The season for home selling is upon us and we want to make sure you avoid these 4 mistakes before you decide to sell your home. By avoiding these mistakes it should make your home selling experience go much smoother.
4 Mistakes Made When Selling a Home
1) Wrong Square Footage- Square footage is one important factor that will determine your home value. This is why it is important you are soliciting the correct square footage. Below are a few methods to determine your square footage:
- Old Appraisal- An inexpensive and easy way to find your square footage is to look at an old appraisal completed. If there have been no additions or upgrades this should be accurate.
- Tax Records- The square footage on tax records is quite often inaccurate but there are many cases it is correct, I generally give it a 50/50. It often is not updated or has included unpermitted square footage by mistake. For a good idea this can be helpful and inexpensive however be warned that it is not always accurate.
- Professional Measurement- This option does cost money. You can hire an appraiser who will just charge you for measurements not a full appraisal(see below for reasons for a full appraisal). This will be the most accurate way to determine your square footage as well as finding out what is permitted and unpermitted.
2) Determining List Price Based on Square Footage- Although using the price per square foot can give you a rough idea of what your property may cost it is not always the case. There are many cases that you need to consider materials, condition, location, amenities, traffic, views, etc. when choosing what to sell your property for. All of these can increase or decrease the value of your property.
Using the price per square foot is usually only a good option when the home you are selling is in a neighborhood where many of the homes are similar such as townhomes and garden homes. If the homes in your neighborhood are mostly different design I would highly suggest not using the price per square foot to determine your home value.
3) List Price Not Based on Market Value – Overpricing your home is not a good idea because it can slow down the selling process and ultimately it may not appraise. You will have gone through the whole process of trying to sell your home only to get an appraisal back showing that the market does not support your selling price and therefore the bank will not loan on it.
There are two options to avoid this:
- Pre-Listing Appraisal- Higher an appraiser to do a pre-listing appraisal. They will evaluate your property to give you the most accurate value of your home. This will definitely reduce any chance of disparity between the selling price and the appraisal value.
- Agent- If your agent is familiar with your neighborhood, they should be able to run a CMA that should give you a good idea of what to list your property at based on market value.
4) Not Providing Updated Information on your Property- Although it may seem obvious to tell prospective buyers what upgrades have been completed, it is surprising that I do run into cases where upgrades are not disclosed. If you put money into upgrading your home you want your buyer to know what you have done. It can help to provide a list of upgrades to the buyer. It is good to have ready because your appraiser should ask you for a list of upgrades as well as an estimated cost of upgrades to include in the appraisal.
Please contact our office with any questions you may have or to schedule your appraisal appointment at 760-741-7699, brandlinappraisal@yahoo.com or use our contact page on our website.
Brandlin Appraisals Inc. specialize in helping people who need appraisals for estate purposes, divorce, date of death, bankruptcy, FSBO’s and more throughout San Diego county. For more information please contact us at (760)741-7699, or visit our website at Brandlinappraisals.com, or email us at admin@brandlinappraisals.com
Mike Brandlin
San Diego, CA // Real Estate Appraiser
www.brandlinappraisals.com
(760) 741-7699
San Diego Real Estate Appraisal Services For:
* Divorce Appraisals / Marriage Dissolution
* Bankruptcy Appraisals
* Bail Bonds Appraisals
* Estate / Date of Death / Retrospective Appraisals
* Financial Planning & Trusts
* PMI Removal Appraisals
* Pre-Foreclosure & Short Sales
* Tax Assessment Appeals
* Pre-Listing, Pre-Purchase, FSBO’s
* Probate Appraisals
