Estimating Your Home’s Value

While the best way to get an estimate of your home’s value is to consult with a professional appraiser, it is possible to get a ballpark figure on your own. By coming up with your own estimate, you can better determine if you are ready to contact an appraiser and put your home on the market. In general, there are two things to consider when trying to estimate the value of your home: How does your home compare to similar homes in the area have recently sold for and how much do you adjust to compensate for superior or inferior features of your home.

Considering Comps

When trying to develop an estimated value of your home, you will first need to compare your home to other similar homes that have sold in the area. The homes you use for comparison purposes are referred to as “comps or comparables.” It is important to note that market activity can change dramatically in just a few months’ time. Therefore, it will do you little good to compare your home to a home that sold over a year ago if there are homes that have sold recently. Rather, you should only consider those homes that have sold in the last six months or less. In actuality, however, it is best to only look back at the past three months.

If your home is in a market that is not particularly active, it may be difficult to find comps in your area. Similarly, if your home has special features that are not regularly found in homes in your area, you may not be able to find a reasonable comp to use for comparison purposes. Significant international and national events, such as war and elections, can also cause sudden changes in housing prices.

Amenities and Other Considerations

In addition to comparing your home to other similar homes in your area, there are several other factors that need to be considered when estimating the value of your home. These include:

• Age of the home
• Amenities
• Location
• Size
• Condition

In general, you should compare your home to a home that is of similar age to your home. Homes of a similar age and location typically also have similar amenities. Of course, this isn’t always the case, as your home may include other special amenities such as a pool, a bonus room, a great view, or a particularly large garage.

Ideally, you should compare your home to other homes that are in the same area as yours. If there has been no recent activity in your area, however, you might need to compare your home to other homes in neighborhoods that are similar to yours. In order to find a neighborhood similar to yours, look for one with homes that were built around the same time as yours and that are of comparable size.

The size of your home is another important consideration. The total square footage of your home, the number of rooms in your home, and even the size of your garage will all have an impact on the value of your home.

Since so many factors are involved with determining the value of a home, it can be difficult for a homeowner to develop a precise estimate of its value. Therefore, in order to get a more accurate appraisal of your home, it is best to enlist in the services of a professional appraisal service, a local real estate agent and or a on-line valuation company.


About the Author: Shannon Kietzman is a well known author and trusted resource. Shannon regularly writes for http://www.electronicappraiser.com/, which is a leading provider of on-line home appraisals and offers a nationwide personalized instant informational report about home appraisal. For more information, please visit .
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