance. An appraisal is an informal estimate from an agent hoping to win your listing. An online estimate is a statistical model that has never seen your property.

Each is useful for something. The online estimate is fine for idle curiosity. The appraisal tells you what an agent thinks they can achieve and how they would market it. The valuation is what you need the moment a third party has to rely on the number.

Documentation beats presentation

Fresh flowers do not move a valuation. Verifiable evidence of what has been built and approved absolutely does. Approved work counts fully; work without approval or documentation is often discounted, because a buyer would price the compliance risk in.

Do make condition legible, though. A property so cluttered that floors, walls and finishes cannot be seen forces a conservative assessment, because a valuer can only credit what they can observe. Tidy enough to be seen, not staged.

What actually happens on the day

Allow 30 to 60 minutes for a typical house, longer for acreage or tenanted commercial property. The valuer measures, photographs and records condition, layout and improvements. Photographs go to the report file and are treated confidentially.

You do not need to be there — an agent, tenant or property manager can provide access, provided they can open everything. What matters is that nothing is locked: unmeasured space does not exist in the report.

Guides in this topic

2 guides

Practical guides Valuation, appraisal or online estimate: which is which? Three products, three purposes, wildly different standing. Using the wrong one is the most common and most expensive mistake in property decision-making. 5 min read Practical guides How to prepare your property for a valuation You cannot stage your way to a higher valuation. You can, however, lose value by failing to document what you have built — and that happens all the time. 5 min read

The services behind this topic

The valuation process Seven stages, explained end to end. Frequently asked questions Cost, timing, legal standing and disputes. Valuation glossary 45 terms defined in plain English.

Answers

Practical guides questions

Should I renovate before a valuation?

Only if you were going to anyway. Most cosmetic work does not return its cost in a valuation. The exceptions worth doing are structural repair and obtaining approvals for existing unapproved work.

Is a valuation inspection a building inspection?

No. A valuer assesses layout, measurements, condition and improvements. They do not test services, open inaccessible areas or investigate pests or contamination. Those require specialist inspections.

What if I have no paperwork for a renovation?

Tell us. Council records can often be searched, and where work is clearly of a good standard we assess it on its merits while noting the absence of approval. Concealing it is what causes problems.

Can I use one valuation for several purposes?

Generally no. A valuation is prepared for a stated purpose, party and effective date, and reliance is limited to those. Tell us every intended use up front so it can be scoped once.

Talk it through with a valuer

Tell us the address and the purpose and we will confirm scope, a fixed fee and an inspection time — usually within the hour.

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