Need a pre-listing appraisal? Contact L.B. Brainard and Associates

Avoid having your home on the market too long or selling yourself short by getting an appraisal to demonstrate the right listing price.

A lot of sellers are shocked when they find out that the market value of their house is much more than they had planned, so investing in a professional appraisal from us actually allowed these people to receive several thousand more dollars than they thought they would when their home was sold. An appraisal helps those who have an inflated opinion of their home's estimated value to decide on a realistic price for their home in order for it to sell. An overpriced property won't attract serious potential buyers, which means you have wasted time on money and are left with no offers. Every month your home stays on the market is another month you have to pay its mortgage. And you're stuck paying the mortgage while your house is still sitting on the market.

With today's evolving market conditions, you should definitely appoint a licensed appraiser to get an exact listing price for your home.

Are you working with an agent to sell your home? Quite often you can expect them to give you a comparative market analysis (or CMA) that includes similar homes for sale in your area. It's a customary starting point when deciding your home's listing price. For anyone looking to get most profit out of their house, which includes not having it for sale too long, this is a logical process.

In our opinion, though, you should also get an appraisal from someone who tracks real estate values for living - BEFORE putting your home on the market - even if you're working with an experienced real estate agent.

That's where L.B. Brainard and Associates comes in! We can perform a pre-listing appraisal so both you and your agent have an accurate description of your home's features and a detailed analysis of the most recent and similar comparable sales or "comps".

We're also experienced in helping you decide on a realistic price to sell so your home will bring in buyers. An efficient appraisal from L.B. Brainard and Associates can:

Help provide expert advice when negotiating once you have found an interested buyer
Impress buyers with written proof of your house's quality inside and out
Eliminate repair hassles at the eleventh hour
Reduce chances of unexpected complications that can cause your sale to flop
Do away with waiting for the buyer's appraisal to have confidence the deal can be underwritten.

Upgrades that improve your home's value

There are other important questions to ask yourself, in addition to "how much?", prior to listing your home. Questions like "Would it be better to paint the outside of the house before we sell it?", "Would it help to put in that third bathroom?", "Should I finish my closet remodel?" Everything we do to our houses can affect their value. But everything will affect it in a different way. Remodeling your kitchen may improve the appeal of a home, but be sure to figure out the expenses involved before diving in. It may not justify the time and costs involved.

We can step in and help you make these important decisions. Unlike a real estate agent, an appraiser has no vested interest in what amount the house sells for. Our appraisal fees are based on efforts to complete your report, and not a percentage of the sales price. An appraisal fee from L.B. Brainard and Associates is based on our efforts to finalize the report, and are not a percentage of the sales price. Our fees are not a percentage of the sales price — your fee to us is based on efforts to finalize the report. When it comes to investing in your house and deciding on a fair price to sell at, a professional appraisal from L.B. Brainard and Associates helps homeowners like you make the sharpest decisions.