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How to find out how much your house is worth

Four ways to find out how much your house is worth in the UK: Land Registry sold prices, agent valuations, a surveyor and online tools. What each tells you.

5 min read
Last reviewed 20 October 2026
By Your Property Check team

Part 1 of 8

Four ways to find out, and what each one is

There is no single "right" number for a house until a buyer pays it. What you can get is evidence. These are the four main sources, side by side.

Method	What it is	Cost to you	Good for	Limit
Land Registry sold prices	Prices that nearby homes actually sold for	Free	A first, evidence-based range	Past sales, not your home's condition
Estate agent valuation	A local agent's view of what your home could sell for	Citizens Advice says many agents offer these for free	Choosing a sale price if you are selling	The agent hopes to win your business
Formal valuation by a surveyor	A written valuation by a qualified surveyor who inspects the property	You pay a fee	When you need a figure you can rely on in a formal setting	Costs money and takes a visit
Online estimate tool	An automated estimate from sales data	Often free	A quick sense of the range	Cannot see inside your home

None of these is a promise of what a buyer will pay. Use more than one.

Part 2 of 8

Step 1: look at what homes near you actually sold for

HM Land Registry publishes a record of residential property sales in England and Wales. Its guidance says the Price Paid Data includes sales made for value that were lodged for registration. It excludes some transfers, such as gifts, right-to-buy discount sales and transfers on divorce.

Two things to know before you rely on it:

It lags behind the market. HM Land Registry says the gap between a sale and its registration typically ranges from 2 weeks to 2 months, so the two most recent months are incomplete.
It only covers England and Wales. Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own registers.

Look for homes of the same type (a flat is not evidence for a house), of a similar size, on your street or nearby, sold recently. Our free sold prices tool does this search by postcode. If you want the price your own home last sold for, the GOV.UK register page says the title register shows how much a property was last sold for, and costs £7 to get online.

Part 3 of 8

Step 2: allow for the market moving since

A sale from three years ago is not today's price. The UK House Price Index is how the change is measured. HM Land Registry publishes it monthly, and the Office for National Statistics calculates it from sales records. You can look up price trends by area in the index tool. Its own page warns that local authorities with few sales can show volatile monthly movements, so look at longer-term trends for those areas.

A simple way to use it: find the movement in your area between the month of an old sale and now, and apply that change to the old price. That is the idea our estimate is built on, applied automatically.

Part 4 of 8

Step 3: ask local agents, and compare their reasons

Citizens Advice suggests asking more than one estate agent to visit and value your home, and comparing each agent's suggested price with similar houses nearby. It also says a formal valuation from an agent is something you would have to pay a fee for.

When agents give you different figures, ask each one:

Which recent sales did you use, and why are they like mine?
What would you do about condition, extensions or anything unusual?
How long would you expect it to take at that price, and on what evidence?

Remember an agent who values your home may also be hoping to sell it. Treat the number as a view, and weigh the reasons behind it more than the headline.

Part 5 of 8

Step 4: use a formal valuation only when you need one

RICS, the professional body for surveyors, separates two things that people often mix up. A survey reports on the condition of a property. A valuation estimates its value. Some RICS survey levels can include a market valuation as an extra.

RICS also explains that a mortgage valuation is a limited check by your lender to confirm that the property is worth the loan. It is for the lender's benefit, not yours, and it does not have the detail of a survey. So the figure a lender uses is not a guide to your sale price.

You are most likely to need a formal valuation for something with legal or financial consequences, such as a dispute or an estate. If that is your case, ask a surveyor which type you need.

Part 6 of 8

What a free online estimate can and cannot do

Our free house value check gives an estimate range from HM Land Registry sales near your home, moved forward with the official index. It is not a valuation. It cannot see your kitchen, your extension, your garden or the state of your roof, and it shows a range because one number would claim more than the data can know. How we value sets out the method in full.

An honest estimate is most useful as a yardstick. Check an agent's figure against it. If an agent is well above or below the range, ask why.

Part 7 of 8

Which method fits your situation

Just curious: sold prices and a free estimate are enough.
Thinking of selling: sold prices, then two or three agent visits, then decide.
Remortgaging or buying out a partner: ask the lender or a solicitor what kind of valuation they will accept before you pay for one.
Dealing with an estate or a dispute: ask a solicitor, and ask a surveyor for a formal valuation.

Part 8 of 8

A quick checklist

Search sold prices for your street and postcode, same property type only.
Note the dates, and allow for the market moving since.
Ask two or three agents to explain their figures.
Compare with a free estimate range.
Decide whether you need a formal valuation at all.

This page is general information, not valuation or legal advice.

Questions, answered

Frequently asked questions

How do I know how much my house is worth?

You cannot know until a buyer pays, but you can get good evidence. Look at what similar homes near you sold for using HM Land Registry data, allow for how the market has moved since, then ask two or three local agents to explain their figures. Treat an online figure as an estimate only.

How much is my home worth for free?

Sold price records from HM Land Registry are free to search, and Citizens Advice says many estate agents offer free valuations. Our free house value check gives an estimate range from Land Registry sales. A formal valuation by a surveyor is the one that costs a fee.

How much is my house worth on the Land Registry?

The Land Registry does not value your house. It records what homes sold for. Its Price Paid Data covers residential sales in England and Wales, with a lag of about 2 weeks to 2 months before a sale appears. You can use those prices as evidence, and a title register shows the last price your own home sold for.

Is an estate agent valuation the same as a formal valuation?

No. An agent valuation is their opinion of what your home could sell for, often given free to win your business. A formal valuation is written by a qualified surveyor. Citizens Advice notes that you would pay a fee for a formal valuation if you ask an agent for one.

Is my mortgage valuation the value of my house?

Not for your purposes. RICS says a mortgage valuation is a limited check carried out for the lender, to confirm the property is worth the loan. It is for the lender, not the owner, and it lacks the detail of a survey.

Where this comes from

Sources

Last reviewed 20 October 2026 by the Your Property Check team. This page is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. For your own situation, speak to a conveyancing solicitor or another qualified professional.