Just twelve months ago many homeowners had a pretty good idea of what their properties were worth, and after a decade of home price gains most were very happy with the level of equity that they had in their homes. However, over the past year property prices have been falling and this has resulted in many homeowners simply losing track of what their home might now be worth.
There are many reasons for the falling values of properties for homeowners, mainly being the current credit crunch, which will new house buyers off the market as there are no mortgages available anymore.
There are a number of reasons why you may be looking to get your house valued. You may be thinking about putting your house on the market and moving on, in which case you clearly need an idea of what you will get for it. You may be thinking about borrowing against the equity in your home, and will need to provide the lender with details on the value of the home. You may simply be curious to find out what your house is not worth of nearly a year of month on month house price falls.
Of course, there is little point in getting your house priced unless you can be certain that the valuation you receive is an accurate one. Although you can easily contact a local estate agent to come and price the property you may find that you do not get an accurate valuation from just one estate agent, as the valuation may be too high or too low depending on whether the estate agent is prioritising on getting a higher level of commission or a quicker sale on your house.
This is why it is a good idea to get a valuation from around three different estate agents in the area. Once you have received the figure from each estate agent you can compare them to see whether the valuations are vastly different from each agent or pretty much the same sort of figure. You should not let on that you have already had a valuation to the second and third estate agents otherwise you may find that they provide a valuation based on the one that you have already received rather than a totally independent valuation.
Many local papers advertise properties for sale, and it is also a good idea to check out the local paper and see what price properties that are similar to yours in your area are being sold for. You can also do this online on one of the home websites, and this will enable you to see whether the value on similar houses is along the same lines as the valuations you have received on your own house.
Don't be surprised if the value of your property is considerably lower than you may have anticipated, as house prices have been tumbling and many homeowners may have no idea how much their property value has dropped. If you plan to sell the house you should remember that if you inflate the asking price to way above the value of the house you are unlikely to be able to sell it in the current climate.
If your property does not sell at your desired price and you still have equity in your home, then secured loans could help to improve your current home removing the need to move. For more information on property prices and finding out your properties worth read the articles on tips to get on the property ladder
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