Homeowners are often wondering how much their home is worth. In today’s world, it can seem as easy as going online and visiting a site like Zillow or Trulia and typing in an address. While this can give you a good initial idea of how much your house might be worth, it is also akin to typing in the word headache in a site like WebMD and reading that you might have a brain tumor.
Sites like Zillow and WebMD certainly have their place, they provide a good amount of data and can be a great resource. While sure, a headache might be a symptom of some awful illness, it is more than likely caused by something much more benign. You should consult with a doctor before jumping to any conclusions. The many online house hunting sites are similar. The numbers they are showing you are estimates. They are generated by generic data about the region, and then take into consideration the square footage of a home, the number of bedrooms and then it spits out a number. This number, while helpful, is not based on your interior and actual condition of a home.
So how do you get a good idea of what a property is worth, well there are many options out there. The first is to make sure you are looking at a variety of sites in order to have a range of estimates. The other way is to contact a real estate agent to put together a valuation for you. Most agents will gladly work with you to put a home valuation together. The main item is to find an agent who is knowledgeable about your neighborhood and your community. And to make sure that they ask you enough questions to be able to have an idea of what your house might be worth.
The ideal way to be able to put together an accurate estimate for your home’s value is for the agent to visit your home and then to work through a list of recently sold property that they can use to build your homes report.
Once you have that number your agent should be able to talk you through an ideal pricing strategy that fits with your goals and desires. Depending on what you are trying to achieve and your timeline you should have several different options for how to price and promote your home.
Based on the strategy you should also have a strong marketing plan included. Make sure your agent is going to actively market the property well beyond the free upload to all of the syndicated home search sites out there. What else are they going to do to help you stand out from the thousands of other homes that will be coming on the market?
If you are thinking of selling your home, I hope you have a fast sale and find your ideal agent.
Ben Rogers is a real estate agent with REMAX Mountain Living in Truckee. He can be reached at benrogers@remax.net or at www.TruckeeMountainHomes.com. CA DRE# 02057434
