How to Know You Are Getting a Good Price for Your Selling Home in Massachusetts or Connecticut

Home prices are still increasing, despite the slowing of the rate of growth. Therefore, it would be a great moment to consider selling. Knowing the value of your home will help you choose an appropriate listing price. However, when the bids start to come in, it can be challenging to determine whether you’re paying a fair price for your selling home given the various appraisal techniques in use. So continue reading to learn how to determine whether you are receiving a fair price for your selling home in Massachusetts or Connecticut.

Common Home Valuations

You can determine whether you are getting a fair price for your selling home in Massachusetts or Connecticut by knowing its value. So let’s take a look at some popular home valuation techniques.

Fair Market Value

“Fair market value includes how your home appears to potential buyers in comparison to other homes in the neighborhood.” It considers “the sale price of a home that’s comparable to yours (say, having the same number of bedrooms and bathrooms, square footage, [and] outdoor space).”

The valuation that will help you the most in figuring out whether you’re getting a fair price is fair market value. You can ask a Massachusetts or Connecticut agent for help if you’re curious to learn your home’s fair market value (and you should be).

Appraised Value

Even if some of the same variables that go into evaluating fair market value are involved in arriving at evaluated value, it is still different. A licensed appraiser takes into account the location, size, and condition of your home, as well as any changes you’ve carried out, to determine the evaluated worth. Mortgage lenders consider the appraised value.

Assessed Value

The “assigned dollar value of your home used by the local county tax assessor to determine property taxes” is the valuation used for tax purposes. The assessed value typically falls below fair market value, making it less useful for determining whether you’re getting a fair deal.

Having laid that groundwork, let’s now look at some ways you calculate the value of your home for price purposes.

Use an Online Home Value Estimator

Use one of the several online home value estimators, also known as automated valuation models, as a decent beginning point (but only that) to determine whether you’re obtaining a fair price for your selling home (AVMs). These internet resources “create an estimate using algorithms and publicly available data, such as recent sales, tax assessments, and other public documents.”

“Home value estimators are wonderful places to start to rapidly determine your home’s value.” Just be mindful that they aren’t usually very precise. They don’t “take into consideration factors such as recent upgrades, condition of the house, curb appeal, and external factors such as traffic noise” because they rely on algorithms.

Check the County/Municipal Auditor’s Website

Checking the county or municipal auditor’s website is another way to get a valuation to see if you’re getting a fair price for your selling home in Massachusetts or Connecticut. However, this will inform you of the value of your house in terms of taxes.

The value of residential properties is periodically determined by county auditors for property tax purposes, and this information is accessible online. You can check your home’s assessed value to see if it has increased or make comparisons with similar properties that are for sale.

Hire a Professional Appraiser

You might want to hire a professional appraiser to provide a more accurate home value estimate as a tool to determine whether you are getting a fair price for your selling home in Massachusetts or Connecticut.

Similar to a CMA prepared by a real estate agent, “the appraiser considers the characteristics of the property, such as how many bedrooms and bathrooms it has, as well as comps.” Professional appraisers can provide an unbiased valuation and are frequently licenced or certified by the state, but their services are typically expensive, running about $350 on average.

Get Your Agent to Perform a Comparative Market Analysis

A comparative market analysis, or CMA, is probably the best approach to determine whether you’re obtaining a fair price for your home in Massachusetts or Connecticut. Your realtor can conduct a CMA to precisely ascertain your property’s market value, or what purchasers are prepared to pay for a home similar to yours on the open market. Knowing the market value typically allows you to determine whether you are receiving a fair price for your home.

“[Agents] obtain data on recent house sales of comps in the neighborhood and carefully examine recent sale prices of properties that are extremely similar to yours in the nearby region to complete the CMA.” They then use their understanding of the area and any unique features of your property to evaluate its value. A competent agent will be equipped with the resources needed to dig deeper and determine a precise market value. A seasoned professional makes decisions based on data and their experience while also monitoring the market, examining the state of the home, and being familiar with the neighborhood.

This is possibly the most effective and precise method for figuring out the value of your house so that you may know if you’re getting a decent deal. And we have knowledgeable, neighborhood agents who can assist you with this. Contact us at 413-455-0008 if getting a competitive price for your home in Massachusetts or Connecticut is your objective.