PRIMARY
SOURCES OF INFORMATION
THE
CONTRACT OF SALE
The
valuer may be able to view the contract of sale and sometimes
available from the law firm representing one of the parties to the
transaction. However, unlike the notice of transfer, it is not a
public domain document. The contract used is usually the standard
form contract prepared by the Real Estate Institute and Law Society.
It is important that the valuer know the most important sections of
that contract particularly; the last schedule(s) that contain the
important data for valuation purposes.
ADVANTAGES
The
contract, being the original evidence of the transaction, is the most
accurate and reliable evidence of the sale. All the terms and
conditions that affect value are in the contract. Being a legal
document, it can be subpoenaed as evidence in a court case.
DISADVANTAGES
The
valuer may not have access to the original document. The contract
does not disclose outside non-legal factors that may affect the sale.
For example, coercion on one of the parties or an unusual necessity
to buy or sell.
LOCAL
COUNCIL OR OTHER AUTHORITY
The
recorded sale price, legal description, title, date of contract, and
the parties to the transaction can be found in NSW at the local
council on the notice of transfer. The diagram attached shows the
notice of transfer used in NSW. This is the next most reliable source
of sale information after the contract itself.
See
copy of NSW Notice of Transfer.
ADVANTAGES
The
cadastral data, date of sale, parties, and the sale information as
notified, are usually accurate and reliable. Since the notice is a
legal document the courts will accept the document as evidence of the
transaction if the relevant stamp duty has been paid.
DISADVANTAGES
There
can be a long lead time between date of contract and lodgment of the
transfer and therefore, the evidence may be out of date. This can be
an important factor in a rising market. However, old sales can be
updated to some extent by using the Consumer Price Index (CPI) if
there has been no substantial intervening valuation factor between
the date of contract and the date of valuation. The adjusted price is
called the effective sale price (ESP) whereas the unadjusted sale is
known as the nominal sale price (NSP).
Adjusted
sales can be charted on a Scale of Values to ascertain trends over
time (capital gains) so as to interpolate the value of the subject
property or a trend line determined with linear regression can be
used.