It is that time of the year again. The selling season is upon us and you are ready to list your home! Now it’s time to come up with listing price.
Your broker or agent will probably do a Comparative Market Analysis (CMA) to establish an opinion of value for listing your home. The CMA gives a ball park figure or range for listing your home. If there are too few comps for similar properties, your agent may suggest a pre-listing appraisal.
The appraisal is a process that gives a very detailed and exact value. The appraiser is a certified professional that has been formally trained and makes his living by determining home values.
Some things that do not figure into the value of your home:
Your friend’s opinions.
So they’ve seen the house down the road and think it’s much better or worse than yours. Unless they are experienced in the real estate or appraisal fields or have had training in these areas, they will not know what to look for with regards to value.
The emotional attachment you have to your home.
What you paid for your house
Here’s a list of some things that are taken into account for CMA and appraisal pricing purposes:
-Exterior finishes : brick, hardy board, vinyl siding, wood
-Interior finishes: Trims and moldings, carpet, hardwoods, tile vinyl
-Updated cabinets and solid surface countertops in kitchen
-Updated baths
-square footage
-insulated windows
-Number of bedrooms- each additional bedroom adds value.
-Number of baths- each additional bath adds value
-The lower the maintenance, typically the higher the value.
Ex: Trex or composite decking versus wood decking.
-size of lot that the home is located on
-the age of the home
Two homes have the same square footage, on the same street yet are priced differently. What gives?
Do they have the same exterior finishes? (Brick and hardiplank (concrete product) carry higher value than vinyl or wood).
Interior finishes: Wainscoting, crown molding (Does one have heavy crown molding and one has none? Again the finishes both interior and exterior have value).++
Does one of the homes have hardwood floors throughout , carpet throughout, or a mix? Hardwood floors carry a much higher value than carpet, just as tile is valued higher than vinyl.
Does one have more land or larger lot value than others?
There is a lot that is considered by both real estate agents and appraisers while trying to determine a value or price of a home.
Additional Selling Resources: http://www.southernpineshomesforsale.com/is-my-home-priced-to-sell