Why You Should Get a Market Appraisal On Your Property

A new year is an excellent time to make changes and resolutions so why not act on that nagging thought in the back of your mind about selling your property? But it’s not a good idea to leap into the unknown and trust to luck. Before you decide to sell, find out what your home is worth. The answer is a market appraisal to determine the value of your property. Listing agents can usually do a reasonable job of working out a listing price based on comparisons of similar sales and the way the market is moving, but that is not an appraisal and should never be offered as one.

Is a Market Appraisal the Same as a Valuation?

Many people who have never sold a house before, and even some who have, do get a bit confused about the difference between a valuation and a market appraisal, but it’s not really surprising. While both of these are ways of discovering what your property is worth, there are some crucial differences you ought to be aware of when choosing the best one for you. When carrying out a market appraisal, a real estate agent will evaluate your property based on their knowledge of the local market. In making their judgment, the agent will take various things into consideration and let you know how much they believe you property will yield on the present market. The agent will consider the following:

● The location, features, and size of your property
● What other similar properties in your area have sold for recently
● Average days on the market, auction clearance rates in your area
● Demand for your type of property
● Overall property market trends

Some sellers get more than one appraisal, and since they’re free, they can compare them. The outcomes of the different appraisals can either vary greatly or be similar, so don’t be put off by the lower estimate. In the end, you need to rely on the agent who ‘tells it how it is’ no matter what the figure because that’s likely to be the one you can trust to tell it straight.

Valuations cost money, and they’re legally binding documents written by professionally trained, independent valuers who look at past sales to determine a price, unlike market appraisals that look at what a future sale might yield. This is why banks use independent valuations which are more conservative and a safer option for lenders.