Is there a way to determine my home's market value without having to hire a professional appraiser?

Question

Or do you really need a "licensed" appraiser to determine the value before placing it on the market? What would REALLY need to be repaired (fixed, replaced, refurbished, redone) before attempting to sell it - like roof, plumbing, wiring, floors, etc.?

Answer 1

I took Real Estate classes to get my license. Appraisals are only a matter of opinion, but no matter how many times you have an appraisal done they should be in the same ball park. It does take a lot of work. They compare homes that were sold and are currently for sale in your area that compare to yours as far as square footage, style, property size, # of bedrooms, # of baths, garages, etc. To get the most out of the money you spend on remodeling work on your bathrooms and kitchen, they bring the most money. Hardwoods floors are always a plus. Paint, updated electric, new drywall things like that are helpful in selling the property, but don't bring much extra money. Also take a look at the price your house was appraised at for tax purposes, a lot of times they are high just because the city wants extra money. It is better just to pay someone to appraise to save you the time and frustration, but you could do it yourself by looking at similar homes. Check out http://www.realtor.com to look at homes in your area. View your local real estate websites too.

Answer 2

Forget staging it has no value in the appraisal, and drive-by appraisal are almost gone in this market. I look for updated kitchen and baths (if its an older home) condition of the exterior and interior. This will determine the effective age of your house. You can have a 35 year old house and never has been updated or very little and a effective age of 30 years and the same house next door that is 35 years old and completly remodeled with a effective age of 5 years. Appraisers look at condition and updated items. We also look for deferred maintenance like worn carpet, moss on the roof, bad gutters, house needs painting, bad roof, ect. if your house is in average conditon you will be fine. Your home is based on other comparables sales (withing the last 6 months) and within 1-2 miles of your home, with similar design, similar GLA (gross living area SF above grade), similar age. Then he will adjust (dollar amount) to the comparables to make the comparables as similar as the subject prop. Like if a comparable has a 2-car garage and you had a 1 car garage, he would deduct 2-5K for from that comparable from the sales price of that comparable, because they have a 2 car garage and that adds value, so your value go down. Same with GLA, Lot size, location and same with effective age until all the comparables are similar to the subject. Now it you have something that the comparable does not have he would adjust up on the comparable and your value would go up. Aesthetic has no value in an appraisal report. The appraiser may comment on how well it is being taking care of but thats about it. Little value is placed on landscaping because its perishable and if you don't take care of it, it's gone. Also remember he will be taking interior and exterior pictures and other people (lender) will see them. So just make sure your house is average clean and you will be fine. Also remember most homeowner think their home is worth more than it really is. Also don't ask the appraiser what he thinks the appraisal is going to come in at. The appraiser can not disscuss anything about the appraisal or give you a copy of the appraisal even it you paid him. Its a violation of Federal law and USPAP. If you want a copy of the appraisal you will have to get it from the lender because they are the client not you. Hope this helps

Answer 3

You don't need an appraisal before placing a home on the market but the buyer would need one before it can be financed.

You can use what is called an AVM (Automated Valuation Model) can determine an approximate value for you home and area. Keep in mind these are just machines pulling data. If you have done anything to your home that may raise the value it may not be captured by an AVM. It may be a little more money but I would have an appraiser do what is called a drive by appraisal which is usually cheaper since they do not inspect the property they just "drive by" it and run all the data for the area and consider any updates or hidden benefits your property may have. Also great to have an actual appraisal when trying to sell your home so that you have a bargaining tool.

Here is a list of AVM's

http://www.appraisal-network.net/avm.htm

(I spent 5 years doing real estate appraisals)

Answer 4

A good, experienced real estate agent that works in your area can give a detailed market analysis. They would also be able to tell you what you would need to do to net the most out of your house sale. They would tell you what conditions would emotionally help or hurt the sale and what conditions might prevent a loan from going through( For instance, a bad roof may prevent the buyer from getting home insurance so it would limit your sale to investors that would drive a very hard bargain).

An appraiser only gives their opinion and is usually used to protect the buyers new loan company- not to determine the actual market value.

Web sites like zillow.com can be fun to look at but do not provide anything close to market value.

Answer 5

You are referring to two different things. An appraiser assesses value of a home, a home inspector checks the condition of the home and indicates what needs to be repaired (health and safety issues) and what should be repaired (more convenience items).

You don't have to get either to put your home on the market. Most lenders have a pool of appraisers and home inspectors that they use and if you pay for those up front, it won't matter, the lender will get those items done again.

You can get a Realtor to show you comparable properties and give you a price range on where you should price your home. They can also give you suggestions to make the property more marketable.

Answer 6

I would try and look in the paper and see what other homes comparable to yours are selling for and what price they are asking.

I would also repair everything that is not up to standard. You might as well do it now, because the potential buyer will either make you fix them or expect a fortune taken off the asking price for him to do it.

Make the house as perfect as possible, remove all personal pictures from the walls, and mantles, tables, etc. You want the buyer to feel like it is their house and not like they are intruding on your life. Declutter as much as possible, this makes the house appear larger, and clean everything well.

With this information you should be able to set a fair price and have the home sell in short order. Just remember that we are at a 15 year high on exsisting home inventory, so now, it may be a buyer's market. good luck.

Answer 7

if you have a State Farm insurance agent, you can call and ask for a quote. they'll ask you about the info for the house. Then they'll put all the info into an XACTVALUE estimator....which is on of the tools that actual appraisers use. They'll be able to tell you what the dwelling is worth and best of all.....it's FREE!

Answer 8

a real estate agent. It will not cost you a cent. They can give you comparables (similar homes in your area that sold), and evaluate the condition of your property.

Answer 9

housevalues.com

Answer 10

get all stock quote http://www.investyourmoney.110mb.com/