Before Selling

Appraisals – Selling a Home

What Homeowners Should Know About Appraisals Before Selling Their Home

Thinking of selling your home? Before you put your home on the market with a Realtor, or put it up for sale by owner, it is in your best interest to get an appraisal from a LOCAL certified real estate appraiser. The real estate appraiser acts as an unbiased third party that can help you determine how much you should list your home for. There are alternative ways that provide an estimate of your homes market value including a comparable market analysis also known as a CMA. However, because these are not prepared by an appraiser, they may be less accurate. CMA’s are based on comparable homes in your area prepared by a REALTOR or agent therefore, if you’re looking for an actual appraised value of your home, be sure to hire a certified appraiser that has experience in your local real estate market. When you want the most accurate opinion of value, it would be in YOUR best interest to hire a professional certified real estate appraiser prior to putting your home on the open market.

To determine the market value of your home, the appraiser will look at the size, condition, quality, appeal and type of the property. The appraiser will be analyzing the overall real estate market in the area and what other similar homes have sold for and are currently selling for. The appraiser will make notes of any upgrades to the property and the additional features around your home. Basically, the appraiser determines the fair market value of your home by considering any factors that may impact the value or marketability and how those compare to the nearby, recent sales during the appraisal process.

The real estate appraisal is meant to be objective. It is an opinion of what a typical buyer would pay for a property which is considered the market value, and is calculated by a professional certified property appraiser. If your home is not priced correctly, and the appraised value from the buyer’s mortgage lender is lower than expected, the transaction may be delayed or even canceled.

Therefore, it is in the home sellers best interest to have an independent home appraisal completed prior to listing the property for sale. Having an appraisal done prior to listing for sale will provide you with an understanding the appraisal process and what to expect. Having a professional appraiser develop an opinion of value can help prevent surprises later and can sometimes work in your favor when selling your home. Inform prospective buyers that you hired and consulted with a local appraiser to assist with pricing the home prior to listing it and the appraiser acted as an unbiased third party with no interest in the outcome of the transaction. The appraisal report can sometimes act as a buffer and remove the emotional aspect of negotiating between the buyer and seller.

So, what can you do to increase the value of your home? The condition of your home does affect its market value. You can increase the value of your home by doing repairs and improvements. Fix anything that’s broken, and consider doing some minor improvements such as updating the bathroom or putting in new flooring. New carpet and paint can go a long way sometimes. Also, make sure your home and yard are clean and uncluttered when you are preparing your home to be marketed. Keep in mind, the buyers mortgage lender will be having an appraisal done to determine what the property is worth. Sellers that have an appraisal before they put their home up for sale are in a better position to negotiate with prospective buyers. There are two reasons properties don’t sell… PRICE or CONDITION.

Let us handle the pricing part. We will provide you an appraisal report with the most accurate and up-to-date market value of your home. Pricing your property correctly early in the marketing process may also allow you to get it sold sooner rather than later. The law surrounding residential real estate appraisals is complicated and the facts of each case are unique. This article provides a brief, general introduction to the topic.