As a Foreclosures.com listing subscriber, you receive free home value range data on your property listing detail report. Recently I’ve had subscribers ask me if the property valuation number we provide is what you can sell the property for in today’s market.
To begin, we all know that values have adjusted in most markets, and that you cannot rely on “past comparables” any longer. You must look at “what’s on the market now” to make sure your house is the best deal in the area for the money.
That is why I use my valuation range on the listing as a “guide” to “weeding my leads for 30% equity” to make my FIRST CUT, so I can get on the phone and start talking to property owners. I NEVER use that number to determine my actual resale number when writing an offer.
Editor’s Note: Please read last months Marketing Mania “Update: What’s it Worth? Part 1 of 3: Setting Your Offer Price in a Soft Market” for more on this subject. I also ran a quick check on the various automated valuations and found Foreclosures.com values to be right in the range of outside valuation services.
Here is what I found using Yahoo Finance Home Values:
Example Pre-Foreclosure Lead in Fair Oaks, California:
- SqFt: 1,441
- Acre: .18
- Bed/Bath: 3 / 2
- Year: 1967
Foreclosures.com Value: $321,000 ($302,000-$340,000)
Loan in Default: $76,000
Equity: $245,000 (76%)
Outside Valuation Services:
$336,448
$293,809
$345,823
Based on the above it is safe to continue to weed your leads for 30% on Foreclosures.com for your first cut. But do make sure you measure twice and cut once, when it’s time to write your offer (as covered in this months Marketing Mania column).
The foregoing has been prepared for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.
The information is summary in nature and does not address any particular situation.
Readers should not act upon this information but should instead seek professional advice.
