Some people believe that the only way to define "Fair Market Value" is the price paid by a willing buyer to a willing Seller.....that would be a good definition...IF that was the only definition for this term....but clearly....it is not. If you are a listing agent....and have been on any number of listing presentations...a prospective Seller may well have taken out the tax bill for the property and pointed to the little box on the bill...sure enough it says "Fair Market Value"...the prospective Seller already "knows" the "Fair Market Value...there it is in black and white...the local governing body says so...the government MUST be telling the truth of course of course....or....."the truth is what you believe it to be." Many homeowners will choose to believe that bill....and here it comes..However.
However...that "Fair Market Value" is not adjusted based upon the recent sale of your neighbors home...similar to yours...Reality is that it is not recent at all. Like the "assessed value"...it may have little or nothing to do with the reality of the real estate market at any given time. The tax bill doesn't know the current supply and demand...it may not know...your roof blew off...or that you remodeled the kitchen or bathroom...or finished the lower level...It is a piece of paper that "knows" ....nothing.
If the government has "valued" the property higher than the reality of the market...that is sometimes what a homeowner will choose to believe. If the market is fast paced, the inventory low....the location and condition great...a Realtor may find the "fair market value " to be higher than the number printed on the tax bill...and guess who is the credible source of "fair" to the homeowner then ?
Highest is NOT Best...OR Fair...what a homeowner may not think is "fair" is the most recent analysis done by a competent Realtor who prices a house to sell...not to sit ...not to have numerous price reductions or expire....but to sell for the highest and best the market has to offer.
If you or anyone you know is looking to sell Wisconsin real estate for the highest and best price in southeastern Wisconsin...call the Hansons...we would be honored to be of service for all things real estate.
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