Why do valuers want to know about a property’s sales history – and why is it important?

Video Transcript

Any recent marketing history of a property can help provide the best form of comparable sales evidence when a valuer is determining the market value of a property, which is taken into consideration along with other nearby sales evidence. I think it’s important to think about the actual definition of market value, which is the ‘estimated amount for which a property should exchange on the valuation date between a willing buyer and a willing seller in an arm’s length transaction after proper marketing, where the parties had each acted knowledgeably. Prudently and without compulsion.’ So, if a property had been openly marketed by an agent for a reasonable period of time, and there had been several different bids to unconnected parties, all at similar levels within a recent period of time, this shows that there is demand for the property, which gives greater certainty to the property value and underpins the sales price.