Variations in Value

The facts in the public record or the MLS are wrong. If there’s a discrepancy … it’s usually because the facts themselves are not up to date. Homeowners can claim their homes on many platforms and change the data; unfortunately, this open data collection can cause conflict.

Your home is not like others in your neighborhood. Whether a real estate agent, an appraiser or a computer is evaluating your home, it’s harder to arrive at an accurate value if there are no comparable homes. Houses that are very unusual are harder to value, not surprisingly, than homes that are not. Homes that are different from others in the neighborhood or have unique features are harder to value because there are fewer or no comparable properties with which to compare them.

Few homes in your neighborhood have sold in the last six months. The more homes that sell, the more MLS data and the more sale prices the computers have to calculate value. With few sales, there is less information to draw from.

Your home has not been on the market in recent decades. There is significantly more information about a home in an MLS listing than there is in the tax records. Once a home has been listed, the services add that data. As homes are sold, the models can adjust for whether the home sold for more or less than the asking price or the AVM price.

Public records in your jurisdiction omit key information. The nation’s approximately 3,100 counties don’t all record the same information about homes.

The market is changing rapidly. Home valuations are based on past sales. If the market is significantly hotter or colder than it was six months ago, those past sales are less an indicator of current values.

How do you know the true value of your home? That is where a professional can help! The truly best way to value your home is to have a professional licensed agent do the homework for you. This includes pulling comparable from multiple areas and also doing property tours of “like” properties to really get a clear view of the specific value of your home.

Ready for a professional? Reach out to me and I will connect you with one of our extraordinary brokers.