Crown Valuations Often ire Higher

Northern Advocate, 14 March 1947, Page 4

Crown Valuations Often ire Higher

Crown valuations were often higher than those made by a private valuer, the chairman (Mr E. H. Burton), remarked when the Land Sales Committee was sitting at Whangarei yesterday.

Allegations had been made in respect to a case outside Whangarei that the Crown valuation was invariably lower than that submitted by a private valuer. To refute this, records had been looked up. and it was found that in a surprising number of instances the valuations by the Crown were higher than the private ones and that in many other cases there was little or no difference between the two. Mr Burton believed that the Crown valuer was seldom too low and when he was, it was usually because some asset had been accidentally omitted from his valuation.

Yesterday's case which gave occasion for this comment, concerned a farm property of 46 acres at Ruakakn. The Crown valuation, submitted by Mr N. H. Chapman, of £1693 was £242 higher than the private valuation of £1451, made by Mr J. Oliver. WHEN THEY DIFFER WIDELY

The price a.sked for the farm was £1451 and, without any evidence being given by either valuer, Mr A. M. Woods, who appeared for the vendor, asked the committee to approve of the sum. It was while consenting to this that Mr Burton made his comment.

The public often gets the impression from the Press that Crown valuations were always lower than private valuations, Mr Burton added. This was because, when a wide difference existed between the two valuations, there was usually considerable discussion on them and a lengthy cross-examination of the witnesses.

When the two valuations were close together there was littl_e or no discussion and the case might he decided without the valuers being called to give evidence. Two other cases in which small differences existed between the two valuations were dealt with in a similar manner.

For a 163-acre farm at Matarau the committee consented to a price midway between the two valuations. For the' Crown Mr M. S. McDonald valued the property at £2525 while the private valuation by Mr D. G. Morrison was £2577. The price asked by the vendor was £3OOO.

The committee gave its approval at a price of £2601 including stock and chattels valued at £538.

Dealt with even more expeditiously was the case of a 72-acre property at Hikurangi where the vendor’s representative did not present a private valuation but said that he would accept for his client the Crown's figure. The committee, without delay, consented to a price of £IOBS which was the sum arrived at by Mr M. S. McDonald in his valuation for the Crown.