After having a difficult time financially for quite some time, I realized that part of my problem was my personal housing costs. I really began evaluating what I wanted out of a home, and I realized that I needed to shop for a place that would work better for what I needed. I started paying more and more attention to real estate risks, and it occurred to me that I hadn't invested in a smart property. After talking with my real estate agent, I started focusing on changing my ways, and it was incredible to see how much brighter my future became.
Found a single-family home for sale that you love, and now you want to make an offer on it? If so, you'll probably need to perform a comparative market analysis in order to determine if the offer you are making on the home is fair. This is when you find homes that have recently been sold that are similar to the one you want to make an offer on, and see if the asking price of the home is in line with the rest of the market. While this is something your realtor typically helps you with, it's possible to do it on your own. Here is what to look for when trying to find comparable homes.
Location
Location is key when it comes to finding a similar home because a house in a different city can be priced much differently based on where you currently live. Try to limit your search to the area that surrounds the home you are interested in since it will share many similar factors, such as distance to public transportation, the school district, crime rate, and much more.
Sold Date
There have been some dramatic shifts in the market recently, with homes selling for much more than what they were a few years ago. That's why you want to pay close attention to the sold date of any comparable property, and to make sure that it has a sold date closer to today. It's okay to go through the sales records from a couple of years back, but you must adjust the price for what the home would be worth today in order to make a fair comparison.
Construction Material
A home with vinyl siding is going to be priced differently than a home that has been made with bricks, which is why you need to find homes with similar construction materials. If you can't find a home made with the same materials, make sure to factor that into the cost when comparing it to the one you are interested in.
Bedrooms And Bathrooms
Having more bedrooms and bathrooms can greatly alter the price of the home. That's why any home you compare should have the same configuration. Even if the total square footage of the bedrooms all equal the same amount, having an additional bedroom really makes a home stand out by being listed at a higher price.
Reach out to your real estate agent for more information about what you should be looking for with other comparable single-fmaily homes to help form your offer.