Cyprus property valuations guide

Below is an overview guide of how Urban Keys undertakes property valuations in Cyprus.

A great deal of information is collected whilst considerable time is involved in the property valuation process. Professional experience, judgment and integrity are certainly required on the part of the valuation firm, of course together with full certification and accreditation.

1. Obtain preliminary information on property to be valued

We obtain information from the client and local council as to the age, construction and size of your building and land, as well as any recent upgrades/improvements. This includes all necessary documentation for verification purposes.

2. Property Market research

A macro market analysis needs to be put together, looking at general conditions and trends of Cyprus and your property's sub-market (i.e. city, town, village), such as economical and political environment, transport and accessibility, infrastructure, and major developments. Such conditions influence property prices across the entire island and therefore your property. They must never be neglected.

The best example to think of is the Global Financial Crisis and property bubble in 2008 and then more severely in Cyprus in 2013 with the outbreak of the banking crisis. This dramatically reduced consumer confidence and purchasing power in an already somewhat oversupplied market – since salary cuts were endured, unemployment increased, and as people even lost a portion of their savings – and damaged business investor confidence in Cyprus for the short term. As a result, property prices (buying and rental) had to come down. However, the reverse is also true. As supply and demand come to equilibrium, and then later great prospects in natural gas resources eventuate in Cyprus, property prices will significantly increase.

3. Property Inspection

We measure both the building and land size, as well as take detailed notes on crucial aspects of the property, including (but not limited to):

• date of construction
• construction type
• type and style of property
• number of rooms
• layout, architectural design, unique elements
• condition of the building
• extra facilities
• other improvements/upgrades/renovations, etc.

4. Qualifying comparable property sales

We then investigate and qualify what comparable properties have been sold recently within your area. Comparison is the premier tool in arriving at a valuation. We maintain a number of sales and rental databases at our office that we can source, given a number of variables such as type of property, location and date of sale to produce a comparable list of sales.

It should be noted that some of these properties are discounted, and may not really be comparable for a number of reasons, such as differing style, construction type, land size etc.

5. Discussion with selling agents and council

For verification, we then speak to the selling agents of each of the properties that we believe are most comparable to the subject property. From the selling agent we will obtain details such as number of rooms, condition of building, improvements, as well as other factors affecting its final sale price. We confirm both the building and land size of each of these comparable sales with your local council.

6. Photographic analysis

We subscribe to a number of sources allowing us to view internal photographs of many sold properties in Cyprus and your particular region (obtained from selling brochures).

All this information allows us to accurately benchmark and compare your property with properties sold within the immediate vicinity and form the basis of how we arrive at your valuation amount.

7. Description of property valuation services at Urban Keys:

• Market Value
• Purchase and sale Valuations
• Balance sheet Valuations
• Tax Valuations
• Legal/Judgement Purposes
• Portfolio Analysis
• Feasibility Studies
• Insurance Valuations
• Rental Disputes
• Rental Valuations