Estimate Your Home's Market Value: A Step-by-Step Guide.pdf

Estimating your home's market value gives you control over:
- Property taxes
- Insurance premiums
- Sale or refinancing decisions

While professional appraisers are commonly hired, it can also be done yourself using a systematic approach.

Understanding Market Value

Market value is the price a home would sell for under normal conditions, excluding pressured sales. It's an educated guess that can be made accurate with the right method and consideration of:

- External Characteristics: Curb appeal, home condition, lot size, architectural style, water/sewage systems, etc.
- Internal Characteristics: Room size, construction quality, appliance condition, pride of ownership, heating type, energy efficiency, etc.
- Supply and Demand: Number of homes for sale vs. buyers, time it takes for local homes to sell.
- Location: Desirability of the neighborhood or school district.

Estimating Market Value (Sales Comparison Approach)

1. Research Recent Sales: Find at least three comparable properties sold under normal conditions.
2. Determine Comparability: Match characteristics like lot size, square footage, style, age, and location.
3. Adjust Sale Prices: Compensate for differences in non-identical properties to arrive at an adjusted sale price, reflecting what your home might sell for.
4. Create a Grid: Use a table (like the provided example) to compare and analyze each property's characteristics and their impact on value.
5. Estimate Your Home's Value: Combine the adjusted sale prices to get a rough estimate of your home's market value.

Resources for Comparable Sales Data:
- Local assessors' offices
- Municipalities
- Online databases (e.g., "comparable home sales" or "real estate database - New York State")
- Local newspapers (quarterly sales reports)
- Real estate agents

Property Taxes and Market Value

Property taxes are generally based on estimated market value, determined by local assessors. Reassessments may occur periodically to update these estimates. If you believe your property's assessed value is too high, contact the assessor's office for a review process.