Setting the sale price

The Rateable Value (RV) used to be called Government Valuation or GV. It’s set by your local authority for the purpose of assessing rates.  People often use an RV when they’re selling or buying a house to get an indication of the property’s value - but remember it’s only a guide. It’s based on general property values in your area rather than a detailed review of your property, it doesn’t include chattels such as carpets or appliances, and it may be out of date – some RVs are set every three years only.  Depending on the area and the property, you could sell your house for significantly more or less than the RV. 

Check out your local council website, as in most cases you can get an instant RV online for free.

Location plays a major part in property values. So if you can, it’s a good idea to find out what other homes in your area have sold for recently. Your real estate agent should be able to tell you, or you can purchase an eValuer report from QV which will provide this information as well as an automated estimate of your property’s value.

When you get your mortgage pre-approved with ANZ, we’ll give you two eValuer reports for free.

Check out similar houses which are on the market now to get a feel for what you are competing with. Talking to the agents who are selling them, as well as the one who is selling your property, may also give you a feeling for what the market is like at the moment.

You can get a valuation report from a registered valuer. This will give you their professional assessment of your home’s market value, which should be a more up to date reflection than your RV (and more useful when you’re selling your house). The valuer will do a detailed inspection of your home as well as a review of similar recent sales in your area. Their valuation will include chattels.

If you don’t have a preferred valuer, talk to us - we can refer you to one in your area.

When you’re deciding how much to sell your property for, you should be very clear about your bottom line – i.e. the amount of money you need to have after you sell your house (e.g. to buy a new house in your preferred area). Remember to subtract the commission you will need to pay to your agent, plus GST, as well as any marketing or advertising costs and other expenses involved in selling your house such as legal fees, valuer’s fees and so on.