Any NCWWs a home appraiser??

[Kicbak]

I live just outside Chapel Hill, NC. Looks like we are moving to Amsterdam for 2 years and our planning to sell our house. The price from the realtor was way below what I figured it should be. I'm looking for somebody who knows WW and quality to look at the house and get a price based on not just comparisons to houses that aren't like mine at all.

Wes

 

[Marlin]

What is the address and have you looked at zillow and those type sites?

Also, like cars, upgrades rarly payoff as well as people think. Many can actually hurt the value. That and over building compared to other houses in the area.

What price was given and how far off do you think it is?

 

[Glennbear]

I am not an appraiser but 4 years ago I sold my house in NJ and during that process I learned some painful lessons. Since the realtor's income is percentage based they are of course going to try and sell at as high a price as possible given current market conditions. The intrinsic value of a house varies due to many factors not the least of which is the supply of homes vs the supply of qualified buyers. :wconfused: A house identical in size and age to mine 3 doors down went for $425K and when I finally sold mine 18 months later I barely topped $300K. During the intervening period the market had tanked and buyers were holding all the cards. I went through two realtors without success and finally ended up using a FSBO company and shameless promotion of the property all around the area. The key I believe is to market uniquely. Looking at the other properties in the area I noted that the for sale lawn signs were barely visible at night, $20 worth of solar powered spotlights made mine visible :gar-Bi Since a lot of folks start their home search online, make sure yours is aggressively marketed online. I can empathize with your efforts and wish you the best of luck. :wsmile:

 

[Kicbak]

Thanks for the responses.

I paid 120k about 10 years ago, and the range they gave me to sell the house was between 120 and 140. This would be reasonable if I hadn't done anything to the house.

I've done, and had done a lot of big projects
New windows + doors
New kitchen + granite counter
All new appliances including washer and dryer.
3k worth of expanding foam insulation.
5k worth of 5/8" SYP T&G paneling the entire slope of the house.
New well pump.
New heat pump.
Refinished white oak floors
Builtin bookselves, desk.
Added a loft.

The house is an A-Frame which makes the comparisons pretty hard to come by. Obviously this work was done to make the house better for us to live there and make it easier to sell. Trying to find more information on what I price I should really list the house at.

Wes

 

[Marlin]

Yea problem is a lot of that falls under general maintaince.

If the heat pump was not replaced was it not working or would the old one be so old it hurt the value?
Bad windows would reduce the price so yea you put in windows but would the old ones have hurt.

etc...

Me and my wife just did a add on last year. We put in good fiberglass windows, 93% efficeant furance and 5ton AC unit, R25 in the wall and R40 in the attic, wood cabinets and granite, etc... its what we wanted but also know we will never get out money back out of it. If we sold now we would not get back what we paid plus upgrades on the house, it just does not work like that in most cases.

The other side is you can list for what ever you want. But how long can you hold onto it and the longer it sits on the market the less chance it will sell.
Also right after school gets out for the year is supposed to be the best time to list. Warm and no middle of the year school changes issues in most cases.

 

[JimmyC]

Hey Wes,

The appraisal system in this state isn't very good to begin with. When I bought the house that I live in now there were a few of the things that I was told on my house.

1) an acre is worth $30,000, my land is worth $30,000 even though I have 1 1/2 acres and all of my neighbors have 1 acre and their's is worth $30,000 ( they claim a lot is a lot):dontknow:.

2) I have a detached pole barn shop that is 32' x 40' and 12' ceilings, with a 10' tall professional grade roll up doors, a 200 amp service, a bathroom with h/c water and an attached lean-to of 12' x24' and it was valued at $4,000 more than my neighbors detached 20' x24' garage with one door and no power ($22k vs 18k). They claimed it was still a two car garage :nah:.
3) Finally, my house 1,400 sq/ft over 1,400 sq/ft. It's built on the side of hill with walkout sliding doors and a bunch of windows. It's completely finished w/ 8'4" ceilings, a BR, full BA, summer kitchen, office and two large rooms (den and rec room). They wrote the upstairs up as regular living space and priced accordingly, the downstairs was valued at a total of $25k because they said it was cellar.:gar-La;.

To make a long story short, the people that I bought the house from had 3 different appraisals doneand they only differed $15k. I paid 15k more than appraisal because they house was larger and the property was better than any others in the area and was a great fit for my family. The sellers wouldn't come down any more and were willing to hold out for the right buyer (me).

In the end I realize that I may have to hold out for the right price when I sell, but I don't plan on doing that for a long time.

The appraisal system in NC is horrible, and there are alot of new houses still being built, so good luck with selling and I hope you can get your price.

 

[Joe Scharle]

Wes, I'm a Realtor as well as a builder and recommend that you ask 3 agents for a listing presentation. Pick the names from signs you see in 1 mile radius of your home. Avoid the ones that advertise heavily, as they are 'listing engines' and usually don't concentrate on selling a particular listing, as a rule.

There is no increase in value from maintaining your home, however there is a huge decrease in value from failing to maintain your home.

I've seen two identical models on the same street listed for $375,900. One sold quickly at full price and the other needs about $40,000.00 worth of maintenance and care to appraise.

 

[manfre]

Another option to consider is finding a full service rental management company and try renting the house. Finances might be tight if it doesn't rent because you'll also have to pay housing in Amsterdam. When you move back to the states, you could notify sell the house if the market has improved, move back in to the house after notifying the tenants that the lease will not be renewed, or you could keep collecting what is hopefully a net profit while you rent/buy someplace (your needs will probably change in the 2 years that have passed).

 

[Bigdog72]

+1 on what Jimmy and Joe have said.

Remember, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. The right buyer will pay the right price but.....

appraisers take the last 3 homes of comparable size that have sold in your area and use them for "comps". It's a crummy market for all right now (I am a new home builder in Fayetteville area). If it's any consolation, I made a lot of upgrades to my home when we moved to Lillington. I would like to move closer to work but that's probably not gonna happen for another five years because of the dip in home values.

 

[taandctran]

I dont know alot about house buying and selling. I do know that my uncle bought 3 houses in Florida about 8 years ago, with intention of selling them in 5 or so years for a profit. All 3 were in the $250-$275k price range. Well 5 years later they were ready to sale them and all 3 had lost appraisal value. He was told it was just the housing market (which I think is worse in FL then it is here). He was able to end up breaking even on all 3 but didnt make the huge sums of money that he thought he was going to. End the end I think he learned that it is a buyers market, mainly because of the economy. :dontknow:

 

[zapdafish]

Kinda curious why people would wait a few years for their house values to go up in order to sell it to buy another? Wouldn't the houses they are currently interested in also be "undervalued" as well?

 

[woodworker2000]

Wes-

Did your agent "appraise" your house? If so, keep in mind that he/she may be motivated by selling it as quickly as they can (less time showing it, less money spent on advertising, etc.) rather than by getting a higher price. If your agent is getting a 2 1/2% commission (assuming total commission is 5% and they are the listing agent but not the selling agent), a $10K reduction in price only means the agent "loses" out on $250 while you are out $10,250. The amount the agent is "out" is even less considering that some percentage if his/her commission is shared with the agent's broker.

One other question, is your move at the direction of your employer and if so, are they going to buy your house if it doesn't sell on the open market? I'm not sure if employers do that anymore but if that is the case, that could affect your appraised value as the will want it to be appraised at a value that will result in it being sold in 60-90 days (a lower appraisal value). I learned a little lesson on this approach when moving to NC several years ago. We had our previous house appraised by 3 different appraisers and all of their values were pretty close to each other. When my company received the appraisals (they were going to buy the house if it didn't sell), they said they weren't "valid" since they hadn't been performed assuming a 90-day selling period (translation: my company wanted them appraised at a lower value).

 

[woodworker2000]

Kinda curious why people would wait a few years for their house values to go up in order to sell it to buy another? Wouldn't the houses they are currently interested in also be "undervalued" as well?

It depends....In a "normal" market and without any external factors, it seems like that would make sense; however if your current house is in a desirable area and you got it for the right price AND the seller of the house you are interested in buying is more motivated to sell (financial problems, relocation needs, estate sale, bank foreclosure, etc.), you could get a better price on the purchase of the house (assuming you aren't under pressure from any of the same types of external factors).

 

[Bigdog72]

Kinda curious why people would wait a few years for their house values to go up in order to sell it to buy another? Wouldn't the houses they are currently interested in also be "undervalued" as well?

It's like this, Zap. I would sell my house in a minute if I could get just what I have in it. Then I could take advantage of some great deals that are available in today's market. But, because of the change in market value, I am kinda upside down right now. I don't want to own two houses so I will commute rather than take a loss.

 

[manfre]

Kinda curious why people would wait a few years for their house values to go up in order to sell it to buy another? Wouldn't the houses they are currently interested in also be "undervalued" as well?

It all depends on a person's financial situation. Getting a loan is a lot more difficult in the current market than it was a few years ago and banks want potential borrowers give more of a down payment or have more in savings. Given the drop in home values, it is quite possible that selling now would yield no cash to put toward a new house.

After realtor fees, I wouldn't make any money on my house due to the fact that there are 2 foreclosed homes in my development and 2 other homes were fire sold by the family after the elderly home owner died.

 

[Guy in Paradise]

Other options???

Perhaps renting might be a better option. Find a good manager. Being able to take some of the tax advantages each year might be better financially than selling.