I attended a discussion group last night (8th Nov 2018) with fellow Property Valuers in Melbourne. The topics ranged from litigation, building insurance valuations and raw market updates from Valuers and their respective areas.
Most of the Valuers besides a couple of Cadets are genuinely dedicated, technicians. Their individual experiences can span a few decades alone. Some shared first-hand insights and compelling court cases where the Valuers were dragged through the coals despite their squeaky clean valuation reports. After many passionate remarks on the plight of the valuation industry and a Valuers safety. The lesson learned back then, and is still very much relevant now, is that Property Valuers can quickly become natural targets if or when things go wrong.
A guest speaker whom specialised in defending Valuers, and a few of the wiser and more experienced Valuers were urging caution when assessing current market value. The state of the market, although still substantial is becoming increasingly nebulous. Valuers were encouraged to present QUALITY sales evidence, always!
Another interesting topic was combustible material and lightweight construction in modern buildings. Some of the thin/lightweight cladding such as polystyrene, aluminium composite sheets can be viewed as a risk or even considered uninsurable.
The tragic Grenfell Tower fire in June 2017 and the Lacrosse building fire in Melbourne's Docklands in November 2014 comes to mind.
Building Insurance Valuations in Melbourne are affected. To the insurers, some buildings may fall under a different insurance class if the proportion of unfavourable building material falls outside an acceptable range.
Some Bank Mortgage Valuers are beginning to clause out 'risky' material and are notifying their clients accordingly which I think is excellent practice.