If you're getting ready to sell your home, one of the first things you should do is perform an estimate. This can be done in one of two ways: professionally or on your own. While a professional estimate will be more accurate, you can still assess your house and come up with a reasonable estimate as to what you can expect to make in a sale. Does this Spark an idea?
Instructions
1. Make a list of major items that need repairing. If your home doesn't have a working furnace or has structural damage, these things will affect the price at which you can sell it. Call around to contractors in your area that repair the type of work in question and get estimates on what it will cost to repair these major damages. Whatever you think your house may be worth, subtract from that number the total cost of repairs to get a more realistic estimate.
2. Check to see what similar houses in your area have recently sold for. Sites like Yahoo! Real Estate and Eppraisal allow you to put in a street address and find homes in the area that have been recently valued or sold. Put in your own address and look for similar houses in your neighborhood. The amounts those houses were appraised for or what they were eventually sold for is likely in the ballpark of what you can expect to get for your home. Keep in mind that a number of things could affect the price of your home versus another one in your neighborhood. This list includes the square footage of your home, the number of bedrooms, the number of full and half bathrooms and the overall age of the home. Increase or decrease your estimation when comparing to a similar house based on this information. For example, if your house is identical to another house except for the fact that it has one less bedroom, decrease the estimate for your home accordingly.
3. Add up the cost of all the additions you've made to your home over the years. Several factors determine how much money you'll get back on a home upgrade investment. For example, real estate experts at Smart Money say that you can expect to get a 70% to 80% return on your investment when you remodel your kitchen and that the addition of a deck will get you an 85% return on your investment. However, a swimming pool will get you a 0% return on your investment as experts indicate that they add no money to the overall value of a house.
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