The German Property Valuation Ordinance (ImmoWertV) provides three established valuation methods. Which method is appropriate depends on the type and use of the property, normal market practice and the quality of the available data. Selecting and applying the right method is a central part of the appraiser’s work.
What have sufficiently comparable properties actually sold for? The value is derived from suitable recorded purchase prices, comparative factors or land reference values and adjusted for relevant differences such as location, size, condition and features.
Commonly used for condominiums, owner-occupied houses and undeveloped land where suitable comparative data is available
What income can the property sustainably generate? Market-level income, operating costs, the remaining useful life and the property interest rate are used to derive a value from its earning capacity.
Commonly used for rented residential properties, investment properties and commercial real estate
What are the land and the existing building substance worth? The land value and the depreciated construction costs are combined and then adjusted to reflect conditions in the local property market.
Commonly used for owner-occupied and special-purpose properties where income or sufficiently comparable sales are not the primary basis
Clear answers to what owners ask before commissioning one.
Where the contract contains an allocation, the tax office will accept it provided it is economically defensible and not merely nominal. In practice many contracts contain no allocation at all, and figures that depart sharply from the norm are regularly corrected. An allocation derived from the workbook gives you a defensible basis.
No. In 2020 the Federal Fiscal Court held (IX R 26/19) that the workbook does not bind the courts and that an expert appraisal must be obtained in a dispute. It is, however, the model tax offices normally work with — which is why it is worth measuring your own result against it.
Because the income value method then applies, and it takes precedence over the asset value method. It derives the building value from the income the property produces rather than from production costs. Depending on location and rent, the building share can shift considerably.
It deducts the land value from the purchase price and treats the remainder as the building value. The Federal Fiscal Court rejected this approach (IX R 86/97) because it assigns all market fluctuation to the building alone. Land and building must be valued separately and only then set in relation.
Purchase price and date, living or usable area, plot area, standard land value and construction year. For a condominium you also need the co-ownership share from the declaration of division. The net cold rent is optional but often changes the result considerably.
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The split of a purchase price between land on one side and building on the other. It decides how much you may depreciate over the useful life.
Buying a let property does not let you depreciate the purchase price — only the part attributable to the building. Land stays out of it, because it does not wear out. The higher the building share, the higher the annual depreciation and the lower the tax burden.
The Federal Ministry of Finance publishes a workbook for this, which tax offices use in practice. It knows three methods — comparative, income and asset value — and applies them in a fixed order of precedence. Which one applies depends on the data available for the property.
What is not permitted is the residual method, where the building value is simply what remains after deducting the land value. The Federal Fiscal Court rejected it. We therefore value land and building separately and only then set the two in relation.
Comparative, income and asset value, in the order the workbook prescribes. For a let property the income value method often produces a markedly different building share than the asset value method.
Standard production costs 2010 per Annex 4 ImmoWertV, the building price index and straight-line age depreciation per section 38 ImmoWertV — the data behind the official workbook, updated annually.
You see not just the building share but how it was reached: cost value, area conversion, outdoor facilities, index, age depreciation and land value.
The result is the figure you enter in your tax return — including the proportional incidental acquisition costs and net of any inventory bought with the property.
Whenever the building share decides your tax burden — and whenever you have to be able to substantiate it.
The basis for every later depreciation, set correctly in the first year.
A defensible figure instead of a rough estimate.
Your own calculation to set against the tax office allocation.
Calculated consistently and comparably across several properties.
Whenever the building share decides your tax burden — and whenever you have to be able to substantiate it.
The basis for every later depreciation, set correctly in the first year.
A defensible figure instead of a rough estimate.
Your own calculation to set against the tax office allocation.
Calculated consistently and comparably across several properties.
From the free first estimate to the signed report.
Enter purchase price, areas and standard land value and see straight away what building share the workbook produces.
We go through your figures and documents and resolve open points before anything is calculated.
An appraiser determines land and building value separately, selects the appropriate method and gives reasons for that choice.
You get the allocation as a signed PDF with the full derivation — suitable for submission to the tax office.
The exact requirements depend on the property, the valuation method and the intended use of the appraisal. Complete documents help us work faster and reduce the number of assumptions we have to make.
Shows the registered ownership and relevant rights or encumbrances, such as rights of way, usufruct or land charges. It is particularly important where legal characteristics may affect the property value.
Shows the location, shape and boundaries of the plot and helps match the valued property to the official cadastral records.
Floor plans, sections and elevations help us understand the layout, dimensions and construction of the building.
Provides a traceable basis for the stated floor areas. We review it because differences in area can materially affect the valuation.
Relevant for rented properties. They document the current rental income and contractual conditions used in the income value assessment.
Provides information about the property’s energy performance and can help assess its condition, marketability and possible modernisation requirements.
A fixed price you know before commissioning.
Base price
from€249incl. 19% VAT
All prices include VAT.
A condominium is usually less involved to allocate than a mixed-use building.
Apartment buildings with several units require additional work.
Where rent data or comparison factors exist, the income or comparative value method has to be examined alongside the asset value method.
The same certified appraisers, recognised valuation methods and legal foundation. The difference is how extensively the valuation is documented, and that determines which situations the appraisal is suitable for.
Value Appraisal | Full Market Value Appraisal | |
|---|---|---|
| In short | An independently determined market value for your own decisions | The comprehensively documented report for cases where the value must withstand scrutiny |
| Price | from €1,250 | from €2,260 |
| What you get |
|
|
| Where it stops | Not suitable for: Court proceedings, formal submissions to authorities and situations where the valuation is likely to face legal or formal scrutiny | Usually more than you need for: Personal planning, ordinary price negotiations and other situations where a Value Appraisal provides sufficient detail |
In short
An independently determined market value for your own decisions
Price
from €1,250
What you get
Each appraisal answers a different question. Start with what you want to achieve and choose the service that matches your property and intended use.
Prove a shorter remaining useful life and depreciate faster
Increasing annual depreciation under sec. 7 (4) sentence 2 EStG
from€890
Start hereA professionally determined market value in compact form
Buying, selling, private settlements and portfolio planning
from€1,250
A comprehensively documented market value under sec. 194 BauGB
Courts, tax authorities, inheritance matters and contested settlements
from€2,260
Split the purchase price between land and building
Determining the depreciation basis after purchasing a property
from€249
You are hereOnly the building share is depreciable — land does not wear out. We split your purchase price using the Federal Ministry of Finance workbook, the same model the tax office applies.
from€249incl. 19% VAT
An appraiser determines land and building value separately and gives reasons for the method chosen.
A fixed price you know before commissioning.
Delivered as a signed PDF with the full derivation.
Priority processing is available for a surcharge.
Where it stops
Not suitable for: Court proceedings, formal submissions to authorities and situations where the valuation is likely to face legal or formal scrutiny
In short
The comprehensively documented report for cases where the value must withstand scrutiny
Price
from €2,260
What you get
Where it stops
Usually more than you need for: Personal planning, ordinary price negotiations and other situations where a Value Appraisal provides sufficient detail
