Property Tax Assessed Value vs. Fair Market Value Hard as it might be to imagine, there’s actually one scenario where a home’s property tax value can be too low: when it’s about to go on the market. While the assessed value isn’t something that Realtors and Appraisers take into account to determine market value ”...Read More
. . . and Isn’t Likely to Volunteer Fake it till you make it.” —Career advice to newbie real estate agents. In a hyper-competitive field where sales bluster is an ever-present temptation, real estate agents aren’t exactly the type to betray ignorance or confess a lack of confidence. And even consummate Realtors with years of...Read More
He Who Adjusts Least Adjusts Best” When it comes to pricing a home off of Comp’s (“Comparable Sold Properties”), the trick is to minimize both the number and absolute magnitude of the adjustments. The ideal would be a condo identical to its peers in every respect ” floor plan, size, condition, location, market conditions, etc....Read More
Seller Misconceptions “Sunk Cost”: a retrospective (past) cost that has already been incurred and cannot be recovered. —Wikipedia What Sellers paid for their home ” and how much they subsequently put into it (for improvements, updates, etc.) ” are important psychologically.* And, depending on how much the would-be Seller currently owes on their home, the sum of their cost + improvements...Read More
The REAL Purpose of Appraisals What is the purpose of an appraisal, in the context of a residential real estate sale? To make sure that, if the Buyer defaults on their loan and the lender ultimately forecloses, the value of the collateral is sufficient to make the lender whole. Or, in plain English: if the...Read More
“What You’re OK With If You Get It . . . . & What You’re OK With If You Don’t” One of the most fraught questions Realtors field has to do with multiple offers. Specifically, it’s stressed Buyers beseeching their agent, “What the $%#@! do I offer?” I don’t know about other Realtors, but after...Read More