What to do if estate agents value your house differently

A property valuation is an estate agent's estimate of what your home should sell for in the current market. It is an opinion backed by evidence, not a fixed fact, which is why two agents can look at the same house and reach different numbers.

Why do estate agents give different valuations?

Agents read the same local market but weigh it differently, and some deliberately quote high to win your business. Property industry coverage has long warned that over valuing to gain an instruction is a recognised tactic, where a tempting figure wins the listing and a price cut follows once the home struggles to sell.

How big a difference between valuations is normal?

What should you do when valuations conflict?

1. 1. Get the evidence behind each figure

   Ask every agent for at least three recent sales of similar homes nearby that support their valuation. A figure with no comparable sales behind it is a promise, not a price.

2. 2. Check how long their listings take to sell

   Look at the agent's current and recently sold listings. A pattern of price reductions and homes sitting for months is a warning sign of habitual over valuing.

3. 3. Read the contract before the number

   Check the tie in period and the notice you must give to leave. A high valuation tied to a long sole agency contract can trap you if the price proves unrealistic.

4. 4. Weight the evidence, not the ego

   Choose the valuation supported by real local sales, even if it is not the highest. The market pays what the comparable evidence says, not what an agent promised at the door.

5. 5. Compare agents side by side before you commit

   Line the valuations up against each other, with the fees and the supporting evidence, so you are judging like for like rather than reacting to the biggest number.

What happens if you set the asking price too high?

An overpriced home tends to sit on the market, miss the burst of interest that comes in the first few weeks, and then need a visible price cut that makes buyers wary. Studies of agent behaviour have found that homes listed with the agents who overvalue the most can end up paying around double the commission rate, and often sell for less than a correctly priced home would have.

The market pays what the comparable evidence says, not what an agent promised at the door.

ValuQ is a platform that gives UK homeowners free, side-by-side property valuations from competing local estate agents, with the seller staying anonymous until they choose to connect. The best agent should win on the strength of their valuation and strategy, not on who quotes the highest number.