Whether you’re thinking about selling your property, buying your first home, or expanding your property portfolio, one thing you need to do is get an accurate valuation of the property in question.
Of course, you can go down the traditional route of getting a real estate agent to value your home.
However, it’s always advisable to go further than this. Rather than relying on the opinion of one person (albeit an experienced person), it helps to use different tools so you can get a well-rounded perspective on the valuation of the property.
With that in mind, we have compiled some useful tips, tools, and strategies to use to determine how much a house is really worth:
Start off by using a free valuation tool
There are some great free valuation tools that are available. However, we must stress that these tools should only ever be used as a starting point.
Don’t pin your hopes on the figure that pops up on the screen. After all, these tools use a simple calculation to determine how much your property is likely to be worth, and they do not take into account a number of variables, which means they are not fully reliable. They do provide a good starting point, though.
Property Price Advice is one of these tools, yet they do have a habit of overvaluing properties, so it’s important to keep that in mind. You will need to provide an email address and answer a number of questions. After this, you will be given an estimated value for your property.
You can also use Zoopla for a free valuation. There is an area where you can “get a Zoopla estimate” by inputting your postcode and inputting some basic data. A valuation will be provided based on this information, as well as the market climate, asking prices, and previous sales prices.
How much have properties in the local area sold for?
One of the best ways to get an understanding of how much your property is worth is to look at what other properties in your local area have been sold for.
Make sure you’re comparing properties on a like-for-like basis. So, if you have a two-bedroom semi-detached home, compare your property with other two-bedroom semi-detached homes.
Once you have got a ballpark figure of what other properties have gone for, you can start doing some further digging. Let’s say one two-bedroom semi-detached property in your local area went for £300,000, yet another sold for £310,000, consider what the difference between the two could be. Could it be a bigger garden? Maybe they have recently had a new kitchen fitted?
If the data is there, and you live in an area with a lot of properties, you really can drill down into the sort of price you can expect for your home.
To get this all-important information, Zoopla and Rightmove are ideal. Both are property-selling portals, and they offer a wealth of information on properties that are for sale or have recently sold, so you should be able to get all of the details you need here.
Monitor price drops
Properties may go on the market at a certain price, yet they do not always stay at this rate. Monitoring price drops can be beneficial. For a buyer, it will alert you to some opportunities that fall within your price range.
For a seller, it can help you to get a better understanding of the value of your home because you can determine whether some of the properties in your local area have been overpriced. It can be disheartening to see the prices fall, but at least you will be able to get a better understanding of the true valuation of your property.
So, where can you find this information? We’d advise using Property Log, which is a free add-on for your web browser. This tool will indicate any properties whereby sellers have already altered the price on their listings.
Remember earlier when we said that it is a good idea to check out the prices of similar properties in your area? Well, when you’re making a note of this, it is a good idea to have Property Log switched on as well so you can see whether or not the prices have been reduced.
Please note that this tool only works on laptops and desktop computers. You will get an insight into fascinating data, including how much the property was initially listed at when it first went online, how many times the price has been cut, when it was cut, and by how much. Not only can this help you in terms of getting a more accurate valuation, but it is a great bargaining tool as well should you want to enter negotiations.
Consider future predictions for house prices
Looking into past sales prices is great, but you may be more concerned with the future and what your house could sell for. This is why it is a good idea to look into property forecasts. This can also help those looking for property investment opportunities.
We should stress that nothing is certain. After all, no one can predict the future. However, we can use data to our advantage to get an understanding of what is likely to happen to the local housing market over the coming months and years.
One resource that we would recommend for this is HousePriceCrash.co.uk. This is a useful website that gathers data and statistics from reputable sources, including the Financial Times and Land Registry. If you are interested in buying or selling a property, this website has a lot of useful information.
Contact us today for further information
If you need further assistance when it comes to moving your home, please do not hesitate to get in touch with our team at BlueSky Relocation today.
You can reach our friendly and professional team on 0800 090 3125. Alternatively, send an email to enquiries at blueskyrelocation.co.uk and we will get back to you as soon as possible.
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