How Much is Your Home Worth?

  • Instant property valuation
  • Expert advice
  • Sell for more

Get A Market Analysis

According to Wikipedia: Real estate appraisal, property valuation, or land valuation is the process of developing an opinion of value, for real property (usually market value). Real estate transactions often require appraisals because they occur infrequently and every property is unique (especially their condition, a key factor in valuation), unlike corporate stocks, which are traded daily and are identical (thus a centralized Walrasian auction like a stock exchange is unrealistic). The location also plays a key role in valuation. However, since the property cannot change location, it is often the upgrades or improvements to the home that can change its value. Appraisal reports form the basis for mortgage loans, settling estates and divorces, taxation, and so on. Sometimes an appraisal report is used to establish a sale price for a property.

Moving Checklists

Ready to get moving?! Here are some of our favorite ways to get you and your household set up for success.

Organize
Change of Address & Notifications
The Home Stretch!
Start going through your closets, drawers and cabinets and analyze what items can be donated
Gather all legal documentation into one box and maintain in an accessible and safe place. Documents should include vehicle titles, registration documents and licensing, birth certificates, wills, deeds, stock, legal, medical, and insurance records
Get estimates from three moving companies and make sure they have insurance
Start packing away items you don’t use every day
Deep clean the house (see cleaning checklist)
Meet with the stager for final staging recommendations
Complete a change of address card at the U.S. Postal Service and at the following places you do business: accountants, attorneys, banks, credit card companies, former employers, insurance agents, IRS/Social Security Admin, periodicals, stockbrokers
Cancel newspaper delivery
Notify the Department of Motor Vehicles of your new address
Contact all utility companies (cable, gas, electric, phone, garbage collection, water, etc.) to arrange for disconnect, final billing and connection at your new address. Arrange to have children’s school records transferred
Contact insurance companies (auto, homeowner’s, medical and life) to arrange for coverage in your new location
Cancel voter registration; re-register once you’ve settled into your new home
Defrost refrigerators and freezers
Pack first night items, including: alarm clocks, change of clothes, flashlight, phone, sheets, toiletries and towels
Keep medications, financial information and valuable items with you!
Make sure all of your inspection repairs are complete
Contact your home owner’s insurance company and let them know your day of closing
Your home needs to be left in clean condition, vacuumed, mopped, all cabinets and counters wiped clean, cleaned appliances and all trash and debris removed from inside and outside of the property

Packing Tips

There are a lot of little things you can do when packing to help save yourself from a lot of stress. Here’s just a few!

Pack a Moving Survival Kit
Packing Hacks
The Home Stretch!
Aspirin
Coffee, filters, and coffee maker
Paper cups and plates, plastic utensils
Paper towels, toilet paper, soap
Water, sunglasses and chapstick, no matter the season – stay hydrayed in Colorado!
Keep jewelry, important papers or medications with you
Label boxes as you pack them with content and desired room location
Leave lamps, china and artwork or breakables for movers to pack
Do not over-stuff boxes; leave some extra room at the top
Tape cords underneath all electrical appliances
Wrap breakables in newspaper, bubble wrap, clothes or towel
Use RED packing tape for critical boxes you want to unpack first
Put plastic wrap over drawers so you don’t have to empty out their contents.
Pack plates vertically so they’re less likely to break. Make sure you wrap them well!
Don’t take clothes off their hangers. Move them in bunches in garbage bags still on the hangers. Easy and way cheaper than wardrobe boxes
Color code each box according to room so you can identify what needs to go where in a glance
Add some padding to your boxes. Plastic grocery bags are great for cushioning your breakables. Don’t leave room at the top without padding because otherwise they may get crushed
Remember to mark boxes with breakables as fragile. Whether you’ve hired movers or are doing it yourself, you don’t want someone to be too rough with those boxes
Cut triangles in boxes about 1/3 of the way down to create handles for easy carrying
Defrost refrigerators and freezers
Pack first night items, including: alarm clocks, change of clothes, flashlight, phone, sheets, toiletries and towels
Keep medications, financial information and valuable items with you!
Make sure all of your inspection repairs are complete
Contact your home owner’s insurance company and let them know your day of closing
Your home needs to be left in clean condition, vacuumed, mopped, all cabinets and counters wiped clean, cleaned appliances and all trash and debris removed from inside and outside of the property
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Why Use a Real Estate Professional

This, too, may seem counterintuitive. The seller may believe that he or she will make more money without having to pay a real estate commission, but studies have shown that homes typically sell for more money when handled by a real estate professional.

Research by the National Association of Realtors in their 2018 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers revealed that, “the median selling price for all FSBO homes was $200,000 last year. However, homes that were sold with the assistance of an agent had a median selling price of $264,900 – nearly $65,000 more for the typical home sale.”

We realize that technology has changed the purchaser’s behavior during the home-buying process. According to the National Association of Realtors’ latest Profile of Home Buyers & Sellers, the percentage of buyers who used the Internet in their home search increased to 95%.

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What Every Buyer Should Know

  • Property taxes and qualified home interest are deductible on an individual’s federal income tax return in most cases.
  • Many times, a home is the largest asset an individual has and is considered one of the safest investments available.
  • A homeowner can exclude up to $500,000 of capital gains if married filing jointly or up to $250,000 if single or married filing separately. The home must have been the taxpayer’s principal residence for two of the last five years.
  • A portion of each amortized mortgage payment goes toward the principal, which is an investment.
  • A home is one of the few investments you can enjoy by living in it!
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  • The majority of the time, a real estate agent can show you any home, whether it is listed with a company or a builder or is even a For Sale By Owner.
  • Working with a real estate agent to purchase a For Sale By Owner property is very advantageous because someone will be looking out for your best interests.
  • Getting pre-qualified by a mortgage company will actually approve you for a specific loan amount subject to the property. This will give you confidence and will help when negotiating with the seller.
  • The right to conduct a property inspection, included in your purchase agreement, gives you the ability to negotiate with the seller once you know all the facts about the property’s condition.
  • In a “seller’s market,” don’t go looking for a deal. Set your sights on the right house for you, and then let your real estate agent help you negotiate the best price and terms.

Frequently Asked Questions

Yes. This needs to be one of your first steps. Getting Pre-Qualified through a lender provides insight on how much you can spend, how much you should spend, and whether there are any shortcomings in your financial portfolio. Also, in competitive markets, such as Colorado Springs, many Sellers will not allow you to look at their home without a Pre-Qualification letter.

You can absolutely interview as many realtors as necessary to find one who fits your needs... but you can only work with one real estate agent at a time. 

Of course! The Happy Home Matchmaker Company specializes in virtual tours of not only your new home but your street and neighborhood as well. In 2021, 44% of our clients were out of state, so we’re very well-versed in the unique needs of clients who must purchase “site unseen”. 

Yes, if too many revolving credit accounts, or unusually high balances, are dragging down your credit score, our preferred lender can run credit improvement simulations to help design a strategy to improve your credit score. Oftentimes, a good strategy yields better results while requiring less money. We can also refer you to a credit repair specialist who can help you develop and achieve long-term goals.

We recommend beginning your home search 90 days before you want to walk through the door of your new home. This will give you time to get acquainted with the area, narrow down what you’re looking for in a home, and submit several offers (it’s a highly competitive market, so you can’t expect to “win” the first home you offer on), before finally getting under contract on your new home. Once under contract, it typically takes around 30 days to consummate the transaction. 

Barring a change of employment or any significant adjustment in your financial circumstances, a Pre-Qualification Letter from our preferred lender is good for 180 days.

At least 3.5 to 5% of the purchase price, which is the minimum down payment on other major loan programs. You’ll also get a better interest rate than most of your civilian counterparts.

Earnest Money is a show of good faith from the Buyer, or “skin in the game”. It is typically 1% of the purchase price, and it demonstrates that you are serious about purchasing the home. The Earnest Money is NOT a payment. This money will come back to you at Closing. If the transaction terminates for reasons other than your own negligence, you will also get the Earnest Money back.

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Contact Details

The Collective

Phone

(719) 337-7984

Email

[email protected]

Address

9800 Pyramid Ct Ste 400 Englewood, CO 80112

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