The name Estate Surveyor and Valuer is more or less a matter of idiosyncrasy. The counterparts of the estate surveyors and valuers in other countries are known and referred to by other different names. In the United States of America, they are called appraisers, in the United Kingdom, they are known as Chartered Surveyors, and in other countries they are simply called valuers or estate valuers.
The nomenclature varies depending probably on some philosophical and historical reasons. However, the name in Nigeria must have been as a result of the need to essentially capture and reflect the significant functions the valuer performs in the task of valuation in his name and, moreover, to distinguish him from other surveyors in the family.
One of the popular strand of professional functions of the estate surveyors and valuers is the valuation of assets- both movable and immovable assets. The Estate Surveyor and Valuer does not just put value on such assets. He must first of all, inspect the asset the asset to ascertain its state (i.e. condition) and thereafter, he carries out market survey and analysis to acquaint himself with the levels of demand and supply of the asset as well as prices of comparable assets in the market. It is only after the foregoing two stages that he carries out valuation of the subject asset to determine its value.
Hence, to the extent he carries out the inspection, market survey and analysis of real estate, he is an estate surveyor (i.e. estate market surveyor). Furthermore, to the fact, that he uses his inspection and market survey data to arrive at the value of the asset, he is an estate valuer. Thus, putting the two names together, he is an Estate Surveyor and Valuer.
In essence, an Estate Surveyor and Valuer is one who by his training and experience an elected corporate member of the Nigerian Institution Of Estate Surveyors and Valuers (NIESV), registered and empowered by the Estate Surveyors and Valuers Registration Board of Nigeria (ESVRBON) to practice estate surveying and valuation in Nigeria. The Board (ESVRBON) issues any registered Estate Surveyor and Valuer official stamp and seal which carry his registration number. The valuer is expected to validate his ascent to all his official report of valuations with the instruments.
The Estate Surveyor and Valuer offers a number of professional services to both individuals and the society at large which no one else can provide without professional skill and expertise. The functions include among others the services such as property management, Valuation of assets, Feasibility and Viability studies, Estate agency, Public lands administration, Land use planning and Management, Project Management, Property deal counseling, Arranging finance for investment, Arbitration.