If you own a St Charles property and would like to find its fair market value because you wither intend to sell it or you would juts like to know more about the real estate market trends in your area; there are several ways to do so.

If you juts want to find the fair market value of your home without any real intentions of selling it you may not want to spend for a professional appraisal service, also getting in touch with a St Charles realtor may not be the most suitable option. There are several sites online that can help you to get a free valuation of your home, one of these is:

• Propertystcharles.com

Alternatively you could also look at the St Charles MLS for other homes in your area and their listing price.

On the other hand if you are going to base your selling decision on the valuation of your home or if you intend to quote this price you may want to put in more research, so here is what you can do.

One way is to get in touch with a licensed St Charles realtor and ask for a comparative market analysis for your home. Normally realtors will offer this service for free if you list your home with them. Alternatively you could also avail the services of an appraiser for a small fee; usually in the range of $500. This will be a more appropriate and accurate way to get your home appraised. The appraiser will come to your house and examine everything, the neighborhood, amenities inside the house and the proximity of the property to public utilities.

If a house has recently been sold in your immediate neighborhood and if this house has the same features as your home, you may be able to estimate the value of your home from the sales price of this other house. But make sure that the house is within a one to two miles of you home. Also, if the features vary make sure that you make concessions for the total area, floor plans and acreage. Also, the house should have been sold in the last 3 months.

If you feel the value of your home is too low you may want to consider adjusting features like the landscaping, floors (tile/wood), pools, fireplaces, countertops, ceilings etc that will help you to increase your asking price. However, be careful when adding amenities because not all amenities will equate to a price increase. For instance a pool may be a good or a bad thing depending on the buyer. But in general amenities that require a lot of maintenance or work will just pull down the value of the house.

It is important to not overestimate the value of your home based on sentimental attachment. Even though you may have a million fond memories of your home that make it precious, the buyer may not necessarily agree with you. If you over quote you may find it hard to even find buyers who would come and take a look at the house. So, be realistic with your expectations.