When valuing used construction equipment, ag equipment or fleet assets for trade-in, estate planning, financial or other reasons, it's crucial that the appraisal is for the actual asset and not a hypothetical asset that has a matching set of specs and usage.
Unless the condition of the asset can be evaluated, the valuation will be no more accurate than any of the automatic valuation systems on the market that provide values based on specs and usage alone. In order to assess condition, the evaluator must be able to see the asset, either in person or with photos.
Hiring an evaluator to physically travel to every asset might make sense in some rare cases, but for the vast majority of valuation needs it's not cost-effective. Numerical condition rating systems are too subjective to be useful, so in order to make the most efficient use of the evaluator's time, most professional evaluators review pictures of the assets to assess their conditions.
In order to completely convey an asset's condition, pictures should be taken of not only all the sides of an asset but also the tires, wear points, interior and engine compartment, when applicable. Any and all non-standard options or damages are also important to document with photos. Pictures are also used to assist in verifying the meter readings and ID numbers like a VIN or serial and model numbers.
The automated valuation systems on the market can help guess at the value of a hypothetical asset that has matching specifications and most will even adjust the value based on hours or miles. However, only valuations that incorporate the assets' conditions can be truly accurate.
HeavyWorth's mobile apps walk the user through taking the photos to satisfy valuation requirements, as well as helping to ensure that the user takes the right photos to validate information recorded in the app. The HeavyWorth web app makes it easy for the evaluators to review all the information and photos in one place to make an accurate valuation. Those data and photos are stored to justify the valuations and the reports that HeavyWorth generates can include one or all the photos taken of each asset.
To learn more about how HeavyWorth leverages photos to convey condition and validate information in the valuation process, view the demo or contact us today.
