BEATING DOWN THE TAX APPRAISAL MAN IS OFTEN A DUMB IDEA

I have a game I play by myself.  It's not solitary.  It's more fun than that. 

The purpose of the game is to look at the list of expired Dallas MLS listings and try to figure out why they didn't sell. 

To do this, the only information I have is what the listing agent provided about the listing and what I can scratch up myself. 

Usually I've not been in the home before, and I've not shown it, so I don't have the advantage of prospective buyers' feedback.

Here's one that frequently crops up, and it's the most bewildering:

The owner has protested the Dallas County Central Appraisal District's appraised value of his home, and he did it knowing he would be putting his home on the market within a year or two. 

The CAD compromised, and lowered his home's value.

The irony, of course, is that the value the CAD had originally assigned the home was less than the owner would have listed it for with a Realtor.  The new value is even lower than that.

Next the house is listed for what the homeowner and his Realtor conclude it an appropriate price, and without any regard for the value the compromised CAD value.  And the CAD's value is not only public record, but easily and readily accessible through the Internet.

Prospective buyers compare the listed price against the CAD value.  Often times that shows more than a 20% difference.  The prospect's conclusion?  The house is horribly overpriced.

Which leads me to the question I muse?  Why do those who plan to sell their homes in the near future get all wrapped up in beating down the value the CAD assigned their home?

It's a sure way to bring contention to their marketing.

*The photo above is for illustrative purposes.  It's not a Dallas home.

BILL CHERRY, REALTORS

DALLAS - PARK CITIES

Since 1964

214 503-8563

"Bill Cherry's Memories"

Dallas Harpist Patty Cherry