1How much is my home worth?
Home sellers are often frustrated by this seemingly simple question, and indeed pricing is a difficult step. Using traditional sales methods, you are caught between a rock and a hard place: if you ask too little, you’re giving up a portion of your net worth. If you set a high price, the property is less likely to sell -- and of course properties that sit for many months on the market can seem unappealing.
Most auction-based methods sidestep this problem by setting a low starting price and letting the market drive the price up to its final value. But regardless of what method you might use, a value estimate range will define your sales efforts.
Is my home’s previous price a guide?
At the time of this writing, the market is flat in my area. If I purchased a property a few years ago, I could probably sell it today for roughly the same price. But more commonly, real estate values are in long, steady ascension, with occasional sharp drops. In other words, the price of your home today has little or nothing to do with how much you paid for it years ago, and basing your price on what you paid in the past will either cheat you of a higher price or, in a poor market, prevent a sale entirely because of your unrealistic expectations.
Online sales tools
Chances are you’ve already turned to online tools to value your home. If not, enter “real estate value” or “how much is my house worth?” in a search engine. The resulting web sites will provide you with a quick estimate.
But keep in mind that such services never reflect a great many factors, such as the condition of your house or the very latest dips or bumps in the marketplace. So keep in mind that even the most reputable online home valuators can be as much as 15% over or under the realistic price. And some sites were created primarily to provide leads to real estate agents and to collect personal information.
Another online tool for real estate sellers are forums. Because of the participation of agents and brokers in some of these conversations, advice you receive there may be self-serving on their part. And others in your market may provide inaccurate or out-of-date advice.
Know your market
Get on sounder footing in understanding what your own home is worth by familiarizing yourself with other nearby properties. Attend the Open Houses and observe the final selling price. Is it under or over what the online valuators predicted? How long did the property take to sell? What properties aren’t selling? The final, real world prices when similar properties do sell nearby -- these are the true values and are strong indicators of what your selling experience might be. These are comps: A price paid recently for a similar home in a comparable location.
Keep in mind that comps are merely hints at your property’s value; no two properties are quite identical even if they were built to the same plan, and neither are any two locations. This means the only perfect certainty valuing a property is to find a buyer willing to buy at a given price. If you are comfortable researching comps and other valuation indicators on your own, you are a strong candidate for selling your home without the aid of an agent.
Amenities
The value of your property is higher if you can show it has some of the amenities that buyers today value highly. For example, is there a home office space? Easy-to-connect internet and cable TV hookups? An outdoor grill area? An upstairs laundry area? A laundry sink? A guest bedroom with private bathroom? A casual eating space in the kitchen? Include these in your valuation -- they really can distinguish your house from the place that just sold down the street -- and highlight them during your Open House.
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