If you are thinking of selling your property in the British Virgin Islands, there is a crucial difference between a realtor valuation and a bank appraisal of a property. Knowing how to set a Listing Price is essential.
Here’s why you need both in order to determine a realistic value for your home or land before listing it for sale.
It is, unfortunately, a common practice with some realtors to overstate the value of a property in order to acquire an exclusive (closed) sales listing. Getting a number of different quotes to tend to mitigate this effect, as long as those brokers’ valuations are supported with clear evidence of recent sales and other data.
At Emerald Properties BVI, we will work with you to estimate a value that we feel your home or land will fetch in the current market. This valuation of your property is not a formal appraisal that banks or lending institutions would require to loan monies but can be used as a guideline.
You do not need to commit to sell at the price suggested by the bank appraisal nor disclose the bank’s valuation to outsiders. However, during the purchasing process, your buyers will be required by law to get a bank appraisal of the property to either submit with their Non-Belonger License application and/or as part of the process of actually transferring the property into the buyer’s name.
If the bank’s appraisal is substantially lower than what the buyer has agreed to pay, the seller must be prepared to explain this discrepancy. You do not want to lose a sales deal once the process has been started!
Another good reason to get a bank appraisal is that it will cite recent property sales to help support their valuation. It will even include an assessment based on rental income as well as construction approach (basically, what it would cost to build the property with today’s materials and labor). A bank appraisal is an excellent source of data for both the buyer and seller.
While our valuation isn’t as formal as a bank appraisal, you’ll be happy to know that we at Emerald Properties BVI will also base our recommended selling price on what it would cost to build your home at today’s construction costs. We also compare recent BVI real estate sales that were similar in size and, where possible, location. In addition, the number we arrive at will also take into account how nicely your home has been landscaped and furnished.
But the best reason to get a valuation from us is that we can give recommendations on how to stage your home for buyers and how best to market the property. Our valuations are free of charge, so let us help you determine what your BVI home or land may be worth!
