House Value Determination

[salsa]

In a Chapter 13, how is a person's house value determined? I'm pretty the fair market value on my tax bill is higher then the house is worth.

[keepsmiling]

Many here get an appraisal of some sort. You can get something for free from a local realtor or you may have to pay a little something for one more "official".
Remember to point out anything in need of repair and mention "priced for quick sale" if you can slip that in there all casual-like.

[ValleYum]

My tax bill was 50k higher than the value of my home.

Many Realtors will do a 'Comparative Market Analysis' or CMA for $0 to $50. Some folks use Zillow.com as a starting point, too. FYI, Zillow had my house valued about 25k more than the Realtor did. Paying her $25 for my CMA was definitely worth it.

[HHM]

You want a CMA, comparative market analysis.

In the bankruptcy petition, the rule is "market value", which means the price someone would be willing to pay for the house.

Depending on the "number" you need for your purpose...generally, in a chapter 13, you are looking for a low number so you can strip a 2nd mortgage or HELOC, you want to tell the realtor doing the CMA...if I had to sell the house in 60-90 days, what is the number. That way, they don't give you an inflated, pie in the sky number that a person "might" get if they fixed up the house and had a year to sell it.

[AZNoName]

My attorney used Zillow

[keepsmiling]

Zillow for me would be way overpriced. Use your judgment.

[HHM]

Zillow is fine if you need a rough estimate or the value of the home is a non-issue in the case, easily exempt, not doing anything with the 2nd mortgage. However, with zillow, you should click through the "recently" sold and see the dates, that gives you some idea of the direction of the market. All the time I see recent sales more than 6 months ago that are higher than the recent sales in the last 2-3 month.

But, as pointed out, it is a judgment call, but if there is going to be any contested issue with the mortgage, borderline over exemption, strip 2nd mortgage, etc, then you should at least get a 90 day CMA as a starting point; and if that number is still not where it needs to be, then go for the full-blown appraisal.

[shark66]

I paid something like $350 for a full-blown appraisal.

The value of the second mortgage that will be gone (without receiving one red cent) once I complete my Ch. 13 (knock wood) was roughly $75K.

Money well-spent in my book. YMMV.

Good luck to us all.