When it comes to setting the price of a house, the main thing to do is to look at the recent sales and active listings of similar homes in your area.  Combine this research with the inside market knowledge of an experienced estate agent, and you can confidently choose the price range in which you feel comfortable selling your home.

Here are some guidelines to keep in mind when determining how much your house price should reach.  

Make sure to look at recent comparable sales
Markets change fast, so it’s best to find comparable sales within the past three months. If you go back too far, you will see homes where a deal might have been made many months before it closed.

Real estate markets can turn on a dime, so a deal put together more than six months ago isn’t applicable.

Understand that fixtures and finishes matter
Let’s face it, buyers prefer a tastefully renovated home with neutral finishes and fixtures over an unrenovated home, one stuck in the ’80s, or one with outlandish decorations.

When looking at comparable houses online, you must be objective.  If your home isn’t updated, it’s not going to sell for as much as the newly renovated property down the road.

Here’s the good news: The amount of money it would cost to upgrade your house is probably a lot less than the difference in value. Be open to making some small changes before listing.

No two homes are alike
The 200m2, 3-bedroom, 2-bath home with two-car parking on 1000m2 down the street just sold for $500,000. That means your home — also a 200m2, 3-bedroom, 2-bath house with two-car parking, on 1000m2 — is also worth $500,000, right?

Not so fast.  What you don’t realise is that the other home’s 3 bedrooms are not all on the top floor, and that the home lacks an en-suite master bathroom, its kitchen is closed off from the living areas, and the layout is fragmented.

Buyers pay more for better floor plans and flow.  Your home, with an open concept kitchen/living area and three bedrooms all near each other, is much more valuable.

Go see homes for sale
Rarely does anyone decide to sell overnight. Once you realise a sale is in your future, get out and see what’s in your market.  Check out open houses nearby to see the interiors for yourself.

Check out the different floor plans, finishes and fixtures of nearby homes for sale, and consider whether each is more or less valuable than yours.

The best seller is the informed one. So don’t rely solely on your agent’s word about a particular house, or the market in general; educate yourself.

Use your agent as a resource
The earlier you bring a local real estate agent into the fold, the better. Top agents tour properties regularly, and know their market inside and out. They can likely explain the seemingly inexplicable, and offer tips to help make your home more valuable.

A good agent has the inside knowledge on pending homes sales and their finger on the pulse of the market 24/7.