Online Property Valuation Tool

PropertyPriceAdvice is another AVM (Automated Valuation Model) provider (similar to the Hometrack property valuation service).

Recently the company has teamed up with SmartNewHomes.com to provide house buyers with access to an online property valuation tool directly from a property portal.

How do they Value Property?

Like Hometrack the company's economists use a version of the statistical approach to property valuation called "hedonistic regression".

Simply put, hedonistic regression is a way to value a commodity by calculating the sum of all its parts (or characteristics).

In the case of a property these parts would be:

• Location of the property
• Age
• Type (i.e. Detached / Terraced / Semi / Flat)
• Number of bedrooms
• Number of bathrooms
• Number of reception rooms
• Quality of the kitchen
• Parking facilities
• Outdoor space
• The general condition of the property

That's not an exhaustive list but I hope you get the idea.

Inside their Online Property Valuation Tool

Their online property valuation and market data will provide you with:

• An estimation of your home's current market value.
• An estimation of how much major home improvement projects would increase the value of your property.
• The number of property sale in your postcode area over the last 3 months.
• A list of schools within a 2-mile radius.
• A list of GP's, dentists and pharmacies within a 2-mile radius.
• Your local crime rate.

Online Property Valuation Tool- Conclusion

So that we don't upset anyone too much, we must point out that our opinions of this online property valuation tool are based on our own personal and limited experiences - not rigorous scientific testing!!

Like Hometrack, this website is worth a visit for interest's sake.

Critics of AVM's do point out that their accuracy can vary a great deal, although they can also be spookily accurate (especially when applied to more common types of property).

As with any AVM, exercise caution (and a large helping of sound personal judgment) when using them because of the possible inaccuracies that they may present you with.

Certainly never rely on them solely for setting your sale price.

To set your sale price, at least seek the opinion of a reputable local estate agent and if possible do a little of your own research too.

If you need some help with this, read our guide to working out how much your house is worth.

One small gripe with this service is that although the online property valuation can be reasonably accurate, on occasion we've found the "how much an improvement project can add to the value of your property" information to be (in our opinion) a little unrealistic.

Try it for yourself though and see if you get better results for your property.