BEST ANSWER
Doug,
I realize that you probably did not think you'd receive so many questions. All you wanted was a simple answer, right?
You can looks up appraisers in Google, the yellow pages, etc. and have someone appriase your property. Fees vary, probably $300-$500, depending upon the custom of your area.
The reason we want to know why is that there are different types of value.
I'll give just one example:
An appraiser will use the closed sales of comparable properties to develop his appraised value.
Typically that means homes that sold in the last six months.
If the market is going up, the appraisal will probably be understated/
If the market is going down, it will be overstated.
If the purpose is for estimating the sales price, the sale will probably occur in the future, so although helpful,, it will probably not be as valid as discussing with a Realtor (for the purpose of selling your home))
Fri Sep 21 2007, 15:25