SERVICES

INHERITANCE TAX VALUATION (& GIFTS) 

Inheritance Tax Valuation (also known as Probate Valuation)

When someone dies, their estate has to be valued in order for HMRC to calculate how much inheritance tax is owed. This also enables the grant of probate. We can provide accurate, well-informed, reliable valuations to help you pay the correct amount of tax, and no more.

As the London property market is always fluctuating, it is very important to give HMRC a precise valuation, giving reasons for the figure arrived at. We will provide you with a valuation report in accordance with Section 160 of the Inheritance Act 1984 and also the RICS UK Guidance Note 3. The report will be clear, reasoned and concise.

If the valuation is queried by the District Valuer (who provide valuations for and advise HMRC on property), we can also negotiate with them for you. We are uniquely qualified to handle these negotiations because Edmund Ellis worked for many years in the Statutory Valuations Team for the District Valuer.

Gift Valuations 

Many people like to gift property or shares in property to their families or friends, and if the gifts are made more than seven years before a person’s death, they are exempt from inheritance tax. It is wise to value the property at the time of the gift, to make sure you have all the information for HMRC when the giver dies. We can undertake reliable, accurate valuations at the time of the gift. And if you didn’t get a valuation at the time of the gift, we can also provide retrospective valuations, based on our experience, research and database of transactions.  

Trust Valuations are also undertaken.

Contact us for more information or to book a valuation.


Why instruct a chartered surveyor to do a tax valuation?

 What is a tax valuation?   A tax valuation is a valuation carried out for tax purposes—to work out how much tax you need to pay. Unlike other valuations, tax valuations are based on legislation and supported by guidance notes from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, and can be very complex. As tax is levied direct from the valuation, it is important to get it right.  

Who can submit the valuation?   You can submit the valuation yourself, or you can ask an estate agent to do it, or a chartered surveyor.  

Why is it important to get it right?     When submitted to HMRC the valuation will pass through two levels of scrutiny, first the initial appraisal team, and then the District Valuer (part of the Valuation Office Agency), which is HMRC’s own chartered surveying agency.   Over the past few years, the District Valuer has contested an increasing number of tax valuations. If they contest your valuation, you have to prove that your valuation is accurate and reasoned, and may have to go through a lengthy negotiation process with the District Valuer to agree a value. If they consider your valuation was incorrect, HMRC can enforce a penalty. So it is crucial to get it right first time.  

Why use a chartered surveyor?   A chartered surveyor will only undertake a tax valuation if he or she is independent, and has the skills and knowledge to value the property in question. Chartered surveyors know what the HMRC and the District Valuer require. The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors also requires their members to make their tax valuations clear and reasoned, providing details of the nature and source of the information they use, clearly state any assumptions they make, provide reasons for the valuation, give details of any areas of uncertainty or factors that could affect the figure. This makes a chartered surveyor’s tax valuation transparent, which reduces the risk that it will be contested.   If the valuation is contested, the report will be useful as evidence, and the chartered surveyor will be sufficiently skilled to discuss, negotiate and resolve.    

Why instruct Elysium Surveyors to do your tax valuation?   Ed Ellis worked with the District Valuer for several years, negotiating with individuals, estate agents and chartered surveyors on contested tax valuations. His unique experience makes Elysium Surveyors the perfect firm to choose for undertaking tax valuations, and negotiating with the District Valuer.