Remortgage – Do you need to get your property valued ?

So, it’s time to get your remortgage underway and you know that you are going to be asked how much is your property worth by the mortgage lender, is it necessary for you to get an accurate valuation carried out prior to the remortgage?

Homebuyers looking for advice on remortgages needn’t worry about getting their properties valued or not as they don’t have to do it, but if you are looking for a quick guide on how much your house is worth then this article will help.

• Save time and costs – don’t get an accurate valuation of your property carried out unless the lender specifically asks you to, or you have concerns that they might request it. Research has shown that it is possible to find out what a property is worth using the internet and even do it yourself without having to pay someone else.
• Look for a free valuation lender – look around to find a remortgage lender who offers good rates and doesn’t charge valuation fees to remortgage your house. Some lenders will do it for free if you are remortgaging to them, but make sure that they are top of the best buy tables. You can ask your mortgage broker for advice on this, but always check what other mortgage brokers have to offer to get a full comparison.
• Use online valuation tools – See what is on the market in your area. Go to Zoopla or Rightmove and see if there are any comparable properties on the market. Use the sale price and compare it to what your house is valued at. If you are unable to find any comparable properties, then this can be a little more difficult.

Does it cost to get your house valued?

When remortgaging most mortgage lenders including your current mortgage lender will offer a free remortgage property valuation. The valuer will know the house prices in your area, and they carry out a mortgage valuation which usually takes less than half an hour as there is no mortgage valuation cost.

Lenders offer a mortgage valuation for free do as an incentive to attract you as a new customer. There is sometimes a problem solely relying on this type of valuation. The problem is that it could be quite a clever way into the remortgage process before you find out you got it completely wrong. This can even sometimes leave short of time to change the direction of the remortgage.

Some remortgage lenders offer a free valuation do as an incentive to attract you as a new customer. A mortgage valuer/surveyor will know the average price of houses in your area and be able to tell you what the average house price is.

What happens if my property is less than I thought it was worth

This can happen and is quite a frequent problem with this type of valuation. Most lenders will allow you to remortgage up to 90% of the current property value (although not all).

Banks and building societies offer different rates depending on your loan to value (LTV)

Getting the valuation correct is particularly important as it could lead to getting a higher interest rate and can even end up costing you thousands of pounds.

There are other factors that affect the rate you get but the valuation is the single most key factor.

Your property’s valuation should be conducted by an independent mortgage valuer who will determine the value of your property and decide what interest rate you should pay.

For example: if you were applying for a loan that had an LTV of 60%, the lender would use its in house valuer to work out what they would lend on your property

Each lender will use one of its own in house valuers.

Sometimes a mortgage provider will use a desktop valuation where the valuer looks at all your details on screen and assess what they think the property is worth.