Hervey Bay valuation FAQ: SMSF, CGT, family transfers and past dates

These are the questions Hervey Bay owners, trustees and accountants ask once they know a figure has to be relied on by someone else. The general questions are on the site's main FAQ page. This page deals with the Fraser Coast details behind them.

Who can value a Hervey Bay property for tax or super?

In Queensland, anyone working as a valuer must be registered with the Valuers Registration Board of Queensland, and the registered valuer who formed the opinion signs the report. The ATO's guide to market valuation for tax purposes says the ATO will accept valuations that comply with recognised professional valuation standards. A signed report names the localities its evidence came from. That matters on the Fraser Coast, where the Valuer-General's 2024 overview reports a separate residential land median for Pialba, Urangan, Eli Waters and each other locality.

Can I use the land value on my Fraser Coast rates notice?

Not as a market value. The Fraser Coast was last valued by the Valuer-General in 2024, and that valuation reflects land values at 1 October 2023, as shown in the land valuation trends table and the Department's archived 2024 valuation page. It is a site value that excludes the house. For a 2026 tax or super date it describes land only, three years earlier.

What does an SMSF auditor need for a Hervey Bay property?

The trustees must value fund assets at market value when preparing the fund's accounts, using a fair and reasonable process based on objective and supportable data, according to the ATO's guide to valuing SMSF assets. For real property the ATO lists evidence such as comparable sales, a recent arm's length purchase price and an independent agent's appraisal, and says a valuation based on only one item of evidence is generally not sufficient. A rates notice adds little for Hervey Bay property in any case, because its land value dates from October 2023. A Hervey Bay SMSF valuation values land and buildings together at the fund's reporting date, with the comparable sales attached.

Can my SMSF buy my Hervey Bay property from me?

Usually not if it is a home or holiday house. A fund generally cannot acquire assets from a related party. One exception is business real property bought at market value, which the ATO describes in SMSFR 2009/1 as property used wholly and exclusively in a business. Even incidental private use can rule it out. Where a business premises qualifies, the transfer still has to be at market value, and the auditor will check that. Speak to the fund's adviser before relying on the exception.

What about transferring a property to family?

Transfer duty in Queensland is assessed on the higher of the price and the property's unencumbered value, generally its market value, as the Queensland Revenue Office explains. Its Public Ruling DA505.1 requires a valuation where a party is a member of another party's family. Evidence from a real estate agent must give at least three recent comparable sales. Where nothing is paid, duty is calculated on the highest value given in the valuation. A stamp duty valuation is prepared for that purpose.

Can a Hervey Bay property be valued as at a past date?

Yes. A retrospective valuation uses only sales that had settled by the required date and describes the house as it was then. Records that have changed since need care. Flood hazard mapping for six Fraser Coast catchments, including Eli Creek and Bunya Creek, was replaced by TLPI 01/24 from 7 March 2025, so a valuation dated earlier reflects the mapping in force at the time. Photographs, invoices and the date any extension or pool was finished help the valuer separate what existed on the day from what came later.

What is a CGT valuation used for?

It fixes market value on the date a CGT event fell, or on the date a former home was first rented out where the ATO's first-use rule applies. Holiday houses are CGT assets, and only one dwelling can be your main residence at a time. A Hervey Bay holiday house, or a former home that has been let and later used for holidays, can have more than one date that matters, so confirm which one your accountant needs. A Hervey Bay CGT valuation can be current or retrospective.

Is a home in a residential park valued the same way?

No. Under Queensland's 2003 law on manufactured homes in residential parks, a site agreement lets the home owner rent a site in a park to place their manufactured home, as Business Queensland explains. There is no freehold lot, so sales of houses on their own land are not comparable. Tell us it is a park home, and provide the site agreement, when you get in touch.

How do I find out which report I need?

Send the address, the purpose and the date through the contact page. Check the date with your accountant or the fund's administrator first, because it decides which sales can be used.