Our market has seen a steady appreciation of home values in the last 2 years. This year has been interesting to watch because of the extreme lack of inventory, resulting in a seller's market. We want to make sure you are armed with the best and most accurate information when it comes to your home value, so we have compiled a list of our top 3 reasons why you should check it now.
1. See if you can ditch that private mortgage insurance
The first thing that comes to mind: Is that it is time to knock off PMI from your monthly mortgage payments. In many cases, your lender required you to purchase private mortgage insurance (PMI) if you put less than 20% down on your house. PMI typically amounts to between 0.5%-1% of the purchase price. For a $200,000 mortgage, your PMI could be $1,000 to $2,000 per year.
2. Update your home’s value on online listing sites to reflect renovations and improvements
Even if you’re in the earliest stages of putting your house on the market, you’ll want to start owning your home’s history and value online. Claiming your property on sites like Zillow, Redfin, and Realtor, and updating your home’s online value, can change the perception of the property to better align with its current value.
3. Find out how much equity you’ve built up
Understanding equity, or the current market value of your home minus your outstanding mortgage balance, puts you in a better place to understand your finances overall. You may be beginning to think about a move and knowing the value of your property could lead to an accelerated sale timeline, as long as you factor in the difference between home equity and your home sale proceeds.