If a person wants to sell their house and has no idea of the current market price, what is the best way to get an evaluation and any suggestions who to use for this?

Is anyone familiar with the cost of just an evaluation (to sell) - for a ball park market price?

Thanks very much

Do what everyone else does: Charge what comes to you in your wildest, wettest dreams. Then after one year of not selling it you could either stick to the local thing of keeping the price there for the next 10 years no matter what, or you could reduce.

Alternatively, go to www.jasminehomes.co.th and look for comparable houses. If you decide to put your property up on a place like that they they will make a suggestion, but don't think of that as a proper valuation.

There's no true valuation that goes into any kind of detail. Pretty much the only time that happens in this country is when you get a mortgage, then the bank will send an assessor.

Feel free to post a picture and/or description, then I'll give you a ballpark.

Have any similar houses to yours sold in the area? House size, land size, compared to recent sales is good place to start for your own knowledge. If you have good contact in a bank who makes home loans, you may ask their property assessor to look at your site on his own time. I have never seen a banker who would not work on the side for a payment.

Just for general info, new construction is going for around 10,000 baht a square meter and up, depending on the hardware put in etc.

It takes some experience. A Chiang Mai based real estate agent could probably help you with that. Until three years ago we were shopping for land in Chiang Mai. After seeing dozens of properties in different areas and visiting all real estate web sites at least once a month, I got a pretty good idea. But prices and markets keep changing and I am not up to date. There seems to be only one constant: the market here is very dynamic. The agents simply put the asking prices of their clients on their websites and these frequently unrealistic.

Cheers, CMX

I cannot really add much to Winnie's very astute summary of the property valuation situation here in Thailand, just agree with it.

However, it does explain what you will find to be the wildly varying prices if you browse the numerous Agent's and other websites for Chiang Mai since these prices are based on the owner's, often totally unrealistic, perception of what their property is worth. You may also find that an offer at asking price will provoke the reaction in the owner that he obviously didn't ask enough and the price will then be increased because his mother really loves the house and does not actually want to sell it at all. May your fond Mama live long and happy in her house, has been my reaction to such pathetic tactics whenever encountered.

You will find, for example, an asking price of Baht 15m on a house for which you can find many close comparison at even half that price. and conversely a tidy little place which seems like quite a bargain, if that is what you can afford, at Baht 1.5m.

There is, as yet, no Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors & Valuers in Thailand although as Winnie points out banks now have assets assessment officers who do put a figure for mortgage purposes on property. Exactly how they arrive at what will probably be a rather conservative figure, since banks are now very cautious lenders, I do not know. If you have a close relationship with your Bank Manager, he might give you the number of their valuation officer, who may be prepared to do a little private job for you.

In the last few months I saw a pleasant individually designed house in one rai but not a good location, finally sold by a desperate and bankrupt Thai owner for Baht 4.5m. It had previously been for sale for nearly two years at Baht 6.5m. Whoever bought it has furnished it quite nicely, tidied the garden and is now asking exactly twice what he paid at Baht 9m. Hope, of course, springs eternal which is just as well since it will likely take an eternity to sell as that price. Hey ho !

Cast your net far and wide and be prepared to bargain hard and long, but with charm, humour and good manners and there is every prospect of your finding something really lovely at a fair price. If you get a bad or hostile reaction from your attempts to bargain nicely with the owner, just walk away as there is a massive inventory of unsold, to say nothing or new development, property in Chiang Mai.

Happy hunting and happy new home.

Some time ago I asked Siam Commercial (Tha Pae Road) to do a valuation and survey on a property for me. It was very in depth covering local searches, all the deeds and plans, state of the building etc etc. It ran to 17 pages and was very impressive. All in Thai so I had to have it translated. It cost 5,000 baht.

Do what everyone else does: Charge what comes to you in your wildest, wettest dreams. Then after one year of not selling it you could either stick to the local thing of keeping the price there for the next 10 years no matter what, or you could reduce.

Alternatively, go to www.jasminehomes.co.th and look for comparable houses. If you decide to put your property up on a place like that they they will make a suggestion, but don't think of that as a proper valuation.

There's no true valuation that goes into any kind of detail. Pretty much the only time that happens in this country is when you get a mortgage, then the bank will send an assessor.

Feel free to post a picture and/or description, then I'll give you a ballpark.

Great line in bold - how true!

Have sent you a msg -

Cheers

Refer this thread from only a couple of weeks ago:

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/Property-Val...mp-t334903.html

Some time ago I asked Siam Commercial (Tha Pae Road) to do a valuation and survey on a property for me. It was very in depth covering local searches, all the deeds and plans, state of the building etc etc. It ran to 17 pages and was very impressive. All in Thai so I had to have it translated. It cost 5,000 baht.

5,000 baht for a translation! They must've seen you comin ole mate

Some time ago I asked Siam Commercial (Tha Pae Road) to do a valuation and survey on a property for me. It was very in depth covering local searches, all the deeds and plans, state of the building etc etc. It ran to 17 pages and was very impressive. All in Thai so I had to have it translated. It cost 5,000 baht.

5,000 baht for a translation! They must've seen you comin ole mate

I think he means 5,000 Baht for the valuation and in depth searches and afterwards he had to have it translated.......is that right?

Sorry, I was trying to be ironic.