Many sellers think they know what their house is worth but in many cases, their numbers can be off for many reasons. One of the biggest reasons homeowners overestimate the value of their home is they have sentimental value in things or occasions that have happened at their house. The homeowner does not realize that the potential home buyer has no knowledge or interest in the sellers sentimental value of a house. It is never as simple as relying on Zillow, in fact, there is no reason to even look at Zillow expecting an accurate value or your property appraiser to tell you how much to sell your house for. Before you decide whether to sell your house directly to a cash home buyer in Omaha or hire a local Council Bluffs real estate agent, you’ll want to determine on your own what you believe is the correct value of your house. There are a few things you can do to get an accurate value of your house in Omaha.
Run A CMA
A Competitive Market Analysis or CMA, are often prepared by your local Council Bluffs real estate agent, however, it isn’t anything you can’t do on your own. A CMA will take information from recently sold properties in your area in Omaha, and provide you with an estimate on what your house will currently sell for. The information can be found on any site that shares MLS data such as Zillow or Trulia. You should look at at least three similar properties, comparing them to yours. It is best to look at like houses in the same area or neighborhood. Look at like square footage, number of bedrooms, bathrooms, garages and so forth. You can add and subtract for things like the number of rooms, lot size, and square footage for houses that are not exactly alike but it will be harder and not as accurate as finding very similar houses as stated above. You can average out the sale prices to determine a good base point for the value of your house in Omaha. Many local Council Bluffs real estate agents will provide you with a CMA free of charge. Just make sure there isn’t a catch, obligating you into a listing you don’t really want or need.
Online Calculators
There are many great tools out there that will help you determine the value of your home helping you decide if you want to sell your home to a cash home buyer in Omaha or a real estate agent in Omaha. These calculators can only work based on the information you provide, so make sure your facts are accurate. Some of the sites you can use include Chase, Zillow, Redfin, HomeGain, Remax, and Realtor.com. Make sure to look at a few of these sites, so you can compare the numbers and determine an average. No site is completely fool-proof, and your value might vary a bit from site to site. The calculators may tell you one thing, but at the end of the day it really comes down to supply and demand which can be different is each city, neighborhood or different areas within a city.
Hire An Appraiser
When you are still questioning the value of your property in Omaha, hiring an appraiser can give you the professional opinion you need. An appraisal can be performed for just a few hundred dollars and will give you valuable insight into the value of your home. Before choosing an appraiser for your property, take some time to do some research. What are their experience levels and specialties? Many sellers will schedule appraisals and inspections before putting their homes on the Omaha. This will help them know what their property is worth and what challenges they might run into once a buyer is found. A professional appraisal can also help if you are challenging the about you are being assessed for property taxes. Many times people will feel as if they are being charged too much for their Omaha property taxes. Having an appraisal done by a licensed Omaha area appraiser will help you effectively challenge your local property appraiser if needed.
Watch The Market
Property values fluctuate in Omaha and Council Bluffs. When you want to sell your house fast in Council Bluffs, Iowa you need to keep up on the current market values. You can ofter discover trends when you study home values over time. Your property may be worth more in the summer than it is in the winter, or vice versa. While this isn’t true for every property, some property values will fluctuate based on the season, demand, and availability. As a homeowner, it’s important to always keep your eye on the market. This will help you sell at the time of year that will be the most profitable for you so you can sell your house for as much as possible.
What To Watch Out For…
Keep in mind that it is not unheard of for a real estate agent to inflate the asking price in order to get a signed agreement. By knowing the value before going into a sale, you will have the upper hand and will ultimately be able to receive the best outcome when selling your Omaha house.
Don’t forget about the land your property is sitting on. Some locations are more valuable than others. While double and triple lots will be worth much more. Make sure the land is buildable and doesn’t have any problems that can lower the value of your property.
If you opt to have an agent create a CMA for you, make sure all of the data provided is correct. You’ll want to check everything out for yourself to ensure accuracy in your valuation.
