Evaluating your Home*

Determining the market value of your home in the Tucson real estate market is a critical element of the process of selling your own home. Choosing the right price for your home is also crucial to making the sale. You risk everything if your price is too far off the current real estate market. You don’t want to discourage qualified buyers by pricing your real estate too high. And at least as importantly, you don’t want to lose your equity because you've set the asking price too low.

This part will take some work and research, but all of your labors will come back many fold. You'll have an easier time attracting qualified buyers, and getting the price you deserve for your home if you do your research thoroughly. Professional Tucson real estate agents are familiar with the current market: what houses are selling for and how your home compares to other real estate on the Tucson market. This task is made much simpler today due to easily accessible public records on the Internet.

You need to see what homes similar to your home are selling for in your area. Your area is crucial – a similar home in another area of Tucson is not consequential to your pricing. A 1,500 square foot home in one area of Tucson can be worth substantially more, or less, than in another area. Real estate in all cities is like this, but in the dynamic Tucson real estate market, the fluctuations can be quite extreme. Look in the newspapers, on the Internet and at 'for sale' signs on the streets in your neighborhood and immediate area.

Though many Tucson real estate agents advertise free home appraisals, don't ask for one. Not only is it unfair to ask them for that information when you don’t plan to work with them, but you won't know for sure if their pricing is unrealistically low, or if they’re giving you an inflated price to get your business. If you're going to sell your own home, you should accept the full responsibility for this step of the process. You'll feel better if you know the price you put on your house is realistic and fair.

Your home has some special value to you. Your home is valuable to you for many subjective reasons. Children may have grown up in the home, marriages and anniversaries may have been celebrated. Your pet may even be buried in the yard. Remember, this is a business transaction, and these highly personal elements of your home do not represent real selling points for buyers. Nor do they add any monetary value to the home. Sometimes this is difficult to accept, but it is true.

Attending open houses in your area can be beneficial to establishing a good market price for your real estate, and assist you with other things as well. Visit the homes on the market that are similar in age, size and style to yours. Only the real estate pricing information that is available close to the time you are planning to sell is viable, since the Tucson real estate market can change drastically from season to season. Also, notices of new construction can affect pricing considerably – such as when a new shopping center or school is being built.

Things to take note of are yard size, fencing, updated kitchens, bedroom sizes, type and monthly cost of heating and cooling. The cost of cooling in Tucson can be quite important, unlike some areas where the cost of heating is of greater concern. Also see if the house you're viewing needs an inside or outside paint job, what the distance to schools or shopping is, and if the financing is being assisted.

If you are selling a condominium in Tucson, you can also consider how the view, amenities, fees and regulations compare to yours. Finding the value of your condominium is usually easier than find the value of stand-alone homes.

A good question to ask when you're at an open house is how long the home has been on the market. A home that is not moving in a real estate market that is as strong as the Tucson market may well be priced too high. Don't use a house that is not selling for your pricing comparison.

Another good reason to visit open houses is to see what they did, or did not do, to properly prepare the house for viewing. Take some notes, and don't repeat the errors of others.

Don't use just one home for your pricing comparison. Compare several Tucson homes to your own. Start with their pricing and add or subtract value depending on if you are missing a feature or have a feature they don’t. By working with several examples you should get a feel for the right price. Going and seeing homes helps with this, but you'll make your best progress on the Internet.

You can also hire an independent appraiser to validate the pricing you’ve decided on. Sometimes, an appraisal may even be required during the financing process. Having an appraisal from a respected Tucson real estate appraiser will also help give instant credibility to your home's asking price, and make qualified buyers feel more at ease. Whatever you do, do not aim too high or your home might sit too long on the market – buyers will know this and stay away.

You are probably aware of how retail stores price items with a ".99" ending. This is done to entice buyers. Even though you know this (as does almost everyone else) it works. It's truly amazing how many people will buy something for $7.99, but not for $8.00. Extensive research has been done on this, and it really does make a difference. In terms of selling your Tucson real estate, this means when deciding on an asking price, or when haggling the final selling price, be aware of the buyers' perspective of the number. If you are thinking of selling for $150,000, for example, you will find more buyers who are more agreeable if you price it at $149,900. It's simple, but effective.

Real estate buyers will almost always have a price range in mind when they are shopping for their new home. It’s better to be just below the $150,000 mark so you can take advantage of those looking in the $140,000 to $150,000 range rather than limiting it to those looking in the $150,000 to $160,000 range. You will still get the interest of buyers looking in the higher price range as people are always looking for a deal.

Now that you have decided on a price, you need to prepare your home for the market – that is, your prospective buyers. This area also requires some time and attention, but is well worth the effort of preparation.