Your property: A guide on working out how much its worth
For those who are about to sell a property for the first time, it can seem scary. But, moving home can be a liberating experience. However, what often gets taken for granted is your ability to get the right price for your property…
Change is important. It can be a vehicle for self-improvement and help break the mould of modern life. Different people have different ways of doing this and moving to a new house can be one of them. Yet for those who are trying to sell their house, finding out exactly how much it's worth can be a difficult path to tread. It can raise a number of questions.
For example, have I asked for the right price? Have I gone with the right estate agent? Or, will life be better once I’ve moved home? As these anxieties begin to creep in it can make you make wonder why you’ve decided to sell in the first place. But, the truth is, these are all very normal worries to have.
However, don’t be alarmed! What this article will show is how you can get an accurate estimation of the value of your property, so you can feel safe when you make that next, bold step into the unknown. Let’s get started!
How to evaluate your property
The ‘value of the property’ isn’t easy to surmise, because so many factors depend on how the pricing is made up. Now, if you’re reading this the likelihood is that you’ve already googled ‘how to evaluate your property’ or something along those lines. If you have done, you’d have been hit with millions of results that may have left you feeling a little overwhelmed. And that’s not out of the ordinary by any means.
Searching broad and complex topics like this can throw up a tonne of links to sites claiming they have the ‘perfect answer to your housing troubles’. And when you’re carefully ‘umming’ and ‘ahhing’ over which option to go for the truth is that there isn’t one, single correct answer. Property pricing is subjective after all. However, here are some ways you can go about it, so you can get a better idea:
Housing reports
Assessing the condition and welfare of your property will be vital to finding out its worth. While this is likely to vary between the different people doing the reports, they will largely influence the price put on your property by an estate agent. One such report is a condition report, which will provide you with a general indication of the condition of a property, but is however limited and won’t include any advice or recommendations on the repair or maintenance of any defects identified, or the likely costs.
A full structural survey may be needed in the instances of older homes that are requiring repairs. This will also provide information and solutions on how to deal with the defects in your property and how this will affect its valuation.
Looking at Sold House prices
While this might seem like a great idea from ‘Captain Obvious’, it rings true. If you’re looking to see how much the houses in your postcode have been sold for, take a look at the land registry. This basically provides a database of prices paid for property in England and Wales submitted to them for registration. This can also be a great help for settling any worries about the legitimacy of a valuation that’s been given to you by a local estate agent or a friend that thinks they ‘know the property game’.
Though having said that, don’t ride ‘solo’ all the time. When looking at sold house prices it’s always a good idea to ask family, friends, and neighbours for a more casual, personal opinion on what you should expect from local house prices. Estate agents are full of local knowledge, and most will conduct a ‘free home valuation’, to entice you into using their services. However, it doesn’t mean you should feel obliged to use them.
Market trends
Market trends can be a great way of getting to grips with the local property market. While a number of property sites will be of great assistance in this area, make sure that you pay attention and do your research. If you do enough homework in this area, it’ll help your ability to forecast when the right time to buy would be. Finding the right time is never easy, so make sure you ask for expert advice and do your research!
Finding an agent
If you are looking to put your property on the market as soon as possible then choosing an effective and experienced estate agent who understands the market will be key to successfully managing the buying process on your behalf. This can have huge benefits.
‘But how do I know who to go for?’ we hear you ask. Remember you don’t have to rush this. It’ll be much better if you take your time and get an agent that’s right for you as opposed to rushing and getting one of poorer quality. The best way to do this will be to compare local estate agents based on their track record. This will involve looking at things such as how quickly they sell, how close they can come to achieving the asking price and generally, just how successful they are.
Is your house worth more than you originally bought it for? Consider re-mortgaging with Mortgages Online to free up some cash! Equity release is a great way to free up some capital. Re-mortgage today.
Even if you’re looking for your first mortgage, we offer loads of types of mortgages, always tailored to you. MO is easy and completely free to use – so, put those credit cards away! You will need a mortgage for property purchase, so use us to find one.
