How Do I Know the Actual Value of My Home Right Now?

Investor · Atlanta, GA · Member since 2021 · 133 posts · 60 votes

Hello everyone,

Now to get an actual valuation I know I'd just have an appraiser come out, but that's $300 just for being curious. Zillow and Redfin give different estimates so its kinda tough to know which one to go with. Is there a way to find out the current value of your home without having an appraiser come out?

I bought my first home 3 months ago and I've just been keeping an eye on where the price has been trending. At some point I plan on using the equity so of course I will get an actual appraisal when I'm ready, but until then it would be nice to know if there's a solid way/resource to be able to accurately price the home.

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Bruce WoodruffPro Member

Contractor/Investor/Consultant · San Diego / Phoenix · Member since 2021 · 12k+ posts · 15k+ votes

Appraiser will NOT give you the retail value, They give you what the bank will loan on. A Realtor would be the best bet since they have day-to-day knowledge....but you will not know the REAL price until you put it on the market and get offers...

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Joseph R. Smith
Rental Property Investor · Carthage, NY · Member since 2019 · 72 posts · 47 votes
4y
Google, "average cost per square foot sold (your town)" x square footage. ;) Google, " average rent for (how many bedrooms) in (your town)" x 100. Those #'s tend to be apx equal usually.
Google, "real estate appreciation rate in (your town)" . ;)
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Sergey A. Petrov
Real Estate Consultant · Seattle, WA · Member since 2022 · 1k+ posts · 784 votes
4y
Call the broker who helped you buy it. They’ll tell you!
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Bill B.
Investor · Las Vegas, NV · Member since 2013 · 8k+ posts · 10k+ votes
4y
Then subtract 6% for the realtors commissions and 3-4% in closing costs. If you’re lucky in a year or two you should be even.
You just paid for an appraisal 3 months ago. Figure it’s worth 1% more or less than that 3 months later. Probably a little less, since you were the highest bidder then and you already have a house.
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Scott E.
Contractor · Scottsdale, AZ · Member since 2010 · 2k+ posts · 3k+ votes
4y
If you tried to refinance or get a HELOC, your home is going to be "worth" exactly what you paid for it. The bank will use the purchase price for value since you bought it so recently.
Sites like Zillow or Redfin are good to give a ballpark, but they are usually inaccurate because their algorithms aren't able to decipher condition of comps and whether or not they are in a comparable neighborhood (some comp homes might be 0.25 miles away but they are sitting in a much better/worse neighborhood)
At this point, I wouldn't worry about it. You just bought the house. It's worth about what you paid for it.
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Bruce WoodruffPro Member
Contractor/Investor/Consultant · San Diego / Phoenix · Member since 2021 · 12k+ posts · 15k+ votes
4y
Appraiser will NOT give you the retail value, They give you what the bank will loan on. A Realtor would be the best bet since they have day-to-day knowledge....but you will not know the REAL price until you put it on the market and get offers...
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Patricia Steiner
Real Estate Broker · Hyde Park Tampa, FL · Member since 2019 · 2k+ posts · 3k+ votes
4y
Valuation is not as easy as you might think. It's based on comparable sales within a 1 mile radius that sold within the past 30 days. "Comparable" is an adjustment that is made to make your property "comparable" to one that has sold. Only those properties that are within 20% of your square footage on either side can be used and then it's adjusted for lot size, rooms, amenities and more. An appraiser that YOU ENGAGE (not the lender) and/or a Real Estate Broker can give you a detail valuation. But at 3 months, you're not even at a breakeven point when you consider your cost to acquire.
My recommendation is to enjoy your home, watch to see what both demand and home prices are doing in your market, and plan on being about a year out on any equity position that is worth pulling.
Congrats on your new home...
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Drew Rogers
Investor · Raleigh, NC · Member since 2016 · 3 posts · 0 votes
4y
AJ
I don’t use the Zillow estimates, instead find nearby houses similar to yours that are currently for sale and the most recent closed sales. This should get you a decent estimate. This is the same approach an appraiser is going to take.
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Chris SeveneyBusiness Member
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Investor · VA · Member since 2015 · 21k+ posts · 19k+ votes
4y
As mentioned, ask your prior realtor, but I would not get in the habit of watching your property value like a stock and watch it on a daily basis. Trends are fine but right now data is outdated. Typically real estate is slow and boring, but COVID has changed that for better or worse. A house under agreement 45 days ago and closing today would not be getting the same price as it would today in many markets as we are starting to see softening. We are seeing more listings and the above full price cash offers by 20 people have pretty much gone away in the areas I invest.
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