Valuing houses is a funny game. Let’s start at the beginning.

You own a house and you fancy a move. You ask a few agents to your house, they have a look around. Some measure, some measure and take photos, some (like me) just have a quick  nosey to get a feel for the house’s size and features. Why not take all of the details? Well I need to find out what the owner has in mind and to weigh things up.

Is the owner looking for a quick sale or looking to achieve a particular price? Many people have a figure in mind, maybe they need an amount to afford a new house or to repay a mortgage.

Being honest with owners can result in not getting the business. It is natural to want the best possible figure but it can prove to be a total waste of time and effort if the price is set at an unachievable level.

More often than not the agent who quotes the highest price gets the business in the first place only to fail to sell.

Accurate pricing is the key to a sale. With so much information freely available on the internet these days it only takes a few minutes for a would- be buyer to look for comparables and work out what other houses are selling for. So if you are overpriced, unless you have something very special to  sell, your house is going to stay on the shelf for a long time.

Bear in mind that pretty well every buyer will be looking for a mortgage, which will involve a valuer, appointed by the lender, visiting your house to ensure that it provides suitable security for the loan. Should it not then it will be down-valued, the buyer won’t get the required amount and the sale is unlikely to proceed thereby costing both parties a tidy sum in lost fees and charges not to mention spoiled plans.

Banks, Building Societies and their appointed valuers are being extremely cautious at the moment.

Valuations for lending purposes are well thought through and comparable prices of recent sales of similar properties are essential to a valuer when arriving at a recommendation. The process can be pretty ruthless.

So that’s what I’m weighing up when I give advice on setting prices.

I am trying to give as accurate a figure as possible, bearing in mind that it’s not much good setting out on a house selling journey if the destination will never be reached.

That’s enough serious stuff for now. Enjoy the rest of the Christmas break.

If you have heard any funny stories, stick them on our Facebook page.

All the best.