Home Estimates

How much your home is worth?

How much is my home worth? How much can I sell my home for? Homeowner ask these questions at some point and time of ownership. Homes and real estate are very different from most goods you buy and sell. The value is affected by things like mortgage interest rates, improvements and repairs you have done to your house, job market, surrounding neighborhoods, your properties overall condition, etc.

The majority of the houses within the same neighborhood or section of town will have similar price valuations, assuming size and features are about the same. Within the appraisal market these are refered to as "comps" or comparables. By looking to see what else comparables has sold recently close to your home, you get an idea your homes worth. Also visiting open houses and checking out realtor signs in your neighborhood is another way to get an idea.

Depending on the shape of the market, a house could be undervalued in a case like this multiple bids may be submitted over the asking price. Or it could be overvalued and will more then likely have to suffer through several price cuts to attract buyers.  Many times in a dry buyer market the seller's agent will start high to get a gauge where the price should land. We will give some free resources you can use to figure out how much your home has appreciated over the years and what it is worth today, even if you don't plan on selling your house right away it's good to have for the future.

House Prices and Professional Appraisers

When buying or selling a house and getting a mortgage loan a property appraisal is most of the time required. Mortgage and lending companies employ professional appraisers to provide a reasonable approximation of the property. Since the loan is based on how much the house it worth it helps the bank determine their safety levels. An example, banks will not loan you $400,000 to buy a house that is falling apart that appraised at $300,000.

Let's dig a little deeper to find out what appraisers actually do? In some cases they walk through the home and take measurements of the rooms. The will look for things such as kitchen upgrades, checking out the condition of the landscaping, general condition and more. It's not to often but on occassion inspectors may drive by and make sure the house is located in decent neighborhood and not falling apart. They would then compare it to what has sold recently in the neighborhood, making changes additions or subtractions for variations between your home and the surrounding models. Inspectors add more to the value for a better view, for instance a waterfront property, subtracting for a roof that need to be replaced, you can probably now see the process. So an average value is arrived against these comparables and that is the appraised value. Now guess what, when you try to figure out the value of your own home, you will be going through the exact same steps. Figuring out current market conditions for other homes that have recently sold and then figuring out how your property and home should be valued in comparison.

House Valuation Websites

Numerous websites have information about how much houses is worth. Generally on these sites you can browse maps for you neighborhood with estimates of how much each house is worth. With some site you can register to update information on your home, for example  the size, any improvements or any other factors that would affect value. These types of sites gathers information from real estate transactions and public tax records to come up with its valuations. My tests information was mostly out of date not accurate the margin of error of by more than 25%. Overall it's an idea and somewhat entertainig of what your house might sell for. Unfortunately some sites require you fill out your personal contact information with a promise that a real estate professional will be contacting you with your valuation, keep in mind it's a lead generation process.  Sometimes you don't want to deal with someone trying to sell their services just yet.

Using a Realtor

Realtors in general are happy to speak with you about what your property might be worth. Becuase of the constantly stream of buyers and sellers the may offer free estimates just to find a prospective seller. Then they will earn their generous commissions, that would make anyone happy. Have you ever received a post card mailer from a local realtor with lines like "Your neighbors house just sold for $X amount. What is your house worth? Give me a call!". So take them up on the offer, once they have details of your home, see the condition, then they can more then likely give you a fairly good estimate.  It's something all homeowners always wonder and it's a good way to find out how much your home has appreciated in the current real estate market.

DETAILS: Access to your home's information is available online 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Customer Service Department is excellent. Real Estate Appraisers are available for on-site appointment.