How accurate are online property valuations?

If you’re thinking about selling your house or flat you might be tempted to use one of many popular online tools to get a quick valuation for your property. But it’s important to be cautious about internet valuations as they aren’t always the most accurate estimates.

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Quick questions about getting an online property valuation

We often get questions from homeowners about whether they can trust online property valuations, and here are our answers to three of the most commonly asked queries:

✅ Can I rely solely on an estimate from an online valuation of my home?

You should never make any decisions on selling your house or flat based solely on a valuation generated by an online estimation tool. Think of them more as an advisory piece of information that might give you a general guide to what your home could be worth, but be aware the actual price might differ significantly from the valuation.

✅ What are the main pros and cons of getting an online property valuation?

The speed of an online valuation is the biggest benefit, because you can type in a few details and generate an estimate within less than a minute. The biggest drawback of this is that online estimates can be very unreliable and based on outdated data, so you can’t be sure the value you’re given is anywhere near your home’s real value.

✅ What alternatives are available if I don't choose an online valuation for my home?

You could contact a local estate agent to come and appraise the value of your property. Very often they won’t charge you any money for this because it’s a chance for them to get a potential client if they can convince you to sell through them. Still, some valuations can cost money, for example if you need to have one done to obtain a loan.

✅ What information do online home valuation tools rely on to make their projections?

Most online valuations are done by a computer tool that takes a minimal amount of information from you, such as your postcode, and then searches a database of many different pieces of data to provide a rough estimate of your potential sale price. The information it relies on includes past sale prices in the neighbourhood, allowing for historical fluctuations.

✅ Will I have to pay any money to get an online property valuation?

You shouldn’t have to if it’s a simple and quick valuation request using an automated tool on a home sales website or similar situation. Because it’s a computer providing the valuation and you only receive a general idea of your potential sale price, there’s no reason why you should have to pay any money, and you should be wary of any site that does try to charge you.

✅ Will an online valuation account for any improvements I have made to my home?

Probably not, because online valuations are quick estimates generated by computers relying on a set amount of information from a past specific date. That means valuation tools will not know about any extensions or other physical changes you might have made to your property, and therefore the virtual valuation might be lower than your home’s genuine value.

✅ Can online valuations tell whether my home has any potential negative issues?

It’s unlikely that an online valuation tool can tell that your home has a problem such as being dilapidated or recently suffering from a structural issue like dry rot, because of the tool’s use of historic rather than present data. To get a true quote for selling your home that accounts for such situations, ask for a no-obligation offer from the team at LDN Properties.

For a fair estimate on your home’s value, call our experts today

At LDN Properties, making fast and competitive offers to buy houses and flats is our speciality so we are very skilled in making accurate estimates of property values.

Click the button below or call our friendly team of experts at 020 7183 3022 to receive a free and no-obligation offer for selling your home to us.

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