For years now I have helped consumers who own homes in finding their true comparable home value. I see mistakes being made by them over and over again, and they seem to often be the same ones. I wanted to take the time to write down a few things to think about before you just throw your home on the market.
First things first. Take a look in the mirror and acknowledge that your taste differs from the taste of other people. Not everyone, for example, is into Donald Trump’s gold chandeliers and toilet seats. So many home owners get in this rut of thinking that their home is the greatest in the state because they live there and put so much hard work into it. Don’t get me wrong, there’s nothing wrong with being proud of where you live. But one of the first things to acknowledge is that people do have different tastes.
In addition, home values go up and down constantly with the flow of a few factors that all take place within and area extremely close to your home. * One: Homes coming on the market and homes going off the market. * Two: The available inventory that buyers have to choose from. * Much, much more! It is important that a professional help you with determining these factors and setting your expectations up properly so that you don’t become disappointed.
It is important to be logical when researching your comparable home value. When you’re looking to increase the value you want to do inexpensive things that have a dramatic effect on the “feeling” that someone gets when they walk into your home. Green paint in a kitchen would not be a great idea, for example, because green isn’t a suitable color for everyone. It’s wonderful that you may be a fan of green walls, but the majority of the public isn’t. It’s better to stay with tans, whites and other neutral colors.
Smells of urine, sweat smoke, and other gross things tend to glue themselves to carpet. This should be one of the first things to consider when you’re looking to increase your comparable home value. This is because of the inexpensive yet dramatic effect that carpet can have on a home, along with paint. Be sure that you ask someone who won’t lie to you to come to your home and confirm that it smells good. You won’t smell your own home because you live in it.
Staining decks is always a great thing to do as well. It is amazing how different homes look once their decks have been power washed and stained. I enlisted the help of my twin girls last year to stain my deck and it was a fun family project for us all.
The last thing you need to understand is the difference between comparable home value and how it relates to an appraisal vs. market value. Simply put, an appraisal considers only what homes have sold for in a very recent time frame and within a very tight radius. Your home’s market value takes other things into consideration, like cosmetics, and other appealing features that your property possesses.
The bottom line is this. If you will be making a move out of your current home in the next year, get a comparable home value report for free from a vendor like GetMyHomesValue.com. They will actually connect you with someone in your area that will make sure that you are asking the correct dollar amount for your house.