Many Australians made money in their sleep last year as house prices rose on a monthly basis. 

It’s always nice to have an idea of what your home is worth, either because you are thinking of selling or because you want to leverage your equity to invest in an additional home (which we can help you with). 

Even if you’re not planning to sell imminently, an appraisal can be helpful to give you an idea of where you stand financially. 

Read on to find out more about calculating the value of your home.  

Mount Gambier property prices

You may be surprised to learn that Mount Gambier topped regional South Australia for property sales performance in 2021. 

The average increase in value was around 13 per cent according to sales figures. For the period between December 2020 and Nov 2021, close to 700 homes in the area were sold, based on data from realestate.com.au. 

The price jump is attributed to remote and flexible work options prompting people to move away from larger cities like Melbourne. 

What is my house worth?

Mount Gambier has an eclectic property market, with smaller units, beautiful limestone houses and value-for-money family homes. The general price range is around $200,000 for a unit and above $400,000 for a more prestige-level home. 

The value of your property will depend on a number of factors including size, location, the materials it is made from and what buyers are looking for. 

One way to get a rough idea of what your home is worth is to check out a site like onthehouse.com.au. You can search by postcode and filter the results to be similar to your home, which will give you an indication of the value of your property. 

For example, this modern, 3 bedroom Mount Gambier home with a secure garage recently sold for $350,000. If you have a similar property, you could expect to sell for a price in a similar range.

Request an appraisal

Beware of asking the bank to value your property. Banks tend to look at what it could sell for in an emergency, if for example, you couldn’t repay your mortgage and the bank had to repossess the home quickly and sell it to recover the losses incurred by your unpaid loan. 

For a real idea of market value, you need to speak with a real estate agent. Their appraisal will be based on a tested formula, including all the features of your home (size, location, outlook etc) plus recent sales prices in the area and the level of demand coming from buyers. 

When an agent values your home, they will have a good look around and give an estimate that relates to the most up to date local figures. Generally, the valuation will be within a range, e.g. $290,000 – $310,000. 

A good property agent is likely to be very close to spot on with their appraisal, but at the end of the day the value will be decided by you and the buyer. Be wary of working with an agent who estimates your home is worth a great deal more than current market value. They may be coming in ‘high’ in order to secure your business and have a strategy to reset your expectations as you work through the sales process.  

Is now the right time to sell?

Only you can make that decision, but if you are thinking of selling and would like to get up-to-date information about the current market in Mount Gambier, please give us a call today.