Hi all,

I had an appraisal done this past July when I refinanced and it came in at $177,000. I'm planning on selling the property now and since the appraisal was done I've made a few improvements and would like some opinions on what you think the property may now appraise for. Here's a list of the improvements:

-Replaced the roof

-Landscaped the front yard with new sod, shrubs, flowers, mulch, etc.

-Added a closet to the Mother-in-Law bedroom

-Replaced the water heater

Now, I realize these items won't add tens of thousands of dollars to the value but am thinking of listing the house for $184,900 which is near the higher end of the market for this neighborhood; I think I could list it for $189,900 and still draw interest but I'd like to sell ASAP. Should I get an offer for $185k, it should not have much of a problem appraising for at least $180k (given the recent improvements), correct?

What are your thoughts?

Do you have the appraisal report?  In that report, usually toward the back, will be a direct comparison of your house to two or three of the houses they used as comps.  It will say quite directly what they discounted for, or gave you additional credit for.

For example, I had an appraisal done on one of my houses where the comps all had decks.  The appraiser took $3000 off of my valuation to account for that.

So if you got dinged for the roof or one of the other things you mentioned, maybe now you won't.

Of course, you may also have entirely different comps and have it come in very different in either direction.

did the mother-in-law have a closet before you put a new one in ? the reason i ask is if it did not then it wasn't a bedroom but by adding a closet you added a bedroom! this could be a huge difference in price. roofs make a house more sellable not worth more... same for the hot water heater, the landscaping can also increase value! first impressions are lasting impressions.