Home Valuation
Establishing A Value For Your Real Estate
As a For Sale by Owner, how are you establishing the sale price of your home? Are you using Zillow? Listening to Uncle Joe? What process are you using to determine the value your home?
Establishing the sales price of your home is especially important to getting your home sold.
Valuation Tools
Free Valuation Sites
There are many FREE online tools and websites that offer “guestimates” on value, but many times they are not completely accurate.
Web estimates often times present comps that are outside the specific market. There are many factors at play when establishing a homes value.
Professional Valuation
Realtors
Most Realtors offer a home valuation. It is good to note that the majority of realtors are not licensed appraisers. Realtors give a generally close estimate to the market value of the home.
Real estate professionals access active, pending and sold data from the MLS to refine property value. Finding comparable homes in the area and analyzing the differences between them.
Appraisers
An appraiser typical uses the MLS in the same way Realtors do for home valuation. The difference being, an appraiser is licensed for the sole purpose of valuation. They find more data and will inspect the home for maximum detail.
An appraisal is usually ordered by the buyer’s lender and has the power to cap your sales price.
Home Valuation Tips
Avoid Overpricing
Overpriced homes generally receive little to no showings and waste days on market, along with seller continued holding costs. Keep in mind that buyers will have full, detailed access to market activity through their agent.
Sell Quickly
Yes, days on market can negatively affect the value of the offers, Realtors know that high days on market is an indication to offer low. High Days on market can then produce offers that are “low-ball” since they see that you have been on the market for a while.
Get Help
As a For Sale by Owner we would suggest you call a Realtor or Broker. Pay them to run a report for you, do a full Comparative Market Analysis, or Broker Price Opinion. This could run you as little as $100 to as much as $300, but it is worth it.
For Sale by Owner can be a formidable task and there are many more moving pieces than expected. It can be frustrating and exciting at the same time. The goal may be to save hard-earned equity, but do not hesitate to seek a real estate professional’s assistance.
Property Updates
If you have recently updated your home, the full value of the improvements may not be returned in equity. Many upgrades you perform on a home increase the desirability, but not the value. Desirability may differentiate you from comparable properties in person, but on paper they hold little weight.
Conclusion
Be especially careful about hiring Family members or friends to sell your home, your home is one of your largest assets, go with a proven professional not a part time agent.