topic Re: Should I or shouldn't I? in Community Chat

Should I or shouldn't I?

PuppyLoverBob666 — Mon, 23 May 2022 21:02:08 GMT

I live in the Seattle area and home prices are really shooting up. I don't plan to sell my house any time soon but I'm dying to know what the asking price would be?

I'm not exaggerating when I say that the value of our house is probably 10 times what we bought it for, back in the mid-80's. It needs some cosmetic work but is basically sound.

So here's what I'm wondering: we get at least 1 or 2 solicitations a day to sell it. I'm not going to do that now but possibly in the next few years. Would it be a mistake to call one of the realtors pleading with us to sell our house, and ask what we could sell it for?

I'm just afraid we'll get a never ending blizzard of mail from them and possibly other realtors. Is there any other way of getting a ballpark figure from some other source?

Re: Should I or shouldn't I?

Love my grandkids — Mon, 23 May 2022 21:08:59 GMT

@PuppyLoverBob666 I think I'd also be tempted to find out but they'll be contacting you until the day you die! A hard choice, I'm sure.

Re: Should I or shouldn't I?

Desert Lily — Mon, 23 May 2022 21:11:55 GMT

An idea might be to look online (Zillow dot com, Realtor dot com, etc.) for the value of comparable houses to yours in your neighborhood if you want to avoid realtors contacting you.

Websites will show how much homes in your area have recently sold for.

Re: Should I or shouldn't I?

kaydee50 — Mon, 23 May 2022 21:12:37 GMT

@PuppyLoverBob666 You could check out Zillow or Realtor. com and see what homes similar to yours are selling for. Since you can't count on housing prices to keep increasing--remember 2008???--I personally would seriously consider selling now if I had a place I wanted to move to.

Re: Should I or shouldn't I?

depglass — Mon, 23 May 2022 21:16:00 GMT

If you watch a lot of TV you mght have seen ads for companies that say they use the same criteria to evaluate your house as the realtors do. Can't think of a name right now, of course. It's all online, location, square feet, etc. to determine a value. You will have to give them your email address and possibly phone. I guess it depends on how much resistance you have, as you will be bugged to death.

Re: Should I or shouldn't I?

Pink123 — Mon, 23 May 2022 21:17:59 GMT

You can check Zillow.com. Type in your address and then they will give you a ball park estimate of what your property is worth.

I understand through your post you do not want to sell soon but are curious. I know it's a wow -- we're rich but where you want to move will cost equally as high and so it really doesn't matter. You will pay basically the same for a similar place.

Unless of course you move to the few states where prices have not risen as much. Not to many of those around either these days.

My brother just bought a brand new home in the northern part of florida. He could get $100,000. more than what he paid for it less than one year ago. But he says -- "I'm staying in Florida, where will I go? All the prices have increased $100,000.

Try Zillow on computer, no one will hassle you. You will see a price range. Good luck.

Re: Should I or shouldn't I?

On It — Mon, 23 May 2022 21:20:15 GMT

Zillow will have their estimate of value on the map of your neighborhood. Search your city and keep enlarging your area until your specific street is shown. The value will be shown on your lot.

You can try entering your address in the search bar. It may pop up that way. I would not contact a realtor unless you are ready to sell. They need inventory and will contact you often to see if you have decided to sell.

Re: Should I or shouldn't I?

PuppyLoverBob666 — Mon, 23 May 2022 21:24:44 GMT

We plan to stay here till we die (we're in our 70's) and of course there's no way of knowing when that will be. But I do know exactly what I want to do with the proceeds of the sale so I can't help being curious.

I might take a look at Zillow or Realtors; thanks for the suggestions.

Re: Should I or shouldn't I?

CelticCrafter — Mon, 23 May 2022 21:28:00 GMT

@kaydee50 wrote:
@PuppyLoverBob666 You could check out Zillow or Realtor. com and see what homes similar to yours are selling for. Since you can't count on housing prices to keep increasing--remember 2008???--I personally would seriously consider selling now if I had a place I wanted to move to.

The only thing with selling now, you will make a lot of money but then you have to spend a lot to buy something else.

Re: Should I or shouldn't I?

KingstonsMom — Mon, 23 May 2022 21:32:25 GMT

@On It wrote:
Zillow will have their estimate of value on the map of your neighborhood. Search your city and keep enlarging your area until your specific street is shown. The value will be shown on your lot.

You can try entering your address in the search bar. It may pop up that way. I would not contact a realtor unless you are ready to sell. They need inventory and will contact you often to see if you have decided to sell.

@On It

I agree, contact Zillow. I worked for our state's Board of Realtors for years and they will stalk you forever!

Re: Should I or shouldn't I?

PA Mom-mom — Mon, 23 May 2022 21:32:45 GMT

@PuppyLoverBob666 You can get a good idea from looking at what similar houses in your neighborhood are selling for. But, if you are not going to sell for a few years, I'm not sure why you are getting an estimate now. What I would be concentrating on is preparing your house for sale. That's what we are doing now. Taking off wall paper and painting in neutrals. resurfacing the kitchen cabinets and upgrading outside doors and garage to comply with current codes (which have changed since 1984). Our next step is to upgrade (slightly) our bathrooms with as little expense as possible. If you want to engage a Realtor to handle your house, you can invite them in to give you advice for prepping. But I wouldn't lure them in and dump them when you decide to sell.

Re: Should I or shouldn't I?

Lucky Charm — Mon, 23 May 2022 21:33:39 GMT

Don't forget about capital gains. We just went thru 3 consecutive years paying that. Take a huge chunk out of your profit.

Zillow, Realtor.com, etc. haven't caught up with the boom in many places. Better to go with comps, look to see what has sold in your neighborhood--and what is closest matched to what you're selling. (# of bedrooms and bathrooms)

Be prepared to pay much more for something you may really like.

Re: Should I or shouldn't I?

PuppyLoverBob666 — Mon, 23 May 2022 21:40:41 GMT

@CelticCrafter wrote:
@kaydee50 wrote:
@PuppyLoverBob666 You could check out Zillow or Realtor. com and see what homes similar to yours are selling for. Since you can't count on housing prices to keep increasing--remember 2008???--I personally would seriously consider selling now if I had a place I wanted to move to.

The only thing with selling now, you will make a lot of money but then you have to spend a lot to buy something else.

That's what I've been thinking about too. For that and some other reasons,we're going to stay right where we are for now.

Re: Should I or shouldn't I?

bonnielu — Mon, 23 May 2022 21:40:52 GMT

Thoughts about this.

1. Find out in your area about reputable agents.

2. Do not respond to all those who have contacted you either by mail, email or phone. Driving me crazy. About to answer and tell them to leave me alone.

3.Check sites like Zillow in your area.

4. Ask friends who might know someone that they have dealtt with, that includes those who you come in contact in groups you may be a part of. Example: We are square dancers the some of our fellow dancers are real estate agents.

Re: Should I or shouldn't I?

millieshops — Mon, 23 May 2022 21:41:45 GMT

@PuppyLoverBob666 First, I would not call the realtors who've been calling you unless you know who are they.

Assuming you don't know one of the callers, check Zillow or Realtor.com for houses in your specific area. You can put in specifics (bedrooms, bathrooms, age range, price range, etc.) all without identifying yourself to an actual realtor. You might well see an address on a local street you know and know whether it's similar to your street or not.

In any area I follow, there will be pictures and prices and once you begin checking you will understand more and more how people are arriving at prices.

If you want a realtor to contact you, they would be happy to help even though you're not ready to sell. The better ones will suggest what's really adding value in your area and price range - in lots of cities and towns the prices for essentially the same house can differ wildly depending upon exact location. It's good to start to learn before you really need to know.

Re: Should I or shouldn't I?

PuppyLoverBob666 — Mon, 23 May 2022 21:45:35 GMT

@PA Mom-mom wrote:
@PuppyLoverBob666 You can get a good idea from looking at what similar houses in your neighborhood are selling for. But, if you are not going to sell for a few years, I'm not sure why you are getting an estimate now. What I would be concentrating on is preparing your house for sale. That's what we are doing now. Taking off wall paper and painting in neutrals. resurfacing the kitchen cabinets and upgrading outside doors and garage to comply with current codes (which have changed since 1984). Our next step is to upgrade (slightly) our bathrooms with as little expense as possible. If you want to engage a Realtor to handle your house, you can invite them in to give you advice for prepping. But I wouldn't lure them in and dump them when you decide to sell.

A careful reading of my post will reveal that I'm just curious, and that we plan to stay in our house till we die.

Re: Should I or shouldn't I?

PA Mom-mom — Mon, 23 May 2022 22:08:42 GMT

@PuppyLoverBob666 Sorry, I read this post, and it didn't say you were not planning to sell. Sorry if I misread it.

I live in the Seattle area and home prices are really shooting up. I don't plan to sell my house any time soon but I'm dying to know what the asking price would be?

I'm not exaggerating when I say that the value of our house is probably 10 times what we bought it for, back in the mid-80's. It needs some cosmetic work but is basically sound.

So here's what I'm wondering: we get at least 1 or 2 solicitations a day to sell it. I'm not going to do that now but possibly in the next few years. Would it be a mistake to call one of the realtors pleading with us to sell our house, and ask what we could sell it for?

I'm just afraid we'll get a never ending blizzard of mail from them and possibly other realtors. Is there any other way of getting a ballpark figure from some other source?

Re: Should I or shouldn't I?

Sooner — Mon, 23 May 2022 22:32:22 GMT

@PuppyLoverBob666 I wouldn't call a realtor unless you are thinking of selling. What good would it do you and why bother someone?

Re: Should I or shouldn't I?

Meowingkitty — Mon, 23 May 2022 22:55:44 GMT

I would not contact anybody unless you want to be hounded constantly. Realtors are like sharks when they see blood in the water. Check Zillow, Realator.com etc.

Re: Should I or shouldn't I?

qvcfreak — Mon, 23 May 2022 23:02:22 GMT

IF you don’t mind paying, you can get an appraisal done. Good luck.