Global Appraisal Standards 101: What Investors Need to Know Before Trusting a Number

A $50 million valuation in Dubai, a €50 million valuation in Frankfurt, and a $50 million valuation in Dallas can all say "fair market value" on the cover page and still mean three different things underneath. Not because anyone did bad work — because they were built under three different rulebooks.

If you invest across borders, or even just review reports prepared by firms outside your home market, here's the landscape you're actually operating in.

The global baseline: IVS

International Valuation Standards (IVS), published by the International Valuation Standards Council (IVSC), are the closest thing the profession has to a universal grammar. The IVSC is an independent, not-for-profit standards organization headquartered in London that develops international technical and ethical standards for valuations relied on by investors and others.

IVS isn't a licensing regime — it's a framework. Most national and regional standards (RICS, USPAP among them) are built on top of it or harmonized with it. Many national frameworks, including RICS in the UK and USPAP in the US, harmonize their practices with IVS to maintain international credibility. Think of IVS as the floor everyone is supposed to be building above, not a separate competing standard.

RICS Red Book — the dominant standard outside the US

If you're buying in the UK, the Gulf, much of Asia, or anywhere with strong British commercial law influence, you're almost certainly looking at a RICS Red Book valuation. RICS valuation professional standards and practice information incorporate the global concepts defined in IVS, developed by the IVSC.