Tell us the address and what you're planning: sell, hold, refinance, settle an estate. You'll get a written opinion of value based on current closed sales, not a public estimate, usually within two business days. No obligation to list.
Zillow publishes its own accuracy figures: a median error of 7.5% on off market homes, and 1.9% only once a home is already listed. On a $900,000 Newton or Watertown property, that 7.5% is roughly $67,500 in either direction. The gap runs wider on two family homes, converted condos, and anything renovated since its last recorded sale, which describes a large share of the housing stock here.
Send us your address and let a broker who has sold in your neighborhood tell you what its worth. We price from MLS PIN and off market closed sales, the inventory you would actually be competing against, and condition, which is the one variable no automated model can see.
Automated models rely on public record square footage and nearby sales, so they misprice renovated homes, finished basements the assessor never recorded, and anything with an unusual layout. Zillow reports a median error of 7.5% on off market homes, which is about $67,500 on a $900,000 property. Half of all homes are off by more than that.
A written opinion of value from a licensed broker who has sold in your town. It uses MLS PIN closed sales rather than public estimates, adjusts for condition, renovations, parking, and outdoor space, and shows you the current competing inventory. You get a recommended list price and the reasoning behind it, including what is and is not worth doing before you list.
Automated models are least reliable on exactly these properties, and Greater Boston is full of them. A two or three family has a value as a home and a separate value as an investment, and those two numbers are often meaningfully different. We price both, which matters if you are deciding whether to sell or keep renting it.
Thinking About Selling?
The two ways a home actually gets priced
MARKET ANALYSIS
A Comparative Market Analysis is how a broker prices a home. We pull recent closed sales from MLS PIN that are genuinely comparable to yours, as close by and as similar as the market allows, then adjust each one for the differences: condition, square footage, parking, outdoor space, updates. The result is what your home would sell for today against the buyers and inventory currently in the market. It is free, and there is no obligation to list.
APPRAISAL
An appraisal is an independent valuation performed by a licensed appraiser, usually ordered by a lender during a purchase or refinance. The homeowner pays for it, often several hundred dollars. The appraiser inspects the property inside and out, reviews comparable sales, and produces a formal report. An appraisal serves the lender. A broker valuation serves you, and is the right starting point when you are deciding whether and when to sell.
The four reasons owners around here ask
BEFORE YOU LIST
The first two weeks on market decide most outcomes. An overpriced listing collects showings and no offers, then takes a price cut that signals weakness to every buyer watching. Knowing the real number before you list is the difference between one strong offer round and three months of drift.
SELL OR HOLD
If you own a two or three family, or a condo you moved out of and kept, the question is rarely just what it is worth. It is whether the equity works harder sold or held. That calculation needs today's market value, current rents, and a realistic view of what the building will need over the next five years.
ESTATE PLANNING
When a property has to be divided, everyone needs to agree on one number. A written broker opinion of value gives you a defensible figure to work from, backed by closed comparable sales rather than an online estimate anyone can dispute.
TAXES
Massachusetts towns reassess on their own schedule, and assessments do not always track the market. If your assessed value looks high relative to what comparable homes are actually selling for, a current valuation is the first thing you need to file an abatement.
Not Sure Which Number You Need?
Browse the recent sales near you.
