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If you are planning to sell your
home, it might be a wise decision to make a small investment in a
professional appraisal. Unless you study real estate values on a
day
to day basis, like a professional appraiser does, it's difficult for
you to
get a handle on real estate values. We aren’t talking about how
much
you have invested in your home, how much you paid for it, or how
much you
want for it. We’re talking about the true market value of your
home,
which could really pay off for you in the long run
PRE-LISTING
APPRAISAL
If you’re working with a real estate agent
to list your property, more than
likely they’ll provide you with a Comparative
Market Analysis ( CMA )
that lists selected sales in your area as one of the first steps in
determining what to set as the “Listing Price". This step is
vital if you're going to maximize your profit and minimize the
home’s time
on the market.
But
even if you're working with
the most experienced real estate agent, it's probably in your best
interest
to have an "objective" third-party's opinion of value prior to
signing a Listing Agreement. And that’s where we come in. We
can provide you with a pre-listing appraisal so both you and your
agent
have an accurate description of your home's features and a detailed
analysis of the most recent and similar "comparable sales" or as
they're commonly called, "Comps". In addition to helping
you set a realistic selling price so your home will attract buyers, a
professional appraisal can:
- Be a very valuable negotiating tool once you have
a potential
buyer
- Impress buyer’s with written proof of your home’s
condition
inside and out
- Make you aware of problems and eliminate
last-minute repair
hassles that might delay a closing
- Decrease the chances of unknown problems that
cause sales to
fall through
- Eliminate the wait for the buyer or their
mortgage company to
get the appraisal done on their own
Many
people are surprised when they find
out that the market value of their home is much more than they
thought, so
investing in a professional appraisal actually allowed these people
to
receive several thousand more dollars than they thought they would
when
their home was sold. Others have an inflated opinion of their
home's
value and an appraisal helped them to realistically price their home
in
order for it to sell. An overpriced home will not attract buyers,
which means no offers and no closing and that you have wasted
valuable
time, money, and efforts. | 
