Valuing Upstate
I’ve recently presented two offers from downstate buyers who were certain they had accurately calculated the value of the upstate properties they wanted.
Both their offers were soundly rejected by the sellers as unrealistically low.
I tried to warn them.
It’s the same reason Zillow’s estimate of value is pretty accurate in suburban areas, and so horribly wrong in rural ones. Each area is different, and you have to know the area to understand values.
Closer to an urban area, value is easy to calculate. Commute time, house size and condition, lot size, and connections to mass transit equal value.
But upstate, where commute times mean nothing, how do you figure out what a property is worth?
A simple square footage and per acre calculation won’t do it. The same house with the same land in one town may be worth as much as twenty percent less than its twin in another town.
My town, Franklin, has become a draw for downstate buyers, mostly by word of mouth. It is lovely, it is historic, and it has the Franklin Stage, a professional theatre. But that doesn’t fully explain its appeal.
Franklin is also handy to two college towns. It’s within a reasonable distance of the much pricier Cooperstown. Cooperstown, known for the Baseball Hall of Fame, offers not only Saratoga-quality Victorian architecture, but a pristine lake and a booming summer rental market for families going to the nearby Dreams Park, which draws young baseball players from around the country.
How would you know about Franklin unless you had a local realtor? Chances are, you wouldn’t. And if you tried to bid low on a house here, you’d lose.
There are a lot of Franklins sprinkled throughout upstate New York. If you’re house shopping upstate, a local realtor can guide you to them. And give you good advice on values.
The Internet’s great. But there are some things that still require the human touch.