Once you’ve decided to sell your Raleigh – Durham home, you’re sure to run in to some confusion in trying to determine the value of the home. If you want to know EXACTLY what it is worth, you can pay to have an appraisal done. A Real Estate agent should be able to provide you with a detailed Comparable Market Analysis report. This will let you know what exactly what is going on in your neighborhood. Knowing the differences in price vs the type of home can help you set your ideal asking price!
What is Tax Assessed Value vs Market Value in Raleigh – Durham
Assessed Value by Definition: 
Investopedia, defines Assessed Value as: “An assessed value is the dollar value assigned to a property to measure applicable taxes. Assessed valuation determines the value of a residence for tax purposes and takes comparable home sales and inspections into consideration.”
Understanding the tax assessed value can be a bit confusing. County property assessors give values to homes for tax purposes, however, these values do not reflect changes in market value, many times they don’t even reflect your actual neighborhood. The difference between the assessed value and the market value is known as the equalization rate. This rate is used by the county to figure your actual property value. Many times it is over estimated because let’s face it, the higher the assessed value, the higher the revenue for the county.
Market Value by Definition:
Fannie Mae defines Market Value as: “Market value is the most probable price that a property should bring in a competitive and open market under all conditions requisite to a fair sale, the buyer and seller, each acting prudently, knowledgeably and assuming the price is not affected by undue stimulus.”
Basically, this is the amount you can expect to get if you keep your house on the market for a few months, your house is in near perfect condition, provided everything goes smoothly, and you have potential buyers coming to see your home on a regular basis, which is dependent on how competent your Realtor is.
Appraised Value:
But wait, there’s more. Your appraised value can differ from both of these. An appraisal is done by a licensed professional who rigorously checks all aspects of the home, and each issue, update, or otherwise are considered when valuing the property. While they might be 100% correct, this is still the opinion of one. Other methods are mathematically calculated based off of your home’s history and market conditions.
What Does The Internet Say About It:
Most real estate sites, like Zillow, Trulia, or Realtor.com have their own information entered by users on the site directly. They almost never accurately reflect YOUR home personally. Think of it as Kelly Blue Book for cars. It is sometimes a close guess but determining what the ACTUAL market value can be much different. Real estate professionals have reported seeing these numbers off by $20k, $50k and even more!
What Does This Mean For You, The Seller:
Bottom Line…. Do your homework! Make sure you acquire all the numbers listed in this post and understand terms such as the equalization ratio and fair market value. It’s also a good idea to work with a true professional who can help you to accurately determine the market value of your home.
Setting the correct asking price is critical. You do not want to set it too high and have to repeatedly lower it to get buyers in the door. Your pricing history is public information, and repeatedly lowering your price can make buyers think there is something wrong with the home and the listing will begin to stagnate where soon you won’t see any buyers. And for obvious reasons, you don’t want to set your asking price too low. To get the price that is right for your home you must exercise patience and make sure you are working with a true professional in Raleigh – Durham.
Leave a Reply