If you are wondering what your home is worth, it may be tempting to put your address into a search engine and see what the big Automated Valuation Models (AVMs) say. So much information is available with a few clicks of the mouse – why should your home value be any different, right?
Not so fast. Your home is your investment and unlike stocks or your 401K, its value is not easily measured online. The value of your home is based on:
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WHERE IT IS LOCATED
- HOW IT COMPARES to local properties that have recently sold and for how much
- BUYER DEMAND
Although the first variable is fairly black and white, the other two aren’t. It takes a real estate expert – a human! - to review the rest. Only when that has been analyzed can the value be determined.
For example, what if your home and your neighbor’s home has a barn, but your neighbor’s has not been maintained and is now riddled with blackberry vines? What if your home has a much better view of the river than your neighbor’s? The AVM doesn’t make these types of adjustments.
In order to really determine where your home should be priced, you need a pricing expert.
Let’s get started!
