Call to valuers to ‘put house in order’

Press, 4 July 1978, Page 7

Call to valuers to ‘put house in order’

A call for the valuation profession to "put its house in order” has come from the Minister in charge of the Valuation Department (Mr V. S. Young). Mr Young said there was considerable concern among members of the public about the “unbelievably wide margins” in the assessment of values between registered valuers. He said variations of 200, 300, and even 400 per cent were not uncommon.

Addressing the Taranaki Branch of the Institute of Valuers at New Plymouth, Mr Young said that the vexed question of variations in valuations had also been worrying the Valuers’ Registration Board. “1 appreciate that valuing is a matter of opinion, not an exact science, and depending on the type of property and its use the variations between opinions can be some distance apart,” he said. “No doubt each valuer can give a rational justification for his estimate. Sometimes there are sound technical reasons for such

divisions of opinion. Often a fundamental basic concept causes the difference, which when explained is understandable. “But, the plain fact is that these wide differences, however supportable technically, are a continuing source of concern with the public and they can bring the profession into disrepute,” Mr Young said. According to Mr Young, the public sees the differences as biased advocacy rather than as the' result of a professional status of complete independence and absolute integrity.

“A century ago, when there was no legislation to determine the basis of arriving at values, irregular practices came to light,” he said. “Legislation now exists, and there is a lot of valuation evidence for valuers to arrive at more uniform values. “Valuation can never be a science in the strict sense of the word, but the valuation profession must put its house in order,” Mr Young said.