It would seem that many buyers in the market today are hesitating before making an offer because they are unsure of the current and future value of the home they think they want to purchase.
While it's impossible to predict the future 100% accurately, I can definitely help you to better evaluate your buying decision. Here are a few ways we could quantitatively analyze a property:
Price-per-square-foot trends
If you are buying a home in a subdivision where other homes have recently sold, we can certainly look at average price-per-square-foot trends to estimate the value of the home, and to see how those values have changed over recent months and years. This graph shows price-per-square-foot trends for all of Harrisonburg and Rockingham County. We would be doing the same sort of analysis, but with a smaller data set.
Comparative Market Analysis (CMA)
In my opinion, a CMA isn't just for a seller before they list their home for sale. Comparing a property for sale to other similar properties that have recently sold can shed significant light on the potential value of the property. The "comparable" sold properties would be as similar as possible based on features such as: age, bedrooms, bathrooms, location, condition, square footage, amenities, etc.
There are other ways we can approach this issue as well, but the main thing to remember is that it is important (in any market, but especially now) to understand the value of the home that you might purchase. The listing price alone won't provide a full picture of the value of the home.
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