Where to find these figures
Each loan on Housemartin has a Property details page.
Within that page, the Valuation tab brings together several independent indicators that suggest what the underlying property might be worth, alongside key reference points such as the original purchase price and the current live Exchange price.
On the Valuation tab you can see, for each property:
- The purchase price and purchase date.
- The date and amount of the RICS valuation obtained at or around purchase.
- The basis of the valuation shown, bricks-and-mortar or investment basis.
- The most recent Hometrack valuation, with its valuation date and confidence level (for eligible properties).
- The Land Registry House Price Index (HPI) change since purchase for that property type and local authority for eligible properties.
- The current live Exchange price, showing the latest price at which interests in that loan are being traded on the platform.
This page does not represent a formal valuation by Housemartin or advice on what a property is “really” worth; it simply shows a set of external indicators and reference points so that the valuation figures you see have clear context when you make your own assessment.
RICS valuation
A RICS valuation is a professional valuation carried out by a surveyor who is registered with the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS). The surveyor visits the property, inspects it and produces a formal report and valuation figure.
- The Valuation tab shows the RICS valuation amount and date, usually obtained at or shortly before purchase, alongside the original purchase price.
- The full RICS valuation report, including the valuation figure, assumptions, and commentary, is available in the Documents section of the Property details page, so you can review the underlying report in full if you wish.
Depending on the type of property, the surveyor may carry out the valuation on different bases (and sometimes both):
- Bricks-and-mortar basis – the surveyor values the physical property itself, mainly using comparable sales of similar properties, often assuming vacant possession.
- Investment basis – the surveyor values the property as an income‑producing asset, taking account of factors such as rent, lease terms, tenant profile and comparable investment sales.
We show the basis so you can see whether the RICS valuation is focused more on the building itself or on its income and lease profile.
The RICS valuation is used as a baseline benchmark at or around the time we bought the property.
RICS valuation basis
The valuation basis tells you how the surveyor has approached the RICS valuation.
- A bricks-and-mortar basis is typically used for standard residential homes and some smaller investments. It focuses on the physical property and comparable sales of similar homes in the area.
- An investment basis is typically used for specialist or income‑producing properties, such as blocks of flats with long leases or supported living arrangements. It focuses more on the income, lease terms and comparable investment sales.
Both are still RICS valuations, prepared under the RICS Valuation – Global Standards, but they answer slightly different questions about the market value of the property.
Hometrack valuation
Hometrack is an Automated Valuation Model (AVM) that uses a statistical model, not a physical inspection, to estimate the value of a property.
It combines mortgage valuation data, historic sold prices and other market information, then compares the subject property (bedrooms, floor area, parking, property type, etc.) with similar properties in the local area to produce a current estimated value.
On the Valuation tab:
- The “Hometrack valuation” row shows the latest Hometrack value for the property and the date it was run.
- The “Change since purchase” column shows how much this Hometrack value has moved, in percentage terms, compared with the original purchase price.
We obtain and refresh Hometrack valuations for eligible properties approximately every 3 months.
We deliberately do not run them monthly because:
- Each detailed institutional AVM report has a cost, so running them too frequently would add expense without meaningful extra insight.
- Residential property markets typically do not move enough over a single month for a new AVM each month to provide a materially different, more reliable estimate.
As a result, the Hometrack figure you see is designed to be up‑to‑date on a quarterly basis rather than reflecting very short‑term price movements.
Land Registry House Price Index (HPI)
The Land Registry House Price Index (HPI) tracks actual sale prices recorded at the Land Registry and groups them by local authority area and property type (for example detached, semi‑detached, terraced, flat/maisonette).
On this page, the “Land Registry HPI (change)” row shows the cumulative percentage change in that specific local authority and property‑type bucket since the date we bought the property.
The HPI gives a broad indication of how prices for similar types of properties in the same local authority have changed over time, but it is not a property‑specific valuation and can be volatile if very few comparable properties sell in a given month.
Why we added Hometrack alongside HPI
Historically we used only the local‑authority, property‑type filtered HPI change to update ongoing estimated values.
Our internal testing showed that this approach is limited because it relies on broad averages and cannot capture individual property differences, so we have now added Hometrack valuations, which are more granular and property‑specific.
Where a Hometrack valuation is available for a house, it is shown alongside the HPI change on this page so you can see both the modelled property value and the broader market movement since purchase.
When we show Hometrack and HPI % changes
We use logic based on the RICS valuation basis to decide when to show automated valuation metrics on the Valuation tab.
- Hometrack (value and % change) – We show a Hometrack valuation, together with the percentage change since purchase, only for properties where the displayed RICS valuation is on a bricks‑and‑mortar basis and the property is not a block of flats. Hometrack does not provide valuations for blocks of flats, so those are always excluded even if their RICS valuation is on a bricks‑and‑mortar basis. The Hometrack value and % change are both produced by Hometrack’s automated residential model and are not based on a new RICS inspection.
- HPI % change – We show the Land Registry HPI % change only where the displayed RICS valuation basis is bricks & mortar. The percentage change since purchase is calculated from the relevant Land Registry House Price Index segment (for example by region and property type), so it is a broad market indicator rather than a property‑specific valuation.
For properties where the displayed RICS valuation basis is investment – for example many HMOs, blocks of flats or supported‑living schemes valued by capitalising income – we do not show Hometrack values or HPI % changes, because standard residential AVMs and broad indices are less meaningful for those assets. In those cases, investors should focus on the RICS valuation, the lease and rent information, and the supporting documentation.
Legacy exceptions: Loans 178 and 179
There are two legacy properties – Loans 178 and 179 – where the RICS reports were prepared on a bricks‑and‑mortar basis, even though economically the assets are HMO‑style investment properties. For these loans we continue to show the HPI % change as a broad indicator of underlying residential market movement, but we do not overlay a Hometrack valuation, because a standard residential AVM would not give a fair indication of value given the HMO conversion works and income profile.
Limitations of all valuation models
All valuation methods have limitations and none can guarantee a future sale price.
Key points to bear in mind:
- RICS valuations are point‑in‑time professional opinions and can go out of date as markets move.
- Hometrack is a model based on data; it does not involve a site visit and so cannot capture condition, refurbishment work, extensions, or unique features of this specific property or its comparables.
- HPI is an index of past transactions; it depends on which properties sell in the local authority during each period and cannot adjust for individual property quality or works.
For these reasons, the figures shown should be treated as informed estimates or “best guesses” rather than precise sale prices, and investors should perform their own due diligence before making decisions.
Hometrack confidence level
Hometrack also provides a confidence score with each valuation. This is a number between 0 and 7, where higher numbers indicate denser, better‑quality local data and therefore a narrower statistical error range. As a rough guide, values in the upper part of the range (for example above 5.5) indicate a relatively high confidence in the estimate, mid‑range scores indicate moderate confidence, and lower scores indicate that local sales data is thinner or more varied and the estimate should be treated with extra caution.
Impact on the risk framework
Previously, our risk framework used the HPI change as a key input when assessing each property’s ongoing risk profile.
Where we now have a Hometrack valuation for a property, that Hometrack value is used directly as the valuation input into the risk framework instead of the HPI index figure.
For properties without Hometrack, we continue to use the filtered HPI change as the primary risk‑framework input, so every property still has a consistent, rule‑based valuation measure feeding into risk.
What is Fixed Cost & Contingency (FCC)?
FCC stands for Fixed Costs & Contingency.
It is a separate amount, in addition to the property purchase price, that is included in the loan and has two main parts:
- Fixed, known one‑off costs at the outset – for example legal and professional fees, surveys, Housemartin’s arrangement fee and any refurbishment or renovation works we carry out shortly after purchase.
- A contingency reserve for landlord repair obligations during the lease – for example structural repairs that remain our responsibility as landlord under the lease terms, rather than the tenant’s.
Together, the purchase price and the FCC form the total loan amount that investors fund for that property.
The FCC amount is set when the loan is arranged and does not change over time.
On the Valuation tab:
- The Purchase section shows the original purchase price, the FCC and the resulting total loan at acquisition.
- The Current valuations section shows the latest Hometrack or HPI‑based valuation alongside the same FCC and total loan figures.
The ‘Change since purchase’ column shows how each valuation metric and the live Exchange price have moved since the property was bought.