All home buyers have one th♈ing in common: They don’t want to get ripped off. Whatever the state o⛦f the housing market, it’s important to make sure you pay a fair price.

Yet how do you know that you’re getting a good deal—even in a tight market—before you make an offer? To make a sound investment decision, you need to know how to evaluate any home. The following 10 ti𝕴ps will show you how to get a great deal.

1. Check Recent Sale Prices

A comparable property is similar in size, condition, neighborhood, and amenities to the one you’re considering buying. One 1,200-square-foot, recently remodeled, one-story home with an attached garage should be listed at roughly the same price as a similar 1,200-square-foot 🌌home in the same neighborhood.

That said, you can gain valuable informati🐭on by looking at how the property you’re interested in compares in price with houses that are different from it. Is it considerably less expensive than larger or nicer properties? ෴Is it more expensive than smaller or less attractive houses?

Your real estate agent is the best source of accurate, up-to-date information on comparable properties, also known as “comps” or “comparables”. You can also look at comparables that are currently in escrow, meaning that the property has a buyer, but the sale has not yet been𓆏 completed.

2. Check Out Comparable Properties

If you can, visit other homes to get a tactile sense of hꩲow their size, condition, and amenities compare with the property you’re considering. You can then compare prices and see what seems fair.

Reasonable s🐓ellers know that they must price their properties similarlyღ to market comparables if they want to be competitive.

3. Look at Unsold Comparables

If the house yꦛou’re considering has about the same price as homes that have been taken off the market because they didn’t sell, the house in questio꧋n may be overpriced.

Or, if there are many similar properties on the marketꦫ, prices⛎ should be lower, especially if those properties are vacant.

Check out the unsold inventory index for information about current 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:supply and demand in the housing market. This index attempts to measure how long it will take for all the homes currently on the market to be sold, given the rate at w🔯hich homes are currently selling.

4. Consider Current Market Conditions

Have prices been going up or down recently? In a 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:seller’s market properties will likely be somewhat overpriced, and in a 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:buyer’s market, they are apt to be underpriced. It depends on where the market currently sits on the real𒊎 estate boom-and-bust cycle.

Even in a seller’s market♔, properties may not be overpriced if the market is on the upswing and not near its peak. They can be overpriced even in a buyer’s market if prices have only recently begun to decline. Of course, it can be difficult to see the peaks and valleys until they’re histoꦑry.

Also, 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:consid♎er the impact of mortgage interest rates and the job market on your local economy. High mortgage rates and hi🌸gh unemployment 😼both suppress home prices.

5. Be Wary of for-Sale-by-Owner Properties

A for-sale-by-owner (FSBO) property should be discounted to reflect the fact that there is no 2.5% to 3% (on average) seller’s agent’s commission, something that many sellers don’t take into consideration when deciding how to set a price for a house.

Another potential problem is that the seller has not had an agent’s guidance in setting a reasonable price in the first place, or may have been so unhappy with that guidance that they've decided to go it alone.

🍌 In any of these situations, ღthe property may be overpriced.

6. Consider Potential Appreciation

The future prospects of your chosen neighborhood can have an impact on today's home prices. If positive development is planned, such as an extension of light rail to the neighborhood or a big company moving to town, the prospects for future home appreciation look good. Even small developments, such as plans to add more roads or build a new school, can be a good sign.

If grocery stores and gas stations are closing down, the hꦺome price should be lowe🦩r to reflect the bad news. You might even reconsider moving to the area.

The development of new housing can go either 𒁃way. It can mean that the area is hot and likely to be in high demand in the future, thus increasing your home’s value, or it can create a surplus of housing, w൲hich will lower the value of existing homes.

7. Ask Your Real Estate Agent

Your real estate agent should have a good gut sense of the appropriate price fo༒r the property and what a fair offering price would be.

8. Ask Yourself: Does the Price Feel Fair?

If you’re not happy with the proper💯ty, the price will never s🐼eem fair, even if you get a bargain.

If you pay a little over market value for a hom🐎e you love, you won’t really care in the end.

9. Test the Waters

You can always make an offer below 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:list price just to see how the seller reacts. Some sellers list properties for the lowest price tꦿhey’re willing to take because they don’t want to negotiate. O🐼thers list their homes for higher than they expect to get because they expect to negotiate or they want to see if someone will make an offer at the higher price.

Some sellers underprice their properties in the hope of generating interest and sparking a 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:bidding war. Unlike on eBay, the seller doeꦅsn’t have to sell to the highest bidde✤r. A seller can reject any and all offers that don’t meet their expectations.

If you have your heart set on the property, be warned that some sellers are offended by lowball offers and may refuse to work with you. A♊lso, when you offer less than the list p✃rice, you increase your risk of being outbid by another buyer.

10. Get an Appraisal and an Inspection

Once you’re under contract, the lender will have an 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:appraisal of the prop♊er🎶ty done (typically at your expense) to protect its financial interests.

If the appraisal comes in at considerably less🐎 than yܫour offering price, you may not be getting a fair deal. In fact, the lender may not even let you purchase the home unless the seller is willing to lower the price.

A 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:home inspection, also completed after you’re under contract, will give you another way to gauge your offering price. If the home needs many expensive repairs, you’ll want to ask the seller to either make the repairs for you or discount the purchase price so yoಞu can make them yourself.

The Bottom Line

When you’re shopping for a home, it’s important to understand how housing is priced, so you can make a sound investment and reach a fair agreement with the seller. Using these tips, you’ll be able to make a confident and well-informed 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:offer on any home in any market.