UOWN organises a chartered surveyor to value all its properties at three monthly intervals, to ensure valuations are current and reflect the accurate market conditions. 

The prices are then updated and reflected on our platform, meaning that shares you bought in the past may change in value. However, you can be assured that, because we carry out regular inspections, the property valuation has taken into account all variable factors.

What causes a property’s value to change?

A property can change in value due to a number of factors:

The economy – the jobs market, mortgage offers and interest rates can all affect confidence in the market and can all influence supply and demand and hence house prices.

The local environment – developments in the local area can affect a property value both positively and negatively. A school or a new shopping centre nearby can make a property more appealing, while a hazardous waste site or an airport can have the opposite effect. Similarly, your house may be nice, clean and attractive but if you live on a street where nobody else has the same standards, particularly your neighbours, it can affect the value of your property.

Appearance – a property needs to look appealing to attract buyers, this applies both internally and externally and includes maintenance, cleanliness and design desirability.

Features – a property’s features can affect the value of the house, ie. how many bedrooms it has or whether the kitchen is new and modern. Is there a big garden? Is there a driveway for parking? Is there a garage? Other features such as decking, a conservatory, central heating and security alarms also add value.  

The surveyor will have good market knowledge, both currently and historically, on the property’s local area. They will use a combination of physical inspection and prior and post-inspection research and evaluation to reach a current market value.

Pre-inspection, the surveyor will check local information on planning or development issues that may affect the future value of the property, and they will assess the type of property, the location and the desirability. They will also carry out searches to understand the legal status of the property. This all gives them a good indication of the property’s value before they even see it.

During an inspection the surveyor will check the condition of the house, including modifications, and will check that all declared details are accurate and there aren’t any infrastructure issues such as damp, faulty wiring or leaks etc.

After the inspection the surveyor is able to use their market knowledge and all information assembled to make an accurate valuation of the property in today’s market.