Appraisals can do you a lot of good when you get ready to sell your property here in Murphy, North Carolina. Real estate prices are constantly changing, so it’s good to have an accurate analysis of what your value is.
Realtors are able to perform a CMA, or Comparable Market Analysis. When you’re ready to sell your home, this will give you a good idea as to where you should price your property. There is a difference between an appraisal and a CMA. Appraisals are often more detailed in valuation, yet they frequently do not take into account current market trends.
With real estate values going down, many people interested in selling are using old appraisals to try to hold onto former higher prices. This strategy is a stage of denial that will hurt your home’s position to sell. If you list it too high to start off with, your home develops a “stigma” to it that will make it stagnant on the market and ultimately sell for less than what you could have achieved originally.
Other times, sellers are using an appraisal from a refinance. More often than not, that appraisal is not necessarily useful in marketing your home. Sometimes the appraisal is biased toward a certain value, whether it is conservative or high. You can read more about inflated real estate appraisals here.
Old appraisals mean nothing. Think of it this way: it would be the same as printing off a stock quote from when Enron shares were worth $50 per share. Consider taking it to your stock broker now and expecting the same price. It won’t happen. Real estate operates the exact same way, just the numbers are larger and more difficult to determine. Unfortunately, your real estate does not have a “ticker” streaming across the front of it telling us the current market value of your home.
An accurate appraisal will help you sell your home. Leaving a current appraisal on your counter while trying to sell will help prospective buyers determine how you priced and the value of your home. When and if you get a new appraisal before selling, ask around to find a good appraiser. Get a good recommendation and call them in. Be certain not to influence their pricing. You want an unbiased evaluation of market value to sell your home. Make sure they know that’s what the appraisal is for.
All that being said, it’s not necessary, but having an appraisal done can give you a great marketing edge. It can give you the competitive edge over the competition. An average appraisal costs about $400 and can be an excellent investment when you’re selling your largest investment.
John Poltrock, CRS – www.MyMurphy.com – JohnPoltrock@gmail.com – For Real Estate in the Mountains of Murphy, NC, Call The POLTROCK TEAM at (866) 687-7496