Year-end property valuation in the UAE: what to instruct, when, and what your auditor will ask for

Last updated: November 12, 2026 · By Sumit Shankar, MRICS, Chartered Surveyor and RICS Registered Valuer, Land Sterling

A year-end property valuation states what a property was worth at your reporting date, usually 31 December, so the figure can go into the financial statements and be supported through the audit. The rules are simple: instruct early enough for inspections before year end, fix the valuation date as the reporting date, make sure the report states the basis of value, the method and the evidence, and expect the auditor to ask how the figure was reached. This guide from the commercial property valuation team at Land Sterling covers each point.

Does every company need a year-end property valuation?

No. Whether you need one depends on how the property is accounted for. Management decides that under its accounting policies and the auditor forms a view on it; the valuer does not.

• Investment property held at fair value. Under IAS 40, a company that uses the fair value model remeasures investment property at fair value at each reporting date, with the gain or loss going through profit or loss. This is a common reason for a year-end instruction.
• Investment property held at cost. The accounts still disclose fair value, so a fair value estimate is needed each year even though the balance sheet carries cost.
• Owner-occupied property on the revaluation model. Under IAS 16, revaluations must be frequent enough that the carrying amount does not differ materially from fair value: annually where values move significantly, otherwise typically every three to five years, and for the whole asset class.
• Lenders, shareholders and group reporting. Loan covenants, fund rules and parent companies often ask for a year-end figure whatever the accounting policy says.

IAS 40 encourages but does not require an independent valuer, and the accounts must say whether one was used. If none of the above applies, you may not need a valuation at all. Discuss the basis with your auditor before you instruct, so the report is prepared on the right basis the first time. If the company is within UAE corporate tax, ask your tax adviser about the realisation basis election, which affects whether unrealised fair value movements are taxed as they arise.

Which valuation date should the report use?

The reporting date. A valuation is an opinion of value as at a specific date, and for financial statements that date is the end of the reporting period, not the day of the inspection or the day the report is signed. The valuer can inspect in November or December and still value as at 31 December, using the evidence available at that date. If the company’s year end is not 31 December, say so at instruction; the date in the report follows yours.

When should you instruct?

For a 31 December year end, instruct in November. The reasons are practical:

1. Inspections. Properties are inspected unless the Red Book conditions for a revaluation without re-inspection are met and agreed at instruction. Access to let property depends on the tenants, and portfolios take longer than single assets.
2. Documents. Rent rolls, lease schedules, service charge accounts and, for trading assets, the trading figures have to be gathered and checked.
3. Travel. Many owners, tenants and approvers travel in late December, which slows access and sign-off.
4. The audit timetable. Auditors usually want the valuation report early in January fieldwork, not at the end.

The report is signed after the valuation date, on a timetable agreed at instruction, and reflects the registered evidence up to that date. The inspections and the data work are what need to happen before year end.

What does the report have to contain for financial reporting?

A report prepared to the RICS Valuation Global Standards (the Red Book) for financial statements states:

• The basis of value. For IFRS accounts this is fair value as defined in IFRS 13. The Red Book notes that fair value under IFRS 13 is, for most practical purposes, consistent with market value, so the figure is normally the same; the report states fair value as the basis and explains that relationship.
• The valuation date, matching the reporting date.
• The property and the interest valued: freehold, leasehold, musataha or usufruct, the tenancies in place, and any restrictions.
• The method and the inputs. For let property this is usually the income approach, with the rents, yields and comparable transactions used. Auditors will ask which inputs are observable and which are the valuer’s judgement; property valuations often sit at Level 3 of the IFRS 13 hierarchy for that reason, so the report should make the key inputs easy to find.
• Assumptions and special assumptions, stated and explained.
• The valuer’s name, qualification and firm, the conflict of interest check carried out for the instruction, and the additional disclosures the Red Book requires for a valuation used in financial statements, such as the firm’s relationship with the client and the length of time the valuer has acted.

For a portfolio, the same date, basis and approach apply to every asset, so the movement from last year can be explained asset by asset.

What will the auditor ask about the valuation?

International Standards on Auditing, which UAE auditors apply, require the auditor to evaluate the competence, capabilities and objectivity of a management’s expert such as a valuer and the appropriateness of the expert’s work, and to test the methods, assumptions and data behind fair value estimates. In practice the auditor’s questions fall into five groups:

1. Who did it. The firm’s regulation, the valuer’s qualification, the terms of engagement, and whether the valuer has any interest in the property or the company.
2. How it was done, and on what data. The method, the key inputs and the comparable evidence, whether the method is consistent with last year, and whether the rent roll and lease data given to the valuer tie back to the source documents.
3. Why the figure moved. The change from the prior year, split between market movement and changes to the property or its income.
4. How sensitive it is. What happens to the value if the yield or the rent assumption moves. The valuer can provide this on request; ask for it at instruction.
5. Whether the dates match. The valuation date against the reporting date, and the date of the evidence used.

A report that answers these in its own pages saves a round of correspondence in January. Our earlier post on why year-end valuations matter covers the business reasons; this guide is about getting the report right.

What does the valuer need from you?

Title deeds (and the head lease for leasehold); floor plans and the areas you report; the rent roll and lease schedule with terms, breaks and reviews; service charge budget and accounts; committed capital expenditure; for trading assets, the trading accounts and management agreement; last year’s valuation report; and the reporting date and the auditor’s name. Send these with the instruction. Late documents are the usual cause of a late report.

How does Land Sterling handle year-end instructions?

Land Sterling is a RICS regulated valuation company, accredited and registered with the Dubai Land Department (RERA). Reports are prepared to the RICS Red Book and the International Valuation Standards, with the basis of value, the valuation date, the method, the evidence and the assumptions stated. The Valuation Department has more than 30 professional valuers, so portfolios across the UAE can be inspected in parallel under one instruction, with one valuation date and a consistent approach. Fees are quoted per instruction and confirmed in writing before inspection; commercial and portfolio timelines are agreed at instruction.

Year-end valuation FAQs

Request a year-end valuation proposal.