Property Evaluations
Starting at $14.95
Nationwide Appraisals
Starting at $270
Title Research
Starting at $75
What Is an AVM and What Is the Value of A Human-Assisted AVM?
AVM stands for Automated Valuation Models which is basically an online database that matches similar properties to give you an idea of the range of sales prices that has historically been recorded. This information is limited to factual data, such as how big the house is, the number of rooms and bedrooms, age of the house, and distance surrounding the house. Some databases use historical information, taken from mostly county record data. Some databases are collecting information from appraisal reports, where a property's physical characteristics are being verified by a real human being.
Details as to the level of updates, remodeling, and overall level of appeal are not typically available with raw data. This would require a "Qualitative Analysis" based on reasoning and most of the models (the way databases do the search) typically don't have the ability to make such judgments. Also, if in the marketplace where the house is located sales prices change rapidly, then historical data may give you a false reading of current conditions.
Automated systems use the information on file at the Tax Assessors office to determine the subjects square footage, this may limit the accuracy of the final value and is limited to the accuracy of the square footage of record vs. the actual square footage of the home. However, if the house you are searching for is located in a market where sales prices do not vary a lot, then an "AVM's" or "CSR" is a good first step to get an idea what most houses similar to the one you are searching for are selling for.
A human-assisted AVM takes all of the above into account, but also a real estate professional will review all the data for consistency, quality and relevance. This product takes into account square footage, location and age of sales in the area.