How property value actually works
Written to stay correct. None of these pages quotes a current rate or price, because a figure in prose is wrong within a month and then quietly stays wrong for years.
What is my house worth? The four ways to find out
There is no single answer, only four different methods with different costs and different accuracy. Pick by what the number is for.
8 min read- The four methods and what each costs
- Which one institutions actually accept
- What really moves your number
- The order to do them in
- US & UK7 min
How house price indices work, and why repeat-sales is the good one
Three ways to measure house prices, only one of which holds the house constant. That one is the reason a purchase price is such a powerful input.
- US & UK7 min
Why online home estimates get it wrong
Automated estimates fail for reasons no amount of model improvement fixes. Knowing which reasons applies to you tells you how much to trust the number.
- US7 min
Should you refinance? The break-even calculation that matters
The monthly payment is the wrong number to optimise. Two calculations decide it, and most refinance pitches only show you one.
- US & UK7 min
Home equity: HELOC, cash-out refinance, or leave it alone
Equity is not money until you borrow against it or sell, and each route has a different cost. Including the option of leaving it where it is.
- US & UK6 min
Which renovations actually add value
Almost no renovation returns more than it costs. The useful question is which lose least, and whether resale is even the point.
- US6 min
Property tax: how it is calculated and how to challenge it
Property tax is assessed value times a rate, and the assessed value is frequently wrong. Appeals succeed on evidence, not on the tax feeling too high.
- GB7 min
How to value your home in the UK
The UK has unusually good public sold-price data. Here is how to use it, and the two UK-specific factors that reprice a property.
- GB5 min
Stamp duty explained, and the traps in it
Stamp duty is charged in slices, not on the whole price. Knowing that, and knowing the surcharges, is worth thousands.
- US & UK6 min
The price-to-rent ratio, and what it tells you about buying
One number compares buying with renting in the same place. It will not tell you what to do, but it tells you what you are betting on.