On a quick trip to the grocery store a few nights ago, I ran into a good friend of mine who had recently lost his father. I gave him a hug as usual and asked how he and the family were doing. He mentioned that his fathers house was still in probate after several long months, and that he just wasn’t quite sure what he wanted to do with it since it was worth $170,000, he had said. We spoke for a few minutes further before I finally inquired about this figure he gave. Knowing his fathers house, the uniqueness of it, the location, the oversized lot, the current market conditions, and other details of the home, I just knew this number had to be wrong.
After asking him how he came up with the value of his fathers home, he admitted he had relied on the “zestimate” from Zillow. I let him know that I was confident that his fathers home was worth significantly more and that I would be happy to run a free home valuation for him and determine the accurate value of his fathers house. He was happy to agree.
Later that evening I looked up the data on his fathers house. Using a lot of the same tools, techniques and processes as an appraiser, I looked at the property details and compared it to others in the area. I researched recently sold properties, what they solded for, whether they were financed (which means an appraiser substantiated the sales price), and other key elements to determine a very accurate home value.
After comparing his home to other recent sales, I was able to determine his fathers home had a value of around $290,000, with a range of up to $310,000. Zillows estimate was off by over 50% in this case. The reason for this is because his fathers house is on multiple lots, in a highly desirable area, with excellent views and others interesting features that can never be captured by an algorithm. This was going to change the course of his decisions for him and the heirs of his fathers estate, he said.
Many people are trying to rely on these zestimates or similar online algorithms to makes decisions about selling their home, buying a home, refinancing, or deciding to sell by owner. It is important that you reach out to a licensed real estate agent. Most of them offer free CMAs (or comparable market analysis) to determine an accurate value of your home. Even if you just purchased last year, or within a few years, I always tell people that it is important to monitor your homes value. Just like you would monitor your stock portfolio, or your bank account, it is important to keep track of the value of your home.
I offer completely free, customized reports, with zero obligation. I won’t harass you trying to get you to sell your home afterward. I won’t add you to a pesky subscription list that fills your email with spam, or set you up on an automatic email funnel. I will simply send you a personalized, detailed report! All I ask in return, is that you consider me when you ARE ready to make some real estate decisions, and that you also consider referring me to friends/family that are looking for someone to trust.
To find out what your home is actually worth, fill out the form HERE and I will have a report back in your email by the end of the day. Thank you for the opportunity to help you!
Amber Owings 541-539-5487 ambersellsoregon@ambersellsoregon
