Precio, avalúo y catastro: tres cifras, tres preguntas
Watch the explanation and read its transcript on Precio, avalúo y catastro: tres cifras, tres preguntas. To continue your review, also read El IGAC prepara el IVP 2026: cómo leer un índice sin convertirlo en el precio de su lote and Presupuesto completo para comprar un lote.
Video, transcript and related readingAsk what each figure represents and which decision it supports; a seller’s asking price is not automatically an appraisal.
Three figures can answer different questions
The asking price expresses the seller's offer, a commercial appraisal is a technical opinion for a purpose, and cadastral value belongs to the relevant information and fiscal administration framework. IGAC distinguishes individual commercial valuation from mass cadastral valuation in its institutional explanation. That difference provides neither a universal ratio nor a formula automatically converting one figure into another. Our editorial reading begins by recording the name, date, author and purpose of each figure received. If an advertisement calls an informal opinion an appraisal, request the supporting report or record that only a commercial expectation is known. Do not treat tax paid as a probable sale price either. The comparison aims to identify evidence informing negotiation and what a professional needs to review. Keep personal affordability separate: a value estimate does not establish that purchasing the land fits your own budget and objectives.
Define why the appraisal is needed
Tell the appraiser whether the work supports negotiation, an organisation's requirement or another decision. Law 1673 regulates the activity and the Open Register of Appraisers; ask how to check the professional's relevant status and specialisation. Membership of a business with a property related name does not by itself demonstrate an appropriate scope. Our commissioning record identifies the property, right to be valued, available documents, recipient and required date. If a third party will use the report, establish its requirements before commissioning so the product serves that purpose. Ask for exclusions, missing information and treatment of unverified assumptions to be explained. A cheaper proposal may have a different scope from a more extensive one. Compare the decisions each supports and who accepts responsibility for the conclusion rather than buying only a formally presented figure that fails to address the object needing assessment.
Clarify the property and right valued
Supply relevant background and identify known differences between advertisement, documentation and site. Do not ask the appraiser to ignore a condition merely to support a desired figure. Our editorial review records information supplied, what the professional checked and what was assumed under a limitation. If the offer concerns a share or portion rather than the whole parcel, clarify the object before discussing price per unit area. Law 1673 defines valuation as a technical activity; this article produces no opinion of value or legal determination about individual background. The team should coordinate questions without replacing title review or measurement where needed. Check whether buildings, improvements or elements the seller intends to remove are included. A figure may appear high or low because you imagine a different object from the one actually valued. Resolving that difference often helps more than finding another advertisement confirming the initial expectation.
Treat advertisements as observations with limits
For preliminary discussion, organise advertisements by date, contextual location, object offered and known conditions. Do not turn a published price into a completed sale price or remove property differences to calculate an attractive average. IGAC mentions market comparison among valuation methods, but professional application requires support. Our editorial sheet detects questions rather than replacing that methodology. In a hypothetical example, two advertisements in one area show similar sizes, although one has defined access and the other an outstanding investigation. Copying the first unit price onto the second omits a potentially important difference. Record unknown information and possible duplicate advertisements for the same property. A reference that fails to identify what is offered should be marked weak for comparison. An honest table may have fewer rows and support a better discussion than a long list of incomparable offers presented as definitive evidence of the market.
Ask the report to explain how the result is reached
When receiving the work, request an understandable explanation of sources, chosen method, date and relevant assumptions. IGAC Resolution 620 of 2008 is an institutional reference for procedures within its scope; it should not be presented as an automatic recipe for every private assignment. Our recommendation asks the appraiser which framework applies and why the method addresses the object. Distinguish a conclusion from an auxiliary calculation or exploratory scenario. Where a condition could not be checked, ask how it limits use of the report. Do not demand removal of uncertainty merely because negotiations need a figure. Equally, avoid reducing the document to its final page: assumptions can change the conclusion's meaning. A buyer can request explanation without directing valuation, and a seller can use the report in discussion without promising every prospect will pay that result or every organisation will accept it for any purpose.
Separate valuation from the project budget
An appraisal and a budget answer different questions. Our editorial matrix compares acquisition price with the studies, preparation and operation you need, keeping professional value assessment in a separate column. A parcel may appear reasonable against its references while requiring investment incompatible with available cash. In another scenario, an improvement important to one buyer may be irrelevant to your brief. Do not subtract unsupported costs to manufacture a personal appraisal or present accumulated spending as proof of commercial value. Ask the appraiser what was considered and technical advisers to define outstanding budget items. Law 1673 helps preserve responsibility for the opinion with the person performing valuation, while the spending decision remains yours. This separation supports negotiation using verifiable criteria and identifies when more project information is needed rather than another figure merely closer to the amount you originally expected or hoped to pay.
Use disagreement between figures to identify questions
Imagine the seller asks more than a report's result and cites another advertisement as support. Do not automatically conclude deception or that one figure requires the transaction to close. Our proposal organises three questions: whether the same object is compared, whether dates and conditions are relevant and what additional evidence could explain the difference. The professional can clarify the opinion within the commissioned scope, while the parties decide expectations and conditions. If the gap depends on an unverified future use, record that dependency and seek necessary planning evidence instead of valuing the assumption as an acquired right. If it reflects personal preference, recognise that openly. IGAC describes commercial appraisal in a context of informed negotiation, not a transaction guarantee. The proportionate response may be continued discussion, a review request or withdrawal where the asking price and intended project cannot reach a compatible position for the buyer.
Keep the date, purpose and usage conditions
File the report with its object, date, recipient, clarifications and usage limits. Ask the appraiser which changes might justify updating rather than inventing a universal validity period for every document. Our editorial record also states whether the figure was obtained for lending, negotiation or another purpose, since it should not circulate as an interchangeable answer to everything. When preparing advertising, identify the asking price and separately explain whether a report is available for review. Avoid disclosing third party data or transaction evidence received under confidentiality conditions. Law 1673 includes professional duties, and the valuation framework deserves respect when results are shared. A well presented file explains which figure supports an assertion and what uncertainty remains. It guarantees neither sale, financing nor future appreciation. Its value lies in improving a specific decision through identified evidence and responsibility without replacing cost analysis or the buyer's preferences.
Fictional comparables: normalise without inventing an appraisal
Invented teaching data with no actual market or properties. T0 is a hypothetical enquiry date. These adjustments compare budgets and questions rather than supply a professional appraisal methodology or conclusion.
| Fictional observation | Calculation and explained adjustment | Missing information limiting comparison |
|---|---|---|
| A: 500 m²; COP 200 million listing at T0 | Asking price: COP 400,000/m². Adding an assumed COP 20 million connection gives a COP 220 million budget rather than property value. | Closing price and a confirmed connection quotation are missing; do not treat either assumption as market evidence. |
| B: 600 m²; COP 240 million listing at T0 | Asking price: COP 400,000/m². Do not assume zero utility cost merely because the listing says available. | Request connection scope, usable area and comparability of the offered right before calling its cost equivalent to A. |
| C: 450 m²; COP 180 million listing at T0−3 months | Also COP 400,000/m², but at a different date. Keep the observation without imposing an invented time adjustment. | Listing validity, current status and offer conditions are missing. A per-square-metre ratio does not resolve these differences. |
| Comparable-scope adjustment | Separate price, necessary works and technical conditions. Explain each added or outstanding item needed for an equivalent outcome. | Professional valuation adjustments need their own justification; do not turn a construction budget into an automatic discount. |
| Appraiser’s commission | Supply the object, right, purpose and required date alongside observations and sources for each item. | Request method, limitations and report. Asking price, cadastral value and commercial appraisal remain figures serving different purposes. |
Sources & bibliography
Read the full document, its date, amendments and scope. The editorial review date describes this page; it does not establish an authorisation or a specific answer about your plot or financing.
- 01IGAC: preguntas frecuentes de Subdirección de Avalúoswww.igac.gov.co · Defines commercial valuation, its purpose and methods. The page contains a percentage comparison inconsistent with later texts; that proportion is not reproduced.
- 02Superservicios: Ley 1673 de 2013normograma.superservicios.gov.co · Valuers' professional activities and the Open Register of Valuers; check the professional's category and current registration status.
- 03IGAC: Resolución 620 de 2008www.igac.gov.co · Official reference on valuation procedures within its scope; it does not automatically apply to every private commission.