Home value estimate

ecrovid · #1 Jan 10, 2006, 04:56 PM

I would like to know a website where i can have an estimate of my home without entering my personal details. i have noted that several sites which can provide this information ask for SSN numbers etc. is anyone out there aware of any site that can provide this estimate for free. i just want to have a feel of what my home could be worth. Many thanks!

CaptainForest · Jan 10, 2006, 08:27 PM

Some advice:

NEVER NEVER NEVER give out your SSN to one of these online places.

Some ideas:
Check your local paper. See what other homes in your area are selling for.

RickJ · Jan 11, 2006, 04:02 AM

Yahoo has a tool that can give you a rough estimate based on sales in your area, here.

The best thing to do is to check the properties last sale prices around you. This is public info, and may be available online....like it is in my area, here. If they've got decent software, you can go to your neighborhood and click on all your neighbors houses (that are like yours) to see what they sold for last.

fredg · Jan 11, 2006, 04:58 AM

Hi,
I did the same thing, almost, as rickj suggested.
I use a search engine to find my town, state, then went to the website for my town....showing government agencies, real estate, etc. It also showed home selling values in my area, with pictures.
It's just an idea. Also, if you want a professional estimate, call an Appraiser in your local area, and ask the cost for the appraisal first.
Best of luck.

kp2171 · Feb 27, 2006, 11:10 AM

not that market value is the same as appraised, but our county assessor has a website that lets you look at the assessed value of homes. you can search by house number, owner name, or even pull up sales for homes in different areas and limit the search by neighborhood, sq footage, etc, which can help with understanding market value.

i pulled up info on my father in laws house in another state when we needed the info to help settle his estate after he passed by using his county assessor's site also.

so go to a search engine and type in "(your county) assessor (your state)" or look in the phone book local govt section and call to see if they have this available online.

kp2171 · Feb 27, 2006, 04:06 PM

Fr Chuck i disagree, sort of. =)

online through my assessor's site i can pull up recorded sales in my neighborhood for the last several years. i can look at the entire region. i can look at only 8 bedroom, 6 bath estates built in 1980-95 if i use their search right. i can get hard numbers as to what the market has been doing on houses with very similar stats right down the block.

now the point that a professional will know more about the nuances of the markets, the demand, etc is absolutely true. in theory. if they are worth half their weight in salt. not all are.

when i sold my house i had 4 realtors come through and i suspect 2 of them simply told me what i wanted to hear. yes, they did a market search. there was a swing of nearly 20% among the estimates. one stupidly high, one low. could i have come up with similar info on my own? i did. only one of the four was even aware that my area was designated for special financing, something i knew but didn't asked them about to see if they were on their game.

obviously a bank does no better when they don't have in house estimates. in banks in areas where markets are bloated are increasing the number of in house appraisals. they're worried the drive bys are just not reliable. so an in house estimate the best. sure. as you stated. if you find a reputable person and are willing to pay for it. i agree. absolutely.

my point is that if you find and get to understand the info available online through the assessor's office, you can at least get some hard numbers, that represent similar properties over the last few years, by looking at recorded sales. markets change, real estate people will know about changes in development, demand, etc... but why ignore some hard numbers you can get in a few minutes of work?

blindly looking at the real estate professional as the end all be all unfortunately is giving up some power of knowledge you could have with a little homework and understanding of the local govt online sites.

so i agree that the in home is best choice if you want to pay a professional to give you a number they'll back up. i agree that realtors, especially a team that knows your area and that you trust, are very, very valuable. but to simply say the online info is not reliable or too unspecific to consider... this is wrong.

do i use realtor contacts for investment advice. yes. yes. yes. people i know and trust. got an appraisor i trust enough to invest my money by what he tells me if it fits my model. sleep better knowing they're on my team.

do i do some homework online and trust that info. yes.

it is a useful tool that should not be so easily dismissed, nor blindly followed.



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